Ronald Reagan Quote

"Our federal tax system is, in short, utterly impossible,
utterly unjust and completely counterproductive,
[it] reeks with injustice and is fundamentally un-American...
it has earned a rebellion and it's time we rebelled."

by:	Ronald Reagan (1911-2004) 40th US President
Source:	May 1983, Williamsburg, VA
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Categories:	America, Economics, Fed, IRS, Money, Taxation
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And look what Reaganism/Bushism has done to us 25 years later. A 10 trillion dollar national debt.  -- Waffler, Smith, Arkansas      2 3
Like Reagan or not , this quote is right on.  -- jim k, austin, tx      6
-- Mike, Norwalk
I agree with this quote and I'm surprised it came from R. Reagan.If he actually said this and believed it to be true,why then did he not try to do anything about it or did he try to do something about it? I do not know.  -- Me Again, Your Town,USA.      1
Reagan alone didn't have a chance. It takes a mass movement, a general change in moral values from the people...not a lone President, to effect change. He had the right idea and tried to take it to people...but we're just too "indoctrinated" to think it through and too much in "fear", to act against it. After all, the government does use force against us in such matters, don't they? Which leads to a competition to avoid being victimized by the "benevolent" government.  -- J Carlton, Calgary      4
Waffler, through his ad hominem, can't see the forest for the trees. Who cares who said this? Nearly every quote we'll ever read will have some ironic twist to it-- men aren't perfect. I disagree with Reagan on many things, mostly his foreign policy (which was a hell of a lot more than just negotiation talks with Gorbachev--he helped establish the beginning of the neocon foreign policy), but I can accept good ideas when they are spoken. I have many associates and students around me who have started their own businesses or have taken on summer jobs wherein they can provide for every necessary college expense. They have been able to earn enough money to pay for their tuition, boarding, books, food, entertainment, and every other thing --- that is, until tax season. With the "utterly impossible, utterly unjust and completely counterproductive" tax system, I have seen these young and tenacious college students become dummied down dependents of the state! All of their hard work does nothing to advance them further ahead than their counterparts who merely suck and leech off the system! Why should they work hard to show initiative and try to advance harder if they're not going to have anything to show for it? Why should they go out and work hard to graduate debt free when government grants will do the same thing, but without the whole ordeal of actually working? How can I possibly convince these students to keep working hard to learn to provide and pay for themselves when they see their own peers getting the same financial results from just sucking off the system? Once the income tax hits these students, everything these students have worked for is gone. While they would have made enough to support themselves through college, now they are forced to become dependent upon the state if they are to stay in school. I'm not a betting man, but I would place serious money that men like Waffler have never owned or operated their own business; furthermore, I would also bet that such men would know the various and different government programs that would assist putting someone through school, buying a home, paying for a newborn child, etc. It has been said that Americans are so enamored with equality that they would rather be equal in slavery than unequal in freedom; this is the legacy of what the income tax has helped give to our country. Sadly, the irony is that we CAN be equal in freedom, but this requires an amount of personal responsibility and personal accountability that the majority of Americans are no longer willing to assume anymore. Anyone who studies international relations and politics knows that the countries that are leaving the income tax are thriving while their poor are being taken better care of -- it's time we woke up to the same fact!  -- Logan, Memphis, TN      3
Reagan was right. Blame Congress for the debt -- they are the ones that vote for money that the public has to borrow for the government to take care of them. Reagan changed his tune after Hinckley almost got him. Well said, Logan.  -- E Archer, NYC      3
I used to think that a consumption tax was the way to go; but, the problem is in the transition. The current Irs tax code is truly beyond comprehension; yet, it is written in such a way that everyone thinks his special writeoffs give him a leg up on his neighbor. What is actually happening is we all are sealing our childrens' futures!  -- Anonymous, san antonio
Reagan is no different than all men down through history that have hated taxes. Have you ever found someone who loves them. When politicians say they are going to cut taxes but they keep spending what they are doing is SELLIMG BONDS. That is what Reagan and Bush did as well as raise SOCIAL SECURITY contributions. This is how they financed the goverment, debt and robbing the "poors" social security fund.  -- Waffler, Smith, Arkansas      2
Excellent. Another example of what a president should be. If we had a government made up of people with his philosophy we would have better relations with the world, an economy booming, record tax revenue flowing into the government, and tax rates dropping. What a country it would be.  -- warren, olathe      3
Waffler ignorance is not a virtue.  -- warren, olathe      2
Reduce the size of government. please.  -- k w, california
Waffler, do your homework, Obama and this idiotic stimulus is what has railroaded America into this uber-debt. W. Bush was no Fiscal Conservative, on that we can agree, but to say that Republicans caused this deficit, your dreaming buddy. True fiscal conservatism is the only way we will work our way back into prosperity...  -- Bryan, Canyon Lake, CA      3
