From Liberty to Nanny State

Are there limits to taxation?  As we wrap up what has been a good year (in terms of taxes) the prospects for the period ahead are troubling indeed.

We jump into a discussion of the “right role of government” after our final ChartPack for 2020 and some headlines worth mentioning.  Including a pile of economic data releases just out.

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24 thoughts on “From Liberty to Nanny State”

  1. Forget the Georgian Republicans they’re no help. Don’t get me wrong “Republicans” do have a sweet slogan, “Conservatives” but in practice forget it.

    Even Homeboy Cruz, such a Conservative darling, funneled loot to his sponsors in the last bailout.

    “Ted Cruz Got $35 Million For Billionaire Fracking Donors In Last COVID-19 Aid: Report”

    “It’s only $35,000,000.”

    • “Republicans” do have a sweet slogan”

      All political parties have sweet slogans.. unfortunately.. they are all convinced early on to follow the broad path of the beltway political process.. what I think is that no one goes in to do a rotten job. They go in with the image of making broad vast positive changes to a broken system placing them in history as the knights in shining armor.

  2. HideyHo -dsGeorge,

    – gotta winnawinnachickendinnah of an investment strategy for Ure reading pleasure – well not deepstates per-say, as U already be an “Oscar”. Year end investment performance review has generated the following idea:

    – Re-balance the IRA , taking some profits and losses – Convert to ROTH,if not already converted – Re-Invest >50% in GBTC-the Grayscale Bitcoin trust. Deal with “taxable” Gains in the future – just like Con-gress.

    After all – Its one big Con.

    – just like ret. Israeli Defense Minister recently admitted – except the “Federation” of Worlds Council he spoke of is DIS-INFO designed to CONFUSE.

    – they are working with Orions & Dracos aka tall whites and reptos = The Farmers/Ranchers of Humanity.

    -that dark & vile uneasy “federation” – the Deal – advanced tech – 4 food, cept We beesthefood.

    But U already knew that – just like U knew TRUMPS Tax break was REGRESSIVE – just like U swore up and down how he hosed the middle classes in favor of the Richie Riches of this world.

    How the lying scum/ Orange-man-bad/DST’s gonna splain the following:https://libertarianhub.com/2020/12/29/trumps-tax-cut-turned-out-to-be-progressive-a-few-lessons-for-illinois-and-beyond/

    Hooray 4 Polident elect bribem & his side blow – now where did I put the 5 gallon tub of anal-ez ?

    https://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/the-american-system-is-one-big-grift/

    All together now -“nonono I dont want no Bitcoins nomore- tired of waking up with Gross profits in my account”..

  3. Those ‘top heavy’ taxers in your graph (countries paying the most taxes per capita) are also the HAPPIEST! (Hint: the sinister motives of Socialism, like caring for the poor, may be the biggest bliss giver there is…you know that 2nd Commandment b.s…..)
    https://www.forbes.com/sites/heikkivaananen/2020/05/26/what-makes-finland-the-happiest-country-in-the-world/?sh=7a73363475cc

    ‘love thy neighbor as thyself’, Matthew 22, King James Bible:
    https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/k/kjv/kjv-idx?type=citation&book=Matthew&chapno=22&startverse=34&endverse=40

    • http://world.tax-rates.org/denmark/income-tax
      https://www.justlanded.com/english/Denmark/Denmark-Guide/Jobs/Tax

      Now.. they are listed as one of the higher taxed nations.. but take another look.. we tax much much more.. they have a basic tax OVER poverty level..
      We would be toing great to.. IF… we quit giving it all away.. what is it ten times what we invest in our own country goes out to buy friendships with people that could give two cents about our well being.. that hate us for how we act… if we cut the write offs.. and tax deductions that are there just for the wealthy and went a similar tax structure as Denmark.. we to would be one of the happier countries.. it would require change and no one in the USA Congress wants it to change..

      • Taxes as a share of GDP:
        https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/briefing-book/how-do-us-taxes-compare-internationally

        loob, the Finns are not Denmark, try some accuracy in your rebuttal,
        Finland starts it’s top tax rate (58.4%) at 1.9x the average wage, U.S. starts top tax rate (46%) at 9.3x the average wage, yes Virginia, the rich get richer in the U.S.!
        https://www.americanexperiment.org/2019/12/finland-is-a-high-tax-country-because-its-taxes-everybody-heavily/#:~:text=In%20Finland%2C%20the%20top%20marginal,the%20average%20wage%20(%24511%2C047).&text=It%20was%2015.4%25%20in%20the%20US.

