1 00:00:01,120 --> 00:00:04,280 Speaker 1: Welcome to you stuff you should know from house Stuff 2 00:00:04,280 --> 00:00:12,560 Speaker 1: Works dot com. Hey, and welcome to the podcast. I'm 3 00:00:12,640 --> 00:00:15,960 Speaker 1: Josh Clark and Draws w Chuck Bryant and Jerry Rowland. 4 00:00:15,960 --> 00:00:18,599 Speaker 1: They're here with me. So it's stuff you should know. 5 00:00:18,800 --> 00:00:24,000 Speaker 1: That's right. Welcome, that's nice. That's a friendly will come in. Oh, 6 00:00:24,360 --> 00:00:31,000 Speaker 1: German friendly, bienvenue French friendly? Is that French? I believe? 7 00:00:31,080 --> 00:00:35,400 Speaker 1: So Okay, how's it going. It's going fine, still snowing, 8 00:00:35,920 --> 00:00:40,560 Speaker 1: that's right with people, like weeks later it's snowing. Uh. Yeah, 9 00:00:40,560 --> 00:00:43,800 Speaker 1: because we're releasing this one around text time because it's appropriate. 10 00:00:44,040 --> 00:00:49,000 Speaker 1: That's right. People, the dreaded day, it is dreaded. I 11 00:00:49,000 --> 00:00:52,720 Speaker 1: feel sorry for people with that birthday because it's just 12 00:00:52,760 --> 00:00:56,360 Speaker 1: associated with you know, pain and suffering. Well you should know, 13 00:00:56,520 --> 00:00:58,800 Speaker 1: I mean, like think about it. That's one good thing 14 00:00:58,840 --> 00:01:03,600 Speaker 1: on that day. Yeah, is their birthday? You know. I 15 00:01:03,600 --> 00:01:05,840 Speaker 1: think we should all celebrate like a half birthday or 16 00:01:05,840 --> 00:01:09,080 Speaker 1: a mini birthday on April fift just to kind of 17 00:01:09,120 --> 00:01:12,560 Speaker 1: alleviate tax day. That's right. So we're talking about taxes, 18 00:01:12,920 --> 00:01:18,840 Speaker 1: specifically income tax, which is everyone's favorite tax to pay 19 00:01:20,319 --> 00:01:23,840 Speaker 1: is go out and work hard for your money and 20 00:01:23,880 --> 00:01:28,440 Speaker 1: then give a significant portion of that to the government. 21 00:01:29,400 --> 00:01:33,360 Speaker 1: All Right, that's text day. I'm not gonna tax bash. 22 00:01:33,480 --> 00:01:35,520 Speaker 1: I'm gonna try not to tax Bash. It's kind of 23 00:01:35,560 --> 00:01:37,600 Speaker 1: tough not to. And I know you gotta pay taxes, 24 00:01:37,600 --> 00:01:41,440 Speaker 1: I get it, but man, it's just government takes a bite. 25 00:01:41,680 --> 00:01:44,920 Speaker 1: Well it's not that even it takes a bite that 26 00:01:45,000 --> 00:01:50,520 Speaker 1: they tinkle so much of it away, you know, And 27 00:01:50,960 --> 00:01:53,800 Speaker 1: oh my god, it's so maddening. The older I get, 28 00:01:53,840 --> 00:01:56,440 Speaker 1: the more I'm just like, you have to bed. Yeah, 29 00:01:56,480 --> 00:01:58,520 Speaker 1: when you're younger, you don't think about that stuff as much. 30 00:01:58,520 --> 00:02:00,360 Speaker 1: At least I died and you go all learn like, 31 00:02:00,400 --> 00:02:04,400 Speaker 1: wait a minute, pay how much in taxes? Exactly? All right, 32 00:02:04,560 --> 00:02:07,520 Speaker 1: let's get into this alright, Chuck. So um, we're talking 33 00:02:07,560 --> 00:02:11,920 Speaker 1: income tax specifically, not just taxes. But um, this country 34 00:02:11,919 --> 00:02:14,800 Speaker 1: has a long history of hating taxes. And it goes 35 00:02:14,840 --> 00:02:18,520 Speaker 1: back to the very um point that it was founded on, 36 00:02:19,480 --> 00:02:26,640 Speaker 1: which was in part breaking away from um, Great Britain England. Um, 37 00:02:26,680 --> 00:02:30,280 Speaker 1: because