-- Kellie, Memphis, TN
Logan, I like the idea that people in America would rather be equal in slavery than unequal in freedom, thus we end up abhorring those who don't pay in to the support of the tyranny, instead admiring those brave enough to exempt themselves.  -- Scott, Anchorage, Alaska      3
Ignorance is not a virtue...unless you■re a democrat or an Obama supporter. 4 Feb 2010 ... President Obama is asking Congress for $708.3 billion in defense spending for fiscal year 2011. That includes a base budget of $549 billion ... President Barack Obama has proposed a federal budget that calls for $3.83 trillion in spending. President Obama's proposed budget would add more than $9.7 trillion to the national debt and huge annual deficits over 2009-2019 will result in an additional $11.1 trillion in national debt, on top of the current administrations $11.4 trillion it is accumulating.  -- Common Sense, U.S.      2
This email was sent to me from a friend and it is alarming. I have not confirmed all of the items it contains, but having watched the recent changes coming from Washington, we should all be informed and do what we can to protect our quality of life. You need to read this through to the end and be prepared, if you can. In just six months, on January 1, 2011, the largest tax hikes in the history of America will take effect. They will hit families and small businesses in three great waves. On January 1, 2011, here's what happens... (read it to the end, so you see all three waves)... First Wave: Expiration of 2001 and 2003 Tax Relief In 2001 and 2003, the GOP Congress enacted several tax cuts for investors, small business owners, and families. These will all expire on January 1, 2011. Personal income tax rates will rise. The top income tax rate will rise from 35 to 39.6 percent (this is also the rate at which two-thirds of small business profits are taxed). The lowest rate will rise from 10 to 15 percent. All the rates in between will also rise. Itemized deductions and personal exemptions will again phase out, which has the same mathematical effect as higher marginal tax rates. The full list of marginal rate hikes is below: The 10% bracket rises to an expanded 15% The 25% bracket rises to 28% The 28% bracket rises to 31% The 33% bracket rises to 36% The 35% bracket rises to 39.6% Higher taxes on marriage and family. The "marriage penalty" (narrower tax brackets for married couples) will return from the first dollar of income. The child tax credit will be cut in half from $1000 to $500 per child. The standard deduction will no longer be doubled for married couples relative to the single level. The dependent care and adoption tax credits will be cut. The return of the Death Tax. This year only, there is no death tax. (It's a quirk!) For those dying on or after January 1, 2011, there is a 55 percent top death tax rate on estates over $1 million. A person leaving behind two homes, a business, a retirement account, could easily pass along a death tax bill to their loved ones. Think of the farmers who don't make much money, but their land, which they purchased years ago with after-tax dollars, is now worth a lot of money. Their children will have to sell the farm, which may be their livelihood, just to pay the estate tax if they don't have the cash sitting around to pay the tax. Think about your own family's assets. Maybe your family owns real estate, or a business that doesn't make much money, but the building and equipment are worth $1 million. Upon their death, you can inherit the $1 million business tax free, but if they own a home, stock, cash worth $500K on top of the $1 million business, then you will owe the government $275,000 cash! That's 55% of the value of the assets over $1 million! Do you have that kind of cash sitting around waiting to pay the estate tax? Higher tax rates on savers and investors. The capital gains tax will rise from 15 percent this year to 20 percent in 2011. The dividends tax will rise from 15 percent this year to 39.6 percent in 2011. These rates will rise another 3.8 percent in 2013. Second Wave: Obamacare There are over twenty new or higher taxes in Obamacare. Several will first go into effect on January 1, 2011. They include: The "Medicine Cabinet Tax" Thanks to Obamacare, Americans will no longer be able to use health savings account (HSA), flexible spending account (FSA), or health reimbursement (HRA) pre-tax dollars to purchase non-prescription, over-the-counter medicines (except insulin). The "Special Needs Kids Tax" This provision of Obamacare imposes a cap on flexible spending accounts (FSAs) of $2500 (Currently, there is no federal government limit). There is one group of FSA owners for whom this new cap will be particularly cruel and onerous: parents of special needs children. There are thousands of families with special needs children in the United States, and many of them use FSAs to pay for special needs education. Tuition rates at one leading school that teaches special needs children in Washington , D.C. ( National Child Research Center ) can easily exceed $14,000 per year. Under tax rules, FSA dollars cannot be used to pay for this type of special needs education. The HSA (Health Savings Account) Withdrawal Tax Hike. This provision of Obamacare increases the additional tax on non-medical early withdrawals from an HSA from 10 to 20 percent, disadvantaging them relative to IRAs and other tax-advantaged accounts, which remain at 10 percent. Third Wave: The Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) and Employer Tax Hikes When Americans prepare to file their tax returns in January of 2011, they'll be in for a nasty surprise - the AMT won't be held harmless, and many tax relief provisions will have expired. The major items include: The AMT will ensnare over 28 million families, up from 4 million last year. According to the left-leaning Tax Policy Center, Congress' failure to index the AMT will lead to an explosion of AMT taxpaying families-rising from 4 million