        Foreign Aid constitutes 1% of the budget, not your xenophobic fictional 25% (what most think it is)
        https://www.brookings.edu/policy2020/votervital/what-every-american-should-know-about-us-foreign-aid/

        don’t forget Donny nearly gave away the store ($2.3 trillion tax cuts, adding to the deficit)
        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_federal_budget

      • “Finland starts it’s top tax rate (58.4%) at 1.9x the average wage, U.S. starts top tax rate (46%) at 9.3x the average wage, yes Virginia, the rich get richer in the U.S.!”

        Yes it does How you look at taxes..
        but take a deeper look at those tax structures…its deceiving.. it looks as if their tax is higher but how the USA figures it is by breaking it apart into several taxes and nailing everyone from different directions..the only ones that benefit are those at the very top.. flat tax no deductions over poverty level do away with tax free enterprise..many hide it in their companies. even if you live outside the USA if you make a buck you pay a buck.. tax incoming goods and services. Tax companies that outsource .. tax automation robotics .
        Now look at the usa..and our taxes..

        Federal income tax
        State income tax
        Local income tax
        Employee social security tax (your employer pays the other half)
        Employee Medicare tax (your employer pays the other half)
        Property taxes
        Road toll charges
        State sales tax
        Driver’s license renewal fee
        TV Cable/Satellite fees & taxes
        Federal telephone surtax, excise tax, and universal surcharge
        State telephone excise tax and surcharge
        Telephone minimum usage and recurring/nonrecurring charges tax
        Gas/electric bill fees & taxed
        Water/sewer fees & taxes
        Cigarette tax
        Alcohol tax
        Federal gasoline tax
        State gasoline tax
        Local gasoline tax
        Federal inheritance tax
        State inheritance tax
        Gift tax
        Bridge toll charges
        Marriage license
        Hunting license
        Fishing license
        Bike license fee
        Dog permit/license
        State park permit
        Watercraft registration & licensing fees
        Sports stadium tax
        Bike/nature trail permit
        Court case filing fee
        Retirement account early withdrawal penalty
        Individual health insurance mandate tax
        Hotel stay tax
        Plastic surgery surcharge
        Soda/fatty-food tax
        Air transportation tax
        Electronic transmission of tax return fees
        Passport application/renewal fee
        Luxury & gas-guzzler car taxes
        New car surcharge
        License plate and car ownership transfer taxes
        Yacht and luxury boat taxes
        Jewelry taxes & surcharges
        State/local school tax
        Recreational vehicle tax
        Special assessments for road repairs or construction
        Gun ownership permit
        Kiddie tax (IRS form 8615)
        Fuel gross receipts tax
        Waste Management tax
        Oil and gas assessment tax
        Use taxes (on out-of-state purchase)
        IRA rollover tax/withdrawal penalties
        Tax on non-qualified health saving account distributions

        Individual and small business surtax (page 336 of Obamacare)
        Estimated income tax underpayment penalty
        Alternative Minimum Tax on income
        Business Taxes & Fees
        Federal corporate income tax
        State corporate income tax
        Tax registration fee for new businesses
        Employer social security tax
        Employer Medicare tax
        Federal unemployment tax
        State unemployment tax
        Business registration renewal tax
        Worker’s compensation tax
        Tax on imported/exported goods
        Oil storage/inspection fees
        Employer health insurance mandate tax
        Excise Tax on Charitable Hospitals (page 2001/Sec. 9007 of Obamacare)
        Tax on Innovator Drug Companies (Page 2010/Sec. 9008 of Obamacare)
        Tax on Medical Device Manufacturers (Page 2020/Sec. 9009 of Obamacare)
        Tax on Health Insurers (Page 2026/Sec. 9010 of Obamacare)
        Excise Tax on Comprehensive Health Insurance Plans, i.e. “Cadillac” plans
        Tax on indoor tanning services
        Utility users tax
        Internet transaction fee (passed in California; being considered in other states and at federal level)
        Professional license fee (accountants, lawyers, barbers, dentists, plumbers, etc.)
        Franchise business tax
        Tourism and concession license fee
        Wiring inspection fees
        Household employment tax
        Biodiesel fuel tax
        FDIC tax (insurance premium on bank deposits)
        Electronic waste recycling fee
        Hazardous material disposal fee
        Food & beverage license fee
        Estimated income tax underpayment penalty
        Building/construction permit
        Zoning permit
        Fire inspection fee
        Well permit tax
        Sales and Use tax seller’s permit
        Commercial driver’s license fee
        Bank ATM transaction tax
        Occupation taxes and fees (annual charges required for a host of professions)

        I just tossed 600 out the window on useless mandated charges.. I could save 2 plus dollars an hour paid out for schools..