of taxation without representation. If you're a colonist, you 38 00:02:30,360 --> 00:02:34,520 Speaker 1: were taxed man all over the place. Yeah. And um. 39 00:02:34,600 --> 00:02:37,399 Speaker 1: What they found though, was when we got our independence, 40 00:02:37,760 --> 00:02:40,720 Speaker 1: the US government formed and started taxing all the same stuff, 41 00:02:41,760 --> 00:02:45,400 Speaker 1: and I imagine they didn't love it, but they were like, well, 42 00:02:45,680 --> 00:02:48,360 Speaker 1: at least we're represented, which is kind of the issue 43 00:02:48,360 --> 00:02:53,559 Speaker 1: we had before. You know, this is taxation with representation. Um. 44 00:02:53,600 --> 00:02:56,480 Speaker 1: But these were just they weren't They were excise taxes, 45 00:02:56,480 --> 00:02:59,639 Speaker 1: which is a tax on a specific good, right specific 46 00:02:59,639 --> 00:03:02,360 Speaker 1: type of good. They were tariffs, which is a tax 47 00:03:02,400 --> 00:03:07,440 Speaker 1: on foreign imports. And they were um sales taxes basically. Yeah, 48 00:03:07,919 --> 00:03:11,440 Speaker 1: twelve was the first sales tax on gold, silverware, jewelry, 49 00:03:11,520 --> 00:03:15,399 Speaker 1: and watches. So that's pretty much a luxury tax really. Yeah. 50 00:03:15,720 --> 00:03:18,720 Speaker 1: So right off the bat, the first tax on a 51 00:03:18,960 --> 00:03:25,000 Speaker 1: personal tax on a person um is it affects the wealthy. Yeah, 52 00:03:25,000 --> 00:03:28,280 Speaker 1: And it's interesting them the history of the taxes here 53 00:03:28,280 --> 00:03:29,720 Speaker 1: as you look at it, there was a lot of 54 00:03:30,840 --> 00:03:34,239 Speaker 1: installing attacks and then repealing it and saying no, that's 55 00:03:34,280 --> 00:03:36,280 Speaker 1: not right, and then they'll put in another tax and 56 00:03:36,320 --> 00:03:38,800 Speaker 1: then they would say no, that's not right. Well, what's 57 00:03:38,800 --> 00:03:41,800 Speaker 1: funny is that pattern that you're talking about. It followed 58 00:03:42,400 --> 00:03:45,800 Speaker 1: because the taxation is usually imposed on the wealthy, and 59 00:03:45,880 --> 00:03:47,680 Speaker 1: the wealthy figures out how to get out of it, 60 00:03:47,880 --> 00:03:50,880 Speaker 1: and it goes on everybody else's shoulder and then it's repealed. Yeah, 61 00:03:50,880 --> 00:03:52,960 Speaker 1: this is nothing the stuff that we see now people 62 00:03:53,040 --> 00:03:55,760 Speaker 1: arguing about. It's kind of what's exactly the same back then, 63 00:03:55,800 --> 00:03:57,960 Speaker 1: which is really kind of funny when you think about it. 64 00:03:58,360 --> 00:04:01,560 Speaker 1: You know, there's nothing new. So in eighteen sixty two 65 00:04:01,560 --> 00:04:05,880 Speaker 1: is when we got our first national income tax UM 66 00:04:05,920 --> 00:04:07,920 Speaker 1: and part of this was to support the Union Army. 67 00:04:07,960 --> 00:04:11,720 Speaker 1: Congress passed laws in eighteen sixty one. In eighteen sixty two, 68 00:04:12,440 --> 00:04:16,520 Speaker 1: UM in the Office of Commissioner of Internal Revenue, which 69 00:04:16,560 --> 00:04:18,960 Speaker 1: we know is i RS today, was set up by 70 00:04:18,960 --> 00:04:22,680 Speaker 1: the Tax Act of eighteen sixty two. Yeah, let's just 71 00:04:22,760 --> 00:04:24,880 Speaker 1: for a second, chuck, Like, let's think about this. The 72 00:04:25,000 --> 00:04:30,040 Speaker 1: beloved Abe Lincoln is directly responsible for the income tax 73 00:04:30,400 --> 00:04:34,000 Speaker 1: and the i R S. Yeah, I mean it