last year to 28.5 million. These families will have to calculate their tax burdens twice, and pay taxes at the higher level. The AMT was created in 1969 to ensnare a handful of taxpayers. Small business expensing will be slashed and 50% expensing will disappear. Small businesses can normally expense (rather than slowly-deduct, or "depreciate") equipment purchases up to $250,000. This will be cut all the way down to $25,000. Larger businesses can currently expense half of their purchases of equipment. In January of 2011, all of it will have to be "depreciated." Taxes will be raised on all types of businesses. There are literally scores of tax hikes on business that will take place. The biggest is the loss of the "research and experimentation tax credit," but there are many, many others. Combining high marginal tax rates with the loss of this tax relief will cost jobs. Tax Benefits for Education and Teaching Reduced. The deduction for tuition and fees will not be available. Tax credits for education will be limited. Teachers will no longer be able to deduct classroom expenses. Coverdell Education Savings Accounts will be cut. Employer-provided educational assistance is curtailed. The student loan interest deduction will be disallowed for hundreds of thousands of families. Charitable Contributions from IRAs no longer allowed. Under current law, a retired person with an IRA can contribute up to $100,000 per year directly to a charity from their IRA. This contribution also counts toward an annual "required minimum distribution." This ability will no longer be there. PDF Version Read more: http://www.atr.org/six-months-untilbr-largest-tax-hikes-a5171##ixzz0sY8waPq1 Your insurance will be included as INCOME on your W2's. One of the surprises we'll find come next year, is what follows - - a little "surprise" that 99% of us had no idea was included in the "new and improved" healthcare legislation . . . those who backed this administration will be astonished! Starting in 2011, (next year folks), your W-2 tax form sent by your employer will be increased to show the value of whatever health insurance you are given by the company. It does not matter if that's a private concern or governmental body of some sort. If you're retired? So what... your gross will go up by the amount of insurance you get. You will be required to pay taxes on a large sum of money that you have never seen. Take your tax form you just finished and see what $15,000 or $20,000 additional gross does to your tax debt. That's what you'll pay next year. For many, it also puts you into a new higher bracket so it's even worse. This is how the government is going to buy insurance for the 15% that don't have insurance and it's only part of the tax increases. Not believing this??? Here is a research of the summaries..... On page 25 of 29: TITLE IX REVENUE PROVISIONS- SUBTITLE A: REVENUE OFFSET PROVISIONS-(sec. 9001, as modified by sec. 10901) Sec.9002 "requires employers to include in the W-2 form of each employee the aggregate cost of applicable employer sponsored group health coverage that is excludable from the employees gross income." - Joan Pryde is the senior tax editor for the Kiplinger letters. - Go to Kiplingers and read about 13 tax changes that could affect you. Number 3 is what is above. New 3.8% Federal Tax on Gross Sale Price of Property Effective January 1, 2013 - sell a property - PAY A FEDERAL TAX of 3.8% on gross sales price. Doesn't matter if you make a profit on sale - it is on GROSS not net. Worse part of this from my perspective is as a new tax it is an 'opportunity' that the government can continue to exploit. No guarantee that the 3.8% won't be increased in later years - remember social security was never supposed to exceed 1%. And of course there is the second shoe - since the Federal government is applying this tax, why not the State government too? As a potential source of large bucks - it may be too attractive for States to resist.  -- J. Moore, Dalzell, SC      2
Waffler, The American dream was of individual sovereigns being free, protected in their personal rights and belongings. The second plank of the communist manifesto is as un-American, unlawful, anti-freedom, and anti-prosperity as it gets.  -- Mike, Norwalk      3
k w, anyone who expects politicians to "reduce the size of government" is whistling past the graveyard. It ain't going to happen. Government, by it's very nature, always expands, raises taxes, and further enslaves the people. The words "good" and "government " don't belong in the same sentence and you can forget about changing your government by voting. When you vote, you get that little sticker, you feel good all over and nothing in Washington changes except to get worse. Voting only encourages the bastards.  -- jim k, Austin, Tx      1
Right idea, too bad the hypocrite who said it didn't mean it.  -- Matthew, People's Republic of California      1
A tax on producers is blatantly UNconstitutional...so the progressive socialist Wilson oversaw the 17th Amendment added and "sold" it to the people with the lie it would always just be a miniscule little thing paid only by the very rich. That changed rapidly and now it loots even --especially--the middle class, the real producers and engine of our economy. It was a major first step in the progressive/Marxist foundational plank of redistribution of wealth from those who produce and consume to those who ONLY consume.  -- empty pockets, NO, La      1
Waffler, as to your socialist gods and your profit (Mr. Obamunist Goodwrench the assassin) concerning the occupying statist theocracy infesting this land, for the first time in American history more business have closed their doors than business started (every year of Obumers reign while, just last year over 70,000 more business went out of business than started). And 65% of all children are on government assisstence. Along with extreme over regulation, how's that whole 2nd plank of the communist manifesto doing for you?  -- Mike, Norwalk

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