      • What is the true cost of an apple..
        Follow the pyramid..of taxes.. I buy an apple fifty cents..four cents sales tax now take a peek at the hidden taxes..I drive it home and pay the average gas tax is evened out to what 24 cents..
        The tire disposal tax is five dollars road tax etc.. after it’s broken down that fifty cent apple from the time of your purchase evens out to a dollar and fourteen cents and that’s if you don’t cook it or prepare it for any other purpose.
        Now back that fifty cents apple back to the farm..what is the true value of that fifty cent apple to the owner of the orchard. It can get pretty dam interesting if you really dig into it.

      • “don’t forget Donny nearly gave away the store ($2.3 trillion tax cuts, adding to the deficit)”

        The deficit will increase exponentially no matter who the president is … the interest on the deficit.. we need to cut the rope on international aid.. stop our military intervention into other peoples problems and focus on our own.our infrastructure is in a shambles .. we are set for multiple systems failure at any time. Now. I seriously think it’s to late.. we have outsourced so much that at this point I doubt we can stop what is coming..
        Of course that is just how I see it.. and I ama nobody so some really smart men could creatively figure this out.. forty million foreclosures. Not counting the people about to default on credit card costs.. the cost of covid that will show up on next years books.. the loss of tax revenue..
        For meat the bottom it looks pretty scary.. I can only imagine what it looks like for them on the high driving board.. stocks bonds cash about to devalue to unimaginable low values..or to new heights.. only time will tell in my opinion..

      • loob, don’t look too far outside your box…the facts are out there!!

        2020 (with Covid costs), largest deficit since 1945 (16% of GDP). If Trump had immediately responded to the virus in a responsible manner, it may have been a much lower amount…
        https://www.marketwatch.com/story/u-s-budget-deficit-to-hit-record-3-3-trillion-this-year-cbo-says-11599070944

        Trump inherited a booming economy, had to mess that up, added $1 trillion to the deficit (before Covid costs), Obama shrunk the deficit, after healing a weak economy!)\
        https://www.forbes.com/sites/chuckjones/2020/02/01/trumps-deficits-are-racing-past-obamas/?sh=4e5cf6fe4819

      • “If Trump had immediately responded to the virus in a responsible manner, it may have been a much lower amount…”

        I agree .. TFAOT…Trump should have gone option 1..large and in charge… instead of option 2..
        I also see the reasonings as to why Trump went the way he did.I think If he had gone option one..froze the velocity of cash during the shutdown.no gain no loss.. left only essential services stopped all transportation and went the rations route..the virus would not be as costly. A couple of months and everything could boot back up.. But I think with that runs a Complete different set of fears.. that could open the doors for a different form of government than what we are accustomed to..

    • give up the cigarettes Len they are bad for your health….
      Don’t switch it to doughnuts either..fried foods are bad for you and in the ghetto everyone will suspect you are a plain clothes police officer and you would be attacked if you drove through there….

  4. yep thats your reason for your little game of madness . war.. you dont destroy the USD and have negative divergence to yellow dog or the stocks without something huge . no buy signal

  5. Excellent report today. Sad, but sobering, thought-provoking, highly valuable content. And very well written, love your style. Thank you.

  6. “Ure crazy! That wouldn’t be legal.”

    …And now the “Founders’ Loophole” has a chance to finally bite us all!

    It is generally understood amongst scholars that the Constitution must be taken along with the Declaration of Independence, as the Law of our land. This is why learned historians refer, not just to the Constitution, but to our “Founding Documents.”

    “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and Property (or “Estate.”)…”

    Jefferson and the others wrestled with this for months. He wanted to codify a Right to own Real and Personal property, but not slavery, or an absolute right to own the fruits of another’s labor. (IMO Jefferson was a student of Locke, but recognized his as an ideal, and not attainable in Colonial America at the point in-time in which he lived.) He eventually settled on “the Pursuit of Happiness,” a phrase George Mason enshrined in the Virginia Declaration and which Ben Franklin favored.

    It is this “Pursuit of Happiness” phrase in our Founding Documents, which would make Federal property taxation legal. The Constitution sets limits on what government can do. Because “property” (Jefferson), “Estate” (Locke), or “Dower” (English common law) are not specifically excluded from the reach of our government, the intent of the phrase can be bastardized, and a tax (or other levy) imposed…

  7. Surely they jest? New Year’s Day fare on the movie channels features Contagion, Outbreak, and Andromeda Strain.

    Locally one hopes for further advice on any extension to provincial code red restrictions set to end Jan. 8th pending the return from holiday break by the chief medical officer. There appears to be an increase of pet grooming service ads on Kijiji. Pets are allowed to have a haircut under the lock down, but people can’t.

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