This country sucks. I get so frustrated at times that I find myself wishing for a collapse in hopes that the welfare freebies go away. I just did my taxes, and had conversations--in one case, a heated argument--with family who did taxes too. Here is modern Amerika for you.
My wife and I are pulling in 85k - 100k a year. Because we "make so much," we do not qualify for government handouts. Between federal, state and local taxes, 30%+ of our income goes to government right off the bat. Then over 20% goes to student loans. We live in a nice two-bedroom apartment and can afford to eat healthy food (Whole Foods, organics, etc). But we are not rich--we have not been on vacation in almost four years; my wife has wanted/needed a new Macbook for a year but we can't afford one; we buy most of our clothes from the thrift store; we have only been out to eat two times since September; we never pay money for entertainment such as concerts, football games, movie theaters, etc.
Two different sets of relatives of mine make around 20k a year. In both families the wife does not work, only the husband. One of them makes like $10 an hour at a big-box store, the other probably makes $12ish at a hospital. One family is expecting a third child, the other the second. This means that both families get enough tax credits so that they get way more money than they pay in--one is getting almost $10k "back" this April. Whereas I have to pay my own medical bills, these guys get Medicaid; and for all I know are on food stamps and who knows what else. Both families seem to eat out as much as they want, pay for entertainment, and in the last 6 months have gone on vacation.
In short, because our government is playing Robbin Hood, we have relatives and families in my church who make a fraction of what we make, but live better lifestyles than we do.
My wife and I are pulling in 85k - 100k a year. Because we "make so much," we do not qualify for government handouts. Between federal, state and local taxes, 30%+ of our income goes to government right off the bat. Then over 20% goes to student loans. We live in a nice two-bedroom apartment and can afford to eat healthy food (Whole Foods, organics, etc). But we are not rich--we have not been on vacation in almost four years; my wife has wanted/needed a new Macbook for a year but we can't afford one; we buy most of our clothes from the thrift store; we have only been out to eat two times since September; we never pay money for entertainment such as concerts, football games, movie theaters, etc.
Two different sets of relatives of mine make around 20k a year. In both families the wife does not work, only the husband. One of them makes like $10 an hour at a big-box store, the other probably makes $12ish at a hospital. One family is expecting a third child, the other the second. This means that both families get enough tax credits so that they get way more money than they pay in--one is getting almost $10k "back" this April. Whereas I have to pay my own medical bills, these guys get Medicaid; and for all I know are on food stamps and who knows what else. Both families seem to eat out as much as they want, pay for entertainment, and in the last 6 months have gone on vacation.
In short, because our government is playing Robbin Hood, we have relatives and families in my church who make a fraction of what we make, but live better lifestyles than we do.
I think that the problem is that churches came up with these 10% rules before the income tax became a huge problem.