happened 74 00:04:34,000 --> 00:04:36,839 Speaker 1: on his watch. Sure, I guess you can't set up 75 00:04:36,880 --> 00:04:39,359 Speaker 1: an income tax without a body to regulate it and 76 00:04:39,440 --> 00:04:42,000 Speaker 1: to enforce it, which is basically what that did in 77 00:04:42,040 --> 00:04:44,880 Speaker 1: eighteen sixty two. Right, And we were talking about taxes 78 00:04:44,920 --> 00:04:48,359 Speaker 1: being um created due to be imposed on the wealthy 79 00:04:48,839 --> 00:04:52,680 Speaker 1: um between eighteen twelve after eighteen seventeen, with that when 80 00:04:52,720 --> 00:04:56,320 Speaker 1: that tax, the Luxury good tax was terminated, and eighteen 81 00:04:56,360 --> 00:04:59,400 Speaker 1: sixty two, there weren't any taxes like that at all. 82 00:04:59,440 --> 00:05:03,760 Speaker 1: There weren't any personal taxes, and the US government funded 83 00:05:03,800 --> 00:05:08,479 Speaker 1: itself from tariffs, right, So all these foreign imports coming 84 00:05:08,480 --> 00:05:15,240 Speaker 1: in imports, well, the tariffs were on imports apparently mostly um. 85 00:05:15,279 --> 00:05:20,520 Speaker 1: Because this allowed companies this this basically led to the U. 86 00:05:20,600 --> 00:05:25,240 Speaker 1: S economy booming because they like all of the internal stuff, 87 00:05:25,240 --> 00:05:28,719 Speaker 1: all of domestically produced stuff, wasn't subject to any tariffs, 88 00:05:29,000 --> 00:05:31,880 Speaker 1: so they didn't have to compete. They had cheaper prices. 89 00:05:32,120 --> 00:05:35,520 Speaker 1: And these companies used this this stuff to enrich themselves, 90 00:05:35,640 --> 00:05:38,400 Speaker 1: which led to the uber wealthy, which in turn led 91 00:05:38,480 --> 00:05:41,240 Speaker 1: to the first income tax and anything sixty two to 92 00:05:41,360 --> 00:05:44,679 Speaker 1: text the uber wealthy. That's right. Uh. In an eighteen 93 00:05:44,960 --> 00:05:47,919 Speaker 1: sixty three they started collecting this income tax for the 94 00:05:47,960 --> 00:05:52,360 Speaker 1: first time, and it was a graduated tax, kind of 95 00:05:52,400 --> 00:05:55,320 Speaker 1: like we see today. Um, if you earned between six 96 00:05:55,400 --> 00:05:57,680 Speaker 1: hundred and ten thousand dollars a year, you paid three percent. 97 00:05:58,160 --> 00:06:01,120 Speaker 1: If you made higher than that, you paid more than 98 00:06:01,160 --> 00:06:06,160 Speaker 1: that percentage wise. Um, I mean that was the first 99 00:06:06,200 --> 00:06:09,279 Speaker 1: income tax. So it's always three and then five percent 100 00:06:09,440 --> 00:06:11,839 Speaker 1: if you made over tempt Yeah, it's always funny to 101 00:06:11,839 --> 00:06:15,920 Speaker 1: me when I hear like our founding fathers blah blah blah, like, no, 102 00:06:16,080 --> 00:06:18,560 Speaker 1: you're founding fathers. Is this is exactly how they set 103 00:06:18,600 --> 00:06:22,000 Speaker 1: it up. So I guess the argument is, well, not 104 00:06:22,040 --> 00:06:26,720 Speaker 1: those founding fathers, just certain founding fathers I agree with, Well, 105 00:06:26,760 --> 00:06:28,880 Speaker 1: it depends on the founding fathers. Well, it's just I 106 00:06:28,920 --> 00:06:31,800 Speaker 1: hate hearing the argument our founding fathers when people don't 107 00:06:31,800 --> 00:06:35,040 Speaker 1: even really know exactly what our founding fathers were doing, 108 00:06:35,200 --> 00:06:38,280 Speaker 1: like imposing a graduate attacks first right off the bat. 109 00:06:39,000 --> 00:06:42,719 Speaker 1: You know, well, the