Barbara Boxer Is Basically A Tea Bagger Now So Whatya Gonna Do, Carly Fiorina? @1:24 PM
Nutty iCarly Carleton Sneed Fiorina, she of the demon sheep, is coming hot and heavy for Barb Boxer in the upcoming California Senate race. BUT NOW here is The Box giving the people what they want: TAX AND/OR KILL THE BANKERS! (Mostly tax.) She and Jim Webb have proposed a new 50% tax on all bonuses, under the newspeak name of the Taxpayer Fairness Act, introduced today, and now the Republicans have to come out… in favor… of FAT CAT WALL STREET BONUS SEASON. Do watch Rachel Maddow tonight for extra giggling about how the Republicrats have to turn their backs on MAIN STREET thanks to their (probably Jewish) WALL STREET backers. 6
Crazy Oregon Very Slightly Taxes Wealthy Citizens and Corporations to Fund Schools and Public Services @10:00 AM
In light of Barack Obama's pretty bullshit spending freeze scheme—you know, the one that affects programs like "air traffic control, farm subsidies, education, nutrition and national parks"—the success of two ballot initiatives in Oregon yesterday are fascinating! The state will raise, by nearly two whopping percentage points, taxes on households that earn more than $250,000 a year (which, in Oregon, is basically the equivalent of three miiilllllion New York City dollars) and will also raise the state's minimum corporate income tax. How radical! No wait, let's take a closer look at that one. Since 1931, all businesses in Oregon have been required to pay a minimum of $10 a year in tax. (TEN DOLLARS.) That minimum tax amount, for corporations making up to half a million a year, will now be $150. It also increases very minimally the filing fees for businesses, and increases, very slightly, tax rates on large and profitable companies. And all of this excludes sole proprietors. How did a crummy state like Oregon come up with such a mind-blowing idea? Maybe other people will try this so that "air traffic controllers" and "nutrition" can continue to exist. 11
Goldman Sachs Overcorrects A Decade of Employee Compensation Trending @10:35 AM
For the first time since no one is sure when, Goldman Sachs has altered its general formula of close to a 50/25/25 annual net revenue allocation (in which, give or take, 50% goes to the employees, 25% is (sort of) set aside for taxes and 25% is retained for the company). This year? In what is being described as a PR move, just a bit over 35% is going to bonuses. (2009's net revenue comes to $45.2 billion, so $16.2 billion is set aside for employees.) In the last ten years, the compensation rate has never dipped below 44% of net revenues. READ MORE 4
"Successful New Yorkers" To Be Screwed By Obama, Say 'Post'! @9:30 AM
I saw this morning's New York Post and it raised in me a great interest! "Successful New Yorkers" will pay 57% tax under Obama, says the front page of the paper! (Their alleged "front page" online says something different than on newsstands; in that universe, only New York's "risk takers" will pay 57% tax.) Well, I am a highly successful New Yorker! I am concerned! What does this mean for me? READ MORE 33
Stupid New Tax On The Self-Employed In New York @1:00 PM
The MTA is also quietly screwing freelancers.
You know: along with everyone else. So Governor Paterson was glad-handing folks outside the subways this morning, and it's a miracle no one took a swing at him. Last night the New York State Senate passed the heinous stupid MTA bill, which no one likes. Here's one more reason to hate the MTA taxing jobs: there's an additional self-employment tax! Yes, make sure you kick all the people who just got laid off who are trying to start small businesses. (Cough!) Spotted by an eagle-eyed smart friend, the self-employment tax is ludicrous. READ MORE 13
Rich People Things: Understanding How Obama Is Not Robbing The Rich For His Scary Social Agenda @3:11 PM
Be vigilant, America—your entrepreneurs are on the hook for bigger tax payments! That was the plain moral of an addled page one dispatch from this morning's Washington Post. The bulk of the piece, by Lori Montgomery and V. Dion Hayes, plies the heart-wrenching tale of one Gail Johnson, who operates a multistate chain of preschools out of Richmond, Virginia, and as the possessor of $500,000-plus annual income, faces the prospect of a 19 percent increase in her tax liability, from $120,000 to $143,000.
Never mind that Johnson's resourceful accountant, who has supplied these estimates, has her down for $90,000 in annual deductions—or indeed, that he avers that his client "is unlikely to owe any federal taxes this year due to accounting changes that confer a one-time benefit"—a detail that Montgomery and Hayes leave until, oh, the 20th paragraph of the piece to relate. READ MORE 26
Bernie Kerik: All Cops Nationwide Agree With Teabagging! @11:11 AM
This video is hysterical. Illegal immigrant nanny-hirer, indicted liar-to-the-IRS and former New York City top cop Bernie Kerik went on Fox News' Red Eye last night and talked about how awesome the teabagger anti-tax protests were. I can't even tell if host Greg Gutfeld is pranking him or being serious or what, but you can tell he is dying inside. The best part is when Kerik says, "I would say there aren't many cops in the New York City police department, or police officers anywhere in this country, that don't agree with the people that were out there." 0
Business Policy Institute Very Much Against Taxes @3:30 PM
A bunch of finance bloggers are passing around a chart from the "Public Policy Institute of New York" that shows, with data from up to 2006, that New York's personal and tax burdens are the highest in the nation's, and also the state spends a lot of money! OMG! "New York To Become Ghost Town After Largest Tax Hike In History?" asks a blogger! Taxes Bleed New Yorkers Dry, claims Clusterstock! READ MORE 0
