“Were we directed from Washington when to sow, and when to reap, we should soon want bread.”
–Thomas Jefferson (Autobiography, 1821); Reference: Jefferson: Writings, Peterson ed., Library of America (74)
I’m afraid it is much worse than that. Take that loaf of bread. These are all government sanctioned items:
1. Tractor: Taxed and regulated.
2. Sod: Taxed and regulated.
3. Fertilizer: Taxed and regulated.
4. Pesticides: Taxed, regulated and banned.
5. Wheat: Forced to grow only as much as the government will allow, regulated.
6. Labor: Social Security tax, unemployment tax, disability tax, medicare tax, employment withheld taxes, etc taxes.
7. Reap: Taxed when you go to market to sell it and regulated.
8. Misc: Taxed and regulated.
So tell me. If this is what you have to go through just to get the wheat (flour), what do have to go through to get the sugar, yeast, water, salt, and if you dare to make your bread anything other than plain, fruit, oat, rye, pumpernickel, nuts, etc; add all the taxes to each product and THAT is why bread costs what it does. And you say you do not want a sales tax where you only buy what you want and the taxes you pay would be on the final product without all those hidden taxes? YOU’RE NUTS!
Anyway, it’s really bad these days, Tom. They spend like alcoholics and never sober up. Then they blame us because they can’t balance a budget. I have an idea. GIVE ME A CHANCE. I’d have that budget balanced in one year. No problem. I have a degree in Accounting, and I know it is possible. Just throw the bums out!
Cross-posted @ Rosemary’s Thoughts.
I discovered your homepage by coincidence.
Very interesting posts and well written.
I will put your site on my blogroll.
Thank you, Mike. Your site is very interesting as well. I love reading about acctg. I know it sounds it sounds weird, but there is no end to learning. Not to those of us whose desire is to live.