the U I only recently realized 110 00:06:42,760 --> 00:06:46,960 Speaker 1: that there was that. What we have today in the 111 00:06:47,040 --> 00:06:49,720 Speaker 1: United States, the form of government we have is part 112 00:06:49,800 --> 00:06:53,239 Speaker 1: of what's called the Jeffersonian Revolution, where basically the founding 113 00:06:53,240 --> 00:06:58,680 Speaker 1: fathers Monroe, Madison, Washington came up with the country. They 114 00:06:58,720 --> 00:07:02,840 Speaker 1: came up with the country that's different than the one 115 00:07:02,839 --> 00:07:05,039 Speaker 1: we have now. And the reason that it's different now 116 00:07:05,120 --> 00:07:08,000 Speaker 1: is because Jefferson came along and said, Noah, we can 117 00:07:08,000 --> 00:07:10,880 Speaker 1: do better than this, so let's change this, and that's 118 00:07:10,920 --> 00:07:15,080 Speaker 1: what we have now. So which, yeah, which which founding 119 00:07:15,080 --> 00:07:18,080 Speaker 1: father are you talking about? So, like we're saying, it 120 00:07:18,400 --> 00:07:20,760 Speaker 1: went back and forth, there was a flat tax in 121 00:07:20,840 --> 00:07:24,040 Speaker 1: eighteen sixty seven instead of a graduate attacks and then 122 00:07:24,080 --> 00:07:28,440 Speaker 1: five years after that they repealed income tax altogether, and 123 00:07:28,480 --> 00:07:34,480 Speaker 1: they said, this is not right. It is unconstitutional. Um, 124 00:07:34,520 --> 00:07:37,000 Speaker 1: it's got to abide by a constitutional guideline and it 125 00:07:37,080 --> 00:07:40,239 Speaker 1: does not. And that was the income tax of eighteen 126 00:07:40,320 --> 00:07:43,120 Speaker 1: ninety four. That was where the tariffs were. I'm sorry 127 00:07:43,160 --> 00:07:46,240 Speaker 1: I missed spoke earlier. Between eighteen seventy two and eighteen nine. 128 00:07:47,080 --> 00:07:50,440 Speaker 1: That's where the U. S. Government was lived on tariffs 129 00:07:50,800 --> 00:07:54,040 Speaker 1: and that allowed the economy to boom, railroads to grow, 130 00:07:54,280 --> 00:07:57,240 Speaker 1: and that a class of uber wealthy to get even 131 00:07:57,280 --> 00:08:00,560 Speaker 1: wealthier they were there before. But um, like this is 132 00:08:00,600 --> 00:08:04,720 Speaker 1: when the Carnegies came along, the Rockefellers like started to 133 00:08:04,760 --> 00:08:08,440 Speaker 1: develop this and so all these people said, hey, man, 134 00:08:08,800 --> 00:08:12,520 Speaker 1: like these people should should be paying some some taxes here, 135 00:08:13,040 --> 00:08:16,160 Speaker 1: and that's where they came from. That's where the tax 136 00:08:16,240 --> 00:08:19,360 Speaker 1: came from. Yeah. In that tax two percent of personal 137 00:08:19,400 --> 00:08:23,680 Speaker 1: income more than four thousand dollars again, tax on the wealthy. Uh. 138 00:08:23,720 --> 00:08:26,280 Speaker 1: And the Supreme Court is that's when they struck that 139 00:08:26,320 --> 00:08:30,360 Speaker 1: one down as unconstitutional. So in nine Congress got around 140 00:08:30,400 --> 00:08:32,720 Speaker 1: all this by making it a part of the constitution. 141 00:08:33,280 --> 00:08:35,480 Speaker 1: And said, you know what, we'll create the sixteenth Amendment. 