FYI – More Trump Tax Bill Facts –
Small business owners, did you know that under the #TrumpTaxScam you will NOT be able to DEDUCT business expenses?
You might want to check this out.
“America was never white, & never will be. There's only one race: the human race.” Dr Willie Parker
1st Amendment - Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Wednesday, November 29, 2017
Friday, November 24, 2017
Tax Reform
FYI – I sent the message below to my Congressional Delegation (Senator Murkowski, Senator Sullivan and Representative Young). I am copying you that you might use this for your communication with your Senators/Representative. Remember you can contact all of YOUR Members of Congress. Call 202-224-3121, enter your Zip Code and you will be directed to the right office. You can leave messages.
I believe the House version of Tax Reform is disappointing! I want my opinion to be heard across Congress in the hopes that the tax changes really do help the 99% and not the 1%!
The Trump Tax Reform bill has a few terrible ideas:
1) guts Medicare to the tune of $23 billion-as a 71yo retiree this directly impacts my healthcare options; while I have excellent health, I love the Medicare benefits that allow me to continue a healthy life
2) eliminates the Affordable Care Act Mandate, which in essence destroys health care for millions of Alaskans/Americans-this impacts my family but not me personally
3) attacks a woman’s right to determine her own reproductive health issues-again this impacts my family but not me personally
4) removes deductions for:
a) mortgage interest-will have an adverse impact on the housing industry and discourage home purchases/sales (depending on which side of the deal you are on)
b) charitable contributions-can have a devastating impact on organizations that are picking up the slack as a result of defunding form the Trump administration
c) state taxes (income and sales)-Alaskans currently do not have state-wide sales tax nor an income tax but the state legislature has been toying with income tax in recent sessions. So, the elimination of that deduction could impact Alaskans in the future.
None of these directly address the fact that the bill is designed for the 1% not the 99%. You might be in an upper income bracket and personally benefit from these “reforms.” But 99% of Alaskans/Americans will not benefit.
Please do not vote for any tax reforms that include the items above! Please protect us, your constituents, from a greater tax burden under the fake heading of “tax reform.”
“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.” – Maya Angelou
1st Amendment - Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
I believe the House version of Tax Reform is disappointing! I want my opinion to be heard across Congress in the hopes that the tax changes really do help the 99% and not the 1%!
The Trump Tax Reform bill has a few terrible ideas:
1) guts Medicare to the tune of $23 billion-as a 71yo retiree this directly impacts my healthcare options; while I have excellent health, I love the Medicare benefits that allow me to continue a healthy life
2) eliminates the Affordable Care Act Mandate, which in essence destroys health care for millions of Alaskans/Americans-this impacts my family but not me personally
3) attacks a woman’s right to determine her own reproductive health issues-again this impacts my family but not me personally
4) removes deductions for:
a) mortgage interest-will have an adverse impact on the housing industry and discourage home purchases/sales (depending on which side of the deal you are on)
b) charitable contributions-can have a devastating impact on organizations that are picking up the slack as a result of defunding form the Trump administration
c) state taxes (income and sales)-Alaskans currently do not have state-wide sales tax nor an income tax but the state legislature has been toying with income tax in recent sessions. So, the elimination of that deduction could impact Alaskans in the future.
None of these directly address the fact that the bill is designed for the 1% not the 99%. You might be in an upper income bracket and personally benefit from these “reforms.” But 99% of Alaskans/Americans will not benefit.
Please do not vote for any tax reforms that include the items above! Please protect us, your constituents, from a greater tax burden under the fake heading of “tax reform.”
“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.” – Maya Angelou
1st Amendment - Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Wednesday, November 22, 2017
What Are You Thankful For?
In keeping with my year long emails. . . This Thanksgiving, I am thankful for the fact that I live in a country where I can:
1) send these emails out to each of you,
2) call my Congressional Delegation (on almost a daily basis),
3) march for changes that I believe will truly make us a better people,
4) petition the government for actions/changes without threat or danger exactly because of the 1st Amendment to the US Constitution!
I’m thankful that I can support Net Neutrality. Here are some twitter entries that helped me (a techie) to understand what Net Neutrality really means for each of us.
“Without #NetNeutrality your ISP can:
1. Charge you extra to reach certain websites.
2. Slow down streaming services like Netflix that compete with their streaming services.
3. Block some websites altogether.
This is the end of the free and open Internet.
(https://twitter.com/billprady/status/933023707135582208?s=03)”
“Let me explain net neutrality in the most horrific way:
if FCC dismantles it, and you get internet from Verizon, they may force you to use YAHOO as your search engine (because they own it), but PAY to use GOOGLE. Would you like that? If not, you SUPPORT #NetNeutrality.
(https://twitter.com/Tom_Nikl/status/933080543352070144?s=03)”
Net Neutrality protects our 1st Amendment rights to freedom of speech. Think about it! If you feel the same way, you can contact all of YOUR Members of Congress. Call 202-224-3121, enter your Zip Code and you will be directed to the right office. You can leave messages.
