Taxes, Taxes, and Oh Look! More Taxes!

In recent years I discovered that some other states--no, make that most other states have lower retail tax.

Get this. In the state of Texas the tax on pretty much anything you purchase is 8.25%

Yeah.

Why is it that our tax is so high, yet other states only charge like 4 or 5 percent?

Shawn says, "It's set by each individual state."

Um...Ok.


Which brings me to another good point. This is ONE nation so why do we have different laws every few miles.

Think about it. If you dislike the laws in your state, all you have to do is travel a short distance and they're different!

What a country.

But I don't get it. Are other countries like this? Are other countries divided up by squiggly lines? If I cross the squiggly lines in any direction, I might face gay marriage or legalized pot... The possiblilities are endless!

Shouldn't we make it simpler on our own people? One set of rules for the ENTIRE nation and one set of taxes for EVERY citizen.



We recently got our tax statement for the house.

*Sigh*

Apparently, the value of our home goes up a few thousand every year. Tell that to the realtor! They charge us tax for the county, for the county roads (I thought that's what speeding tickets were for)For the schools, for the city, and Clearwater-something-something--whatever that is.

I'm typing this directly from our statement.

And oh yeah, they charge us tax for the local college. I thought that's what tuition was for. No! Obviously not! You pay thousands and thousands of hard-earned vaction and boat money to send your preicous genius to college but it's the homeowners who are really paying for it!

Make any sense yet?

Me neither.

I personally suspect our homeowner's taxes are going straight to the newly built subdivision down the street. It's feeding their children and paying their down payment and buying drugs and whatnot.

Did we get any help buying our home? No. We struggle to make the house payment each month because we "make too much money".

Define "too much". I bet if I was an unwed mother of three I'd be livin' large and having all the steak dinners I wanted.

I told Shawn we'd be better off getting divorced and popping out a couple kids. Maybe then we could afford groceries.