142 00:08:35,880 --> 00:08:38,400 Speaker 1: Congress will have the power to lay in collect taxes 143 00:08:38,400 --> 00:08:44,439 Speaker 1: on incomes from whatever source derived without a portion I'm sorry, Yeah, 144 00:08:44,480 --> 00:08:48,240 Speaker 1: apportionment among the several states without regard any census, right, 145 00:08:48,280 --> 00:08:50,520 Speaker 1: which was the hangout before. Yeah, Like, it doesn't matter 146 00:08:50,640 --> 00:08:52,760 Speaker 1: how populated your state is. Like, this has nothing to 147 00:08:52,800 --> 00:08:56,440 Speaker 1: do with state. It's just a national tax. And originally 148 00:08:56,520 --> 00:08:59,800 Speaker 1: the income taxes a tax on the uber wealthy does 149 00:08:59,840 --> 00:09:01,640 Speaker 1: make a king more than four thousand dollars a year, 150 00:09:01,960 --> 00:09:06,559 Speaker 1: which is super wealthy. Um, and the uber wealthy fought it, 151 00:09:07,000 --> 00:09:09,719 Speaker 1: got the Supreme Court to strike it down, and so 152 00:09:10,400 --> 00:09:13,440 Speaker 1: under Taff's watch, they said, well, we can get around 153 00:09:13,480 --> 00:09:15,920 Speaker 1: this by just amending the constitution. That's what they did. 154 00:09:16,880 --> 00:09:21,880 Speaker 1: And apparently from this the sixteenth Amendment. Like before, Chuck, 155 00:09:21,960 --> 00:09:24,920 Speaker 1: it was like, um, you were more a participant in 156 00:09:25,120 --> 00:09:27,559 Speaker 1: your state, and there was the federal government, but it 157 00:09:27,640 --> 00:09:29,920 Speaker 1: was the federal government and they didn't mean a whole 158 00:09:30,000 --> 00:09:33,559 Speaker 1: lot to you. When the sixteenth Amendment was passed, that 159 00:09:33,800 --> 00:09:38,760 Speaker 1: changed everything because now you were a payer to the 160 00:09:38,840 --> 00:09:43,240 Speaker 1: federal government. Um, and the federal government also had the 161 00:09:43,360 --> 00:09:46,839 Speaker 1: states kind of by the short hairs because the states 162 00:09:46,880 --> 00:09:50,200 Speaker 1: relied now on federal grants that were generated through your 163 00:09:50,320 --> 00:09:53,360 Speaker 1: tax dollars. So the federal government really asserted itself as 164 00:09:53,400 --> 00:09:57,439 Speaker 1: a central power, consolidated power into the federal government with 165 00:09:57,679 --> 00:10:00,679 Speaker 1: the sixteenth Amendment more than anything else but or and 166 00:10:00,760 --> 00:10:03,520 Speaker 1: they never looked back. They certainly didn't know. UM. In 167 00:10:03,640 --> 00:10:08,760 Speaker 1: nineteen thirteen with the Underwood Tariff Act, UM, they basically 168 00:10:08,880 --> 00:10:12,080 Speaker 1: kicked off the modern system that we have in During 169 00:10:12,080 --> 00:10:15,679 Speaker 1: World War Two, they started withholding taxes instead of just 170 00:10:16,280 --> 00:10:17,959 Speaker 1: telling up your bill and paying at the end of 171 00:10:18,000 --> 00:10:20,920 Speaker 1: the year. You have, as we all know and love. 172 00:10:21,000 --> 00:10:23,840 Speaker 1: Now you have part of your paycheck withheld pay as 173 00:10:23,880 --> 00:10:27,240 Speaker 1: you earned system. That's right, and that funds the government 174 00:10:27,320 --> 00:10:32,040 Speaker 1: continuously because every pay period your employer, which who withholds 175 00:10:32,120 --> 00:10:36,959 Speaker 1: the your money on behalf of the government, submits it 176 00:10:37,080 --> 00:10:40,000 Speaker 1: to a federal reserve bank, and the government earns interest 177 00:10:40,120 --> 00:10:43,480 Speaker 1: on it and has constant income. That's right. It's like 178 00:10:43,520 --> 00:10:47,720 Speaker 1: a paycheck for the Government's exactly what it is. Uh 179 00:10:47,880 --> 00:10:51,199 Speaker 1: So let's let's walk people through. Uh And and I 180 00:10:51,280 --> 00:10:53,480 Speaker 