The Breakroom > The Water Cooler
Heads up a 25% V.A.T. coming our way in the US.
PTsideshow:
--- Quote from: John Hill on May 28, 2009, 06:08:41 PM ---Glen, the thing about an effective consumption tax such as VAT is that it applies to everyone and everything and to gain full advantage all other taxes should be scrapped. Then you are left with a system which has very low administrative overheads, requires very little enforcement and not much opportunity for cheats.
--- End quote ---
The only problem I have is that they tend to lie and then blame the other party or start something else up as misdirection. They won't remove the income tax,and it makes no difference which of the parties you are talking about.
There is the worst of the worst demon party operative that was referred to as Clinton's pit bull. He would lie and make something up about any Repub at a drop of a hat. He is married to one of the repub's top operative's that worked in the Bush's white house.
When they are asked about it when they were on a show together, they both said its not a problem or conflict of interest as party politics is separate than real life. So that says a whole lot to me! its a dupe the public game.
And they never will remove the income tax as they have said it the VAT should only be used to only pay for the universal health care in the US. And it should start at 25%. So I'm thinking that they will never change the income tax.
And they are trying to refer to the VAT as a national sales tax today on some of the stuff I read and heard.
Plus to hear them right now the N Korean deal is going to turn into another full blown confrontation.(the current misdirection) and since we have a defense treaty with S Korea we will have to do something. Which will be what the last 5 or 6 presidents did is give him more money and Johnny Walker red Scotch. :bang:
So is a good deal for you, will just become away for Washington and soon to follow the States. A way to double dip in to the tax papers pocket. :(
But that's the way it goes,
glen
PTsideshow:
--- Quote from: Bernd on May 28, 2009, 04:15:58 PM ---Glen,
I have to admit that when I first signed on this forum I thought you were a bit eccentric with all the books you posted in the "Bookshelf". I thought "Is this guy nuts or what". But you are 100% right. People don't read books any more.
Just went and checked the Bookshelve and you have about 220 books listed. Now that's a large sum of info to have.
--- End quote ---
Well that's not all of them. I think in total counting the collections of books on caving and potholing, full size steam, and model steam, circus, outdoor amusement business, magic, clowning, and props, sign painting, jewelry and the metal arts. I think the total is knocking on close to 3,000 plus books. I only have posted stuff with a wide general interest. Very little fiction other than Science Fiction,from my miss spent youth. How to's, history and single subject type books.
I was posting ship and modeling books on the two big model boat sites but, due to other issues have gotten behind.
But you got to love the used bookstore and remainder sale sites. Plus I have been collecting books for 50 years. My wife says "That I have never met a book I didn't like!" :lol: :lol: and she not far wrong There are very few books that I have not held once I bought them!
And to answer your question in the above quote I prefer the term Eccentric! :clap: :ddb:
glen
John Hill:
No matter what the country Glen changes to taxation are always times of stress and raised voices!
We still have income tax, but my rate is about 1/3rd of what it was pre-GST. Some adjustments take some time, for example people who paid (in our case) 60% sales tax on a new car tend to get grumpy when the tax is taken off and the value of their posession drops accordingly, but these things can be got around the end result is better and fairer taxation overall, or at least it was for us.
25% is a huge consumption tax to fund health, ours is 12.5% and our health is funded (not to everyone's satisfaction) plus we have reasonably generous (some say too generous) health and universal pension schemes.
I can only think if 25% is really being considered they are expecting a lot of exemptions, in Australia (and I may be corrected on this) raw meat does not attract GST but cooked meat does, or is it cut meat? There is the daft situtation in Oz that if you buy a cooked chicken from the supermarket and a loaf of bread there would be no GST, but if the chicken was still hot there would be GST on the chicken because that is 'ready to eat', a chicken sandwhich always attracts GST. Administration of such a system destroys all the "advantages" of GST/VAT.
For most of us tax is an unavoidable evil but if we have to have a tax system a uniform, no exemptions, no exceptions consumption tax is the fairest and most effective and efficient as well.
Of course you dont have to pay income tax in North Korea (which I visited late last century) and health care there is free too. But I suggest not to get too concerned about North Korea. Regarding the last few US Presidents and North Korea, well just let me say that is a very interesting subject with more players than one might think, well worth the study which should cover the period from about 1905.
PTsideshow:
They are talking no exemptions, and since they are hedging their bets with the recurring use of National sales tax wording. It sounds like they are going to go for every penny they can.
An I understand about N Korea, but they have trotted out the current Army Chief General Casey 4 hours ago Army chief: US able to fight N Korea if necessary
WASHINGTON — The United States could fight an old-fashioned war against North Korea if necessary, even while newer forms of conflict against terrorists and extremists continue, the Army's top officer said Thursday.
Asked whether the United States would be prepared to fight if war broke out between South Korea and North Korea, Gen. George Casey replied, "The short answer is yes," then added that "it would probably take us a little bit longer to shift gears" away from the type of counterinsurgency fighting that now occupies the Army.
He also said this further into the story:
Casey, the Army's chief of staff, suggested that war with the nuclear-armed North might not be the old-style land war that U.S. forces stationed in South Korea were envisioned to fight. He did not elaborate, but he was presumably referring to the possibility that the North might use or threaten to use its proven nuclear capability.
So they have their miss direction in place when the boys and girls get back to Washington to serve their self interests..... :doh: I mean the interest of the people :lol: :lol: :lol:
Good night Gracie where ever you are!
glen
John Hill:
Glen, no exemptions is good (if anything about a tax can be good) in that it indicates a fair chance of a sucessful system free from cheats and burdensome overheads, 25% is really high though, I dont think I have ever heard of such a rate.
Anyone considering a military adventure in North Korea should bear in mind that they have been digging in for 50 years, almost all citizens have access to air raid shelters some of which are very deep. There are so many tunnels under Pyongyang that it must be like a swiss cheese down there. Another thing to bear in mind is that they have a considerable number (I have seen an estimate of 2000) artillery pieces individually dugin within range of Seoul, presumably if hostilities were declared each gun would continue firing until the ammunition is exhausted or the gun destroyed.
On the other hand, if North Korea military stepped out to attack anyone they quite likely would not need to take their lunch with them.
Precis: They are not likely to attack anyone but will put up a hell of a fight if anyone attacks them. In my humble opinion of course.
Oh, and what ground does anyone think the US would have to attack the DPRK?
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