And no matter how many times I’ve filed them (I’m old so a lot), and no matter how sophisticated and whizbang the tax software gets, I always get a bad feeling when I’m done, that I haven’t done them correctly.
It could have something to do with my lifelong fear of any number greater than a single digit, I suppose.
Mostly that bad feeling is to no avail and everything works out fine. At least the feds haven’t come down on me yet.
But this time that bad feeling was spot on because seconds, seriously, mere seconds, after submitting my return I got an email from the tax filing service stating that my return had been rejected by the IRS.
The rejection turned out to be for a silly, easy to fix reason, but the experience left me wondering, if the IRS already knows the math, why do we have to bother to solve for the solution…
I mean, why in this whizbang day and age do I even have to do my taxes?
Is it really just so I have some skin in the game, as the silly mostly right-leaning politicians like to say?
Okay, I can understand large corporations and extremely high earners having to be obliged to keep intricate records and be in close communication with the feds…
But why must a poor swine like myself? Surely, it must cost the government more money than it makes to track the anemic, trickling cash flow of someone in my tax bracket.
And while we’re on the topic, doesn’t it seem a little immoral and against the laws of nature to tax the fruits of one’s labor?
I mean, I’m not against taxes, I understand their need, but it just doesn’t seem right getting taxed/penalized for what we earn to make our living, for our efforts to be constructive citizens.
Why not tax the hell out of us for what we consume like most of the states do? I’m all for a sales/consumption tax, provided it’s not for the purchase of basic needs that people smarter than me would have to determine what would qualify as a need, basic and/or otherwise. And for sure tax the complete hell, every speck of it, out of luxury items.
Again, I’m no numbers guy and I’m not saying an income tax isn’t the best way to fund our federal needs, and I know there’s the whole thing about taxes needing to be progressive and all that, I’m just saying an income tax just seems such an unnatural, immoral way to fund our societal needs, that’s all I’m saying.
Anyway…
Until next year.*
*Sure hope I don’t end up getting audited for this. And speaking of income, don’t forget all my books are free today! I need the reviews, yo!
Thank goodness for our PAYE system (pay as you earn) As a general rule of thumb in 2023, you should be paying 0 per cent on any earnings up to £12,570, 20 per cent on anything between £12,571 – £37,700 and 40 per cent on earnings between £37,701 – £150,000. You pay 45 per cent on anything you earn over £150,001. Of course, those who earn mega bucks employ an accountant to ensure they pay as little as possible!
Still, it’s a tax on productivity and that inherently seems weird to me.
Me too.