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February 16, 2005
Lies About Your Tax Dollars
I've been following local and national stories about budgets. The strangest thing to me is the fact that states can get away with solving their budget problems on the backs of smokers. Now, here me out on this one - I have no problem with smokers being taxed to contribute to the public health costs associated with smoking. But nowadays, the "sin" tax added to a pack of smokes has nothing to do with emphysma or lung cancer. Here in Illionois, the guv wants smokers to pay for the state school budget. WHY?!?! Why is it so easy to take specific people for their bad habits, but political death to suggest that all people should share a portion of the tax burden? Why are smokers, alcohol drinkers, and airline passengers such easy targets? Why can't all tax payers accept that paying taxes is the price we pay for the institutions we've created?
More on money in these articles -
"Bush's Saving Strategies: Two tax-advantaged account plans in his budget are up for study by an advisory panel," by Joel Havemann and Warren Vieth in LAT
"To the Debate Over Social Security, Add One More Variable: Immigration," by David Rosenbaum and Robin Toner in NYT
"Social Security debate ignores the disabled, Harkin says," by Jane Norman in the Des Moines Register
Posted by cj at February 16, 2005 5:26 PM
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