It is tax time, my least favorite time of year, but a time that cannot be avoided. The Federal tax code is over 5 million words and it changes every year. Seriously?
Each year I invest many hours cleaning up the books, digging around in the records and filling out tax forms, trying to minimize my tax bill. As strange at it sounds, the real work is more in strategy and research, than mechanism. Anyone can plug numbers into a tax program, the art is in designing your life around the convoluted tax code to minimize your exposure, and that is something your accountant can't do for you when you hand them a box of receipts at the end of the year. I figure I make more money per hour optimizing my taxes and doing them myself than any other activity I do during the year.
This week I have been listening to an audio course on imperial China, and had to smile as the area of taxes were discussed. Imperial China has existed long before the time of the Roman's and has for most of that time led the world in technological advancements. But for all that success, the peasants—the regular people—felt the emperor was very far away and taxes were the main effect the people felt of his presence. There were some public work projects and there was support for farming and education, but often the people felt that the burden of the taxes far outweighed those benefits.
In comparison, our governments today are imposing monstrous tax burdens, both directly and indirectly, through dangerous fiscal policy. For the average people the benefits seem just as limited and unimportant as 2000 years ago in imperial China and the result then was unrest and revolt. There are massive programs to help special people, to create more special jobs to control the press, the workplace, and our daily lives. But the benefits for average people? I just don't see them. They may as well be non-existent much like my sanity this time of year.
The transportation department used to fix potholes. Now they reimburse drivers who suffer damage to their cars from hitting potholes. That pretty well sums up the change in spending priorities, and I am tired of working so hard to pay taxes that don't seem to really benefit anyone but just keep applying band-aids to all problems. When I was a boy, we sent men to the walk on the moon, a first for humans and a great source of national pride and an effort that spawned much innovation. Spending my hard earned money today to send a crew to the moon AGAIN, all these years later, just so we can do it with a crew of greater diversity is just stupid. Its like a bad movie remake. Can't they think of something new to do? Something that might actually have some direct benefit for the human race?
Forgive my ranting. It is tax time, and every year at this time I cannot help myself.
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