Does anyone else hate taxes?

[firstdown]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Actually firstdown is right, the IRS can't really do much about it as long as you're telling them that it was a business meeting. Now if they saw this thread and noted that the meeting really was a honeymoon, they will have a problem with it. But if you represent to them that the meeting was about business, the locale's not going to matter, they won't be able to meet the burden of proof to get you on tax fraud.

Not like the IRS would ever link you to your warpath screen name, but I still wouldn't go around advertising that you wrote off a honeymoon on the pretense of a corporate retreat!

What are you talking about? I never said hooneymoon I said she explained how we could have a board meeting in Mexico.

[mlmpetert]

Originally Posted by redsk1

Good to see a fellow VCU grad.

Go Rams!

[Schneed10]

LOL at this thread.

If you dig this thread up a year from now and read it really closely, guaranteed you'll laugh your ass off!

[mlmpetert]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Well the more dependents you have, the tougher it gets. When I was single it was super simple. When I got married it was still simple. When I bought a house it got a little more complicated because I had to start itemizing deductions. When I had a kid it got a little more complicated, because now you have child tax credits, credits for dependent care expenses, stuff like that. The making work pay credit, while awesome, added another form to the mix this year.

Once you get into owning your own business then you pretty much need either a degree in accounting, 40 hours of free time to spend pouring over the massive instructions, or pay someone to do it. For small business owners the code is a nightmare.

Of course for big businesses it's even worse, they have giant departments devoted solely to tax accounting.

This is my main beef with it. I think most people out there realize the need and importance of paying taxes, but the complexity is ridiculous.

[tryfuhl]

Originally Posted by mlmpetert

It was my junior year at VCU, I had to take a tax accounting class as part of my major. Sec. 183 Hobby Loss Rules. Basically the IRS doesn’t want people to have “businesses” that are in fact hobbies taking the deduction from their other income sources. Example. You make 150k at your sole crushing job. Your spouse runs a “business” like a nursery, farm, craft making, car restoring, painting or something else that takes up time but doesn’t earn money. People used to call these hobbies business so they could deduct the losses against the income their spouse earned. I think in the 70’s the IRS put a stop to this by adding in the Sec 183 Hobby Loss Rules. Basically you can take losses (cost of business) against the income your hobby earns, but you cant take it against the other income earned in your household unless your hobby makes more then it losses in a 3 out of a 5 year period. This is true for all but one exception. If your hobby involves horses (breading, racing, showing, ext). If horses are your hobby you are in luck; you only have to earn a profit for your hobby in 2 out of 7 years for it to be considered a business to take a tax deduction.

I remember my teacher telling me the details around this. I think there was a senator that had family members with horses so he put in this earmark. It was at that point that I lost a lot faith in government and despised our tax system not only because of its complexity but now also because of its “unfairness”. Don’t fool yourself into thinking our code is progressive, its not. Only rich people own horses.

Back when I was 15 and had my first W2 earning job I quickly learned to dislike taxes like most everyone else. Back then it was not just because of the decrease in what you take home but the complexity surrounding them. I think it took me a good 3 or 4 jobs before I could finally fill out my withholding forms (W-4) without help, because of the terminology. I did 1040EZ's until 3 years ago and the first time I remember doing it I thought it was complicated as all hell (the 1040EZ!). Ive always done my taxes the old fashion way, because im somewhat of a masochist and it keeps me fresh on knowing limits and stuff, but this year I have a complex tax situation and I might break and use turbo tax. I haven’t decided yet. I am also a procrastinator.

My other big beef is capital gains. Why should capital gains be taxed? If you told a Founding Father his after tax money (money he already paid taxes on) that he used to invest in someone or something would be taxed again on any gains it earned, he would challenge you to a duel. He really would. Taxes on capital gains is almost as absurd as taxes on interest.

I work with a CPA and his big beef with taxes is the intellectual property America has that’s tied up in tax code. As of 2006 there were 1,274,000 accountants. Most accountants out there, particularly ones with credentials, are pretty smart people. Imagine if they were all doctors, entrepreneurs, teachers or something better then bean counters.

Now that most of us are officially tackling tax season, what do you guys hate about taxes the most?

I agree on mostly just the level of taxes. The Revolution had a good amount to do with taxes on some basic items and man our money passes through the govt's hands so much it's ridiculous.

Can anybody defend property tax, estate tax, etc logically other than "it gives the govt much needed money" in the least?

And yes, politicians are after their own interests as well as those of their supporters (re: large financial) and if you ask me, that should not be allowed. Earmarks and the like only serve to screw up what could be progression as far as policy and partisan ties. If there's ever a "I'll vote on this, but only if you do this for blah blah" it should be criminal. I understand that politicians have to lobby for their local causes but it's ridiculous the amount of money and vote-swaying that things like this bring. You get politicians who sign off on a bill and then don't vote for it. Aren't they supposed to be choosing what's best for us?

[Trample the Elderly]

I hate taxation. Besides the roads, I don't get anything out of them. Putting a toll on the road would solve that. Everything else I pay for myself.

Not only do I hate taxation, I hate the SOBs who write them into law and the gestapo agents that enforce it.

There is no reason I should pay taxes for anything.

[tryfuhl]

Originally Posted by Mattyk

Yeah taxes suck, but that's why I've got people.

hahahahaha, I used their software last year I'm pretty sure

def using these people this year

[saden1]

Originally Posted by Mattyk

Yeah taxes suck, but that's why I've got people.

Warpath is doing very well eh?

[saden1]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Well the more dependents you have, the tougher it gets. When I was single it was super simple. When I got married it was still simple. When I bought a house it got a little more complicated because I had to start itemizing deductions. When I had a kid it got a little more complicated, because now you have child tax credits, credits for dependent care expenses, stuff like that. The making work pay credit, while awesome, added another form to the mix this year.

Once you get into owning your own business then you pretty much need either a degree in accounting, 40 hours of free time to spend pouring over the massive instructions, or pay someone to do it. For small business owners the code is a nightmare.

Of course for big businesses it's even worse, they have giant departments devoted solely to tax accounting.

It's definitely a battle that gets harder the more you have to account for...e-filing software has made life a lot easier though. I'd hate to do it the old fashion way. I will say this, I have done all the things you've listed except big business taxes and not once did I feel it was too difficult.

[tryfuhl]

Originally Posted by saden1

Warpath is doing very well eh?

I think that he was making a play on the H&R Block commercials.

[Monkeydad]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

LOL at this thread.

If you dig this thread up a year from now and read it really closely, guaranteed you'll laugh your ass off!

Especially if firstdown has been missing from the board for a while.

[MTK]

I do have people, but not because of this place. Believe me I wish I had that problem.

[Trample the Elderly]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

LOL at this thread.

If you dig this thread up a year from now and read it really closely, guaranteed you'll laugh your ass off!

Perhaps . . . perhaps not.

[Monkeydad]

Originally Posted by Mattyk

I do have people, but not because of this place. Believe me I wish I had that problem.

I am people. Too bad you'd have to pay for my fuel and lodging, or I'd give you a Redskins discount.

[Player_HTTR]

I sell professional tax software for a living. Thankfully Mo Money Taxes is not a customer (but with 250 locations I will give him a call thanks for the lead.) Their website is down now which is a little scary, but to be honest most preparers are including CPAs. If I can answer your tax question you should not be paid to prepare someone else's return and I can answer most of them.