“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.” – Maya Angelou
1st Amendment - Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
1) send these emails out to each of you,
2) call my Congressional Delegation (on almost a daily basis),
3) march for changes that I believe will truly make us a better people,
4) petition the government for actions/changes without threat or danger exactly because of the 1st Amendment to the US Constitution!
I’m thankful that I can support Net Neutrality. Here are some twitter entries that helped me (a techie) to understand what Net Neutrality really means for each of us.
“Without #NetNeutrality your ISP can:
1. Charge you extra to reach certain websites.
2. Slow down streaming services like Netflix that compete with their streaming services.
3. Block some websites altogether.
This is the end of the free and open Internet.
(https://twitter.com/billprady/status/933023707135582208?s=03)”
“Let me explain net neutrality in the most horrific way:
if FCC dismantles it, and you get internet from Verizon, they may force you to use YAHOO as your search engine (because they own it), but PAY to use GOOGLE. Would you like that? If not, you SUPPORT #NetNeutrality.
(https://twitter.com/Tom_Nikl/status/933080543352070144?s=03)”
Net Neutrality protects our 1st Amendment rights to freedom of speech. Think about it! If you feel the same way, you can contact all of YOUR Members of Congress. Call 202-224-3121, enter your Zip Code and you will be directed to the right office. You can leave messages.
“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.” – Maya Angelou
1st Amendment - Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Saturday, November 18, 2017
Journalist Last Column
One of my college jobs was as a “gofer” for my hometown printing company. The owner/boss was Fred Dickey. I had various tasks that I was assigned. On Wednesdays, I would drive to a larger printing office in Princeton with the newly engraved plates for the weekly edition of the newspaper, wait for the run to be completed and then return to distribute the papers. I also babysat Fred’s children on week-end nights. Fred sold me my first car – Dodge with push button transmission (does anyone remember those cars?). There were enough redeemable bottles in the trunk to pay for the car (purchase price $20).
Fast forward to Anchorage – After teaching for 10 years, I went back to school and got a degree in Computer Science. Then I got my first job with a local company, Computer Consultants of Alaska (CCA). The company put a “new hire” announcement in one of the local papers. A few days later, I got a congratulatory call from Fred Dickey. He was now Managing Editor of the Anchorage Times.
Fast forward again to San Diego – We have been staying here on and off annually since we first discovered this park (Santee Lakes Regional Park) in 2008. The local paper is the Union-Tribune. Lo and behold, Fred Dickey had a weekly column about people around the San Diego area. I always meant to get in touch with him and reminisce about our history. When we got back here at the end of October, I noticed that his Monday column was missing. I soon discovered this, his last column. Since its focus is on the 1st Amendment, I wanted to share it and validate the author’s credibility! (http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sd-me-fred-dickey-20170920-story.html)
So, it really is “a small world after all”, just like the song says!
“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.” – Maya Angelou
1st Amendment - Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Fast forward to Anchorage – After teaching for 10 years, I went back to school and got a degree in Computer Science. Then I got my first job with a local company, Computer Consultants of Alaska (CCA). The company put a “new hire” announcement in one of the local papers. A few days later, I got a congratulatory call from Fred Dickey. He was now Managing Editor of the Anchorage Times.
Fast forward again to San Diego – We have been staying here on and off annually since we first discovered this park (Santee Lakes Regional Park) in 2008. The local paper is the Union-Tribune. Lo and behold, Fred Dickey had a weekly column about people around the San Diego area. I always meant to get in touch with him and reminisce about our history. When we got back here at the end of October, I noticed that his Monday column was missing. I soon discovered this, his last column. Since its focus is on the 1st Amendment, I wanted to share it and validate the author’s credibility! (http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sd-me-fred-dickey-20170920-story.html)
So, it really is “a small world after all”, just like the song says!
“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.” – Maya Angelou
1st Amendment - Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Thursday, November 9, 2017
Skies Over - Santee, CA
After getting unhooked and settled in for the long winter's night, so to speak. Ruthi began to notice the various cloud formations against the blue sky. You know walking the dog can be pretty boring some days. Walk, smell a few blades of grass, walk a little farther, pee, repeat with an occasional poop.
Anyway, here are some of the shots she got with her phone!
Anyway, here are some of the shots she got with her phone!
Monday, November 6, 2017
Republican’s Congressional Tax Reform Effects:
The information below came from others review and interpretation of the current suggested income tax changes being considered. Interesting . . . some good but too much bad!
1) Yesterday, the House Ways and Means Committee released its initial tax plan which proposes several changes to current tax laws. We want to caution that this is an initial proposal and many changes may be made through negotiations in Congress. We would not suggest any action at this time due to uncertainty over what a final plan will look like, but wanted to pass along the initial details that are being proposed.
• Reduce tax brackets from seven to four. A summary of the now proposed brackets are below:
Income Tax Rate Income Levels
Current Tax Act Single Married-Joint
10 - 15% 12% $0-$44,999 $0-$89,999
25 - 28% 25% $45,000-$199,999 $90,000-$259,999
28 - 39.6% 35% $200,000-$499,999 $260,000-$999,999
39.60% 39.60% $500,000+ $1M+
• Eliminates itemized deductions except for charitable contributions, mortgage interest, property taxes, and retirement savings. Allows the mortgage deduction for new mortgages of $500,000 or less.
• Eliminates deduction for state and local taxes
• State property tax deduction limited to $10,000
• Doubles the standard deduction from $6,300 to $12,000
• Doubles the estate tax deduction from $5.49M to $11M, with the estate tax being phased out in six years
• Eliminates the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT)
• Increase child tax credit from $1,000 to $1,600
• Lowers corporate tax rates from 35% to 20%
Again, this is an initial proposal and details may change significantly. We will continue to monitor the situation and communicate updates as they are reported. If you have any questions, please let us know.
2) This list has some important differences from one I saw that was explained in detail yesterday. This one doesn’t show important deductions we now have that will be eliminated. As an example, it doesn’t show that we will no longer be allowed deductions for medical expenses, that those paying student loans will no longer be allowed deductions. For those of us living in states that have taxes on incomes, the Federal now allows us a deduction for that. That deduction will also be eliminated. Wish I could remember the other deductions being phased out......all of which would adversely affect lower and middle class folks.
However.............notice the Estate Tax being phased out, and from the way it was explained yesterday, this will benefit the very wealthy. Same with the corporate taxes being LOWERED.
The assessment is that the middle and lower class will be helping to pay for the high income bracket to get even more tax breaks.
Although the paragraph below talks about negotiations, it appears that this Republican congress is trying to rush the bill through, just as they did with the Health Care Bill.
There were no Democrats allowed to be part of the framing of this latest tax reform bill.
3) http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc-news/watch/gop-tax-reform-plan-breaking-down-its-biggest-goals-1056128067761
"You lose nothing when fighting for a cause. In my mind the losers are those who don't have a cause they care about." Muhammad Ali
1st Amendment - Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
1) Yesterday, the House Ways and Means Committee released its initial tax plan which proposes several changes to current tax laws. We want to caution that this is an initial proposal and many changes may be made through negotiations in Congress. We would not suggest any action at this time due to uncertainty over what a final plan will look like, but wanted to pass along the initial details that are being proposed.
• Reduce tax brackets from seven to four. A summary of the now proposed brackets are below:
Income Tax Rate Income Levels
Current Tax Act Single Married-Joint
10 - 15% 12% $0-$44,999 $0-$89,999
25 - 28% 25% $45,000-$199,999 $90,000-$259,999
28 - 39.6% 35% $200,000-$499,999 $260,000-$999,999
39.60% 39.60% $500,000+ $1M+
• Eliminates itemized deductions except for charitable contributions, mortgage interest, property taxes, and retirement savings. Allows the mortgage deduction for new mortgages of $500,000 or less.
• Eliminates deduction for state and local taxes
• State property tax deduction limited to $10,000
• Doubles the standard deduction from $6,300 to $12,000
• Doubles the estate tax deduction from $5.49M to $11M, with the estate tax being phased out in six years
• Eliminates the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT)
• Increase child tax credit from $1,000 to $1,600
• Lowers corporate tax rates from 35% to 20%
Again, this is an initial proposal and details may change significantly. We will continue to monitor the situation and communicate updates as they are reported. If you have any questions, please let us know.
2) This list has some important differences from one I saw that was explained in detail yesterday. This one doesn’t show important deductions we now have that will be eliminated. As an example, it doesn’t show that we will no longer be allowed deductions for medical expenses, that those paying student loans will no longer be allowed deductions. For those of us living in states that have taxes on incomes, the Federal now allows us a deduction for that. That deduction will also be eliminated. Wish I could remember the other deductions being phased out......all of which would adversely affect lower and middle class folks.
However.............notice the Estate Tax being phased out, and from the way it was explained yesterday, this will benefit the very wealthy. Same with the corporate taxes being LOWERED.
The assessment is that the middle and lower class will be helping to pay for the high income bracket to get even more tax breaks.
Although the paragraph below talks about negotiations, it appears that this Republican congress is trying to rush the bill through, just as they did with the Health Care Bill.
There were no Democrats allowed to be part of the framing of this latest tax reform bill.
3) http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc-news/watch/gop-tax-reform-plan-breaking-down-its-biggest-goals-1056128067761
"You lose nothing when fighting for a cause. In my mind the losers are those who don't have a cause they care about." Muhammad Ali
1st Amendment - Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
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