1: think this article does right by it like picking out 181 00:10:53,559 --> 00:10:56,440 Speaker 1: just one person. I don't want to call him Joe. 182 00:10:56,480 --> 00:10:58,080 Speaker 1: I'm so tired of that, What do you want to call? 183 00:10:58,760 --> 00:11:01,280 Speaker 1: While I have Cyrus written down? All right, we'll go 184 00:11:01,360 --> 00:11:05,280 Speaker 1: with Cyrus. Right, the Cirrus gets a job, Cyrus gets 185 00:11:05,320 --> 00:11:07,240 Speaker 1: away age, he agrees to with his employer and says, 186 00:11:07,240 --> 00:11:09,839 Speaker 1: all right, this is fair, We'll take this job. And 187 00:11:10,160 --> 00:11:11,920 Speaker 1: the employer says, all right, Syryus, you gotta fill out 188 00:11:11,960 --> 00:11:15,960 Speaker 1: this W four and um, that's one of your tax 189 00:11:16,040 --> 00:11:18,439 Speaker 1: forms and you gotta do it right when you get hired. 190 00:11:18,800 --> 00:11:21,920 Speaker 1: And it's gonna list all your withholding allowances and all 191 00:11:22,000 --> 00:11:25,800 Speaker 1: your dependents and child care expenses and basically everything that 192 00:11:26,000 --> 00:11:29,320 Speaker 1: you need to know, Mr employer, like how much money 193 00:11:29,400 --> 00:11:33,200 Speaker 1: to hold out of my paycheck? So I fill out 194 00:11:33,240 --> 00:11:35,800 Speaker 1: the W four. Now you know, now you're withholding. And 195 00:11:35,840 --> 00:11:38,679 Speaker 1: now at the end of the year, me, Cyrus, I 196 00:11:38,800 --> 00:11:41,960 Speaker 1: want to see if I can kind of project how 197 00:11:42,040 --> 00:11:44,120 Speaker 1: I did this year. Am I gonna be paying? Am 198 00:11:44,120 --> 00:11:46,559 Speaker 1: I be getting it back? So here's how you do that. 199 00:11:46,960 --> 00:11:50,959 Speaker 1: So you take your gross income, the number that we 200 00:11:51,040 --> 00:11:53,559 Speaker 1: all wish we actually made. Right, Yeah, that's all the 201 00:11:53,720 --> 00:11:58,640 Speaker 1: money you have from salary, from interest, income from pensions. Yea, 202 00:12:00,000 --> 00:12:03,000 Speaker 1: all the money you have coming in, that's your gross income, right, 203 00:12:03,800 --> 00:12:07,880 Speaker 1: and then you go through adjustments, and adjustments are basically 204 00:12:08,240 --> 00:12:14,240 Speaker 1: um uh, little little mulligans that the government gives you, says, 205 00:12:14,320 --> 00:12:17,240 Speaker 1: all right, you can you can subtract this from your 206 00:12:17,240 --> 00:12:21,400 Speaker 1: gross income, which alimony, let's say, sure, or if you 207 00:12:21,960 --> 00:12:26,040 Speaker 1: um uh tax on your self employment, if you moved, 208 00:12:26,280 --> 00:12:28,920 Speaker 1: moving expenses for your job, that's one to stuff like that, 209 00:12:29,160 --> 00:12:32,280 Speaker 1: and all these things. So adjustments, deductions, which we'll talk about, 210 00:12:32,679 --> 00:12:36,839 Speaker 1: all of these things, credits, they're all basically behaviors that 211 00:12:36,920 --> 00:12:40,520 Speaker 1: the government wants to encourage, so they give you, they 212 00:12:40,559 --> 00:12:43,880 Speaker 1: give you the ability to subtract those amounts from your uh, 213 00:12:44,080 --> 00:12:47,160 Speaker 1: your gross income. Yeah, they incentivize these things. Yeah, Like 214 00:12:47,200 --> 00:12:50,000 Speaker 1: they want you to work, so you can deduct childcare 215 00:12:50,040 --> 00:12:54,199 Speaker 1: expenses under some some regimes. Or they want you to 216 00:12:54,280 --> 00:12:57,800 Speaker 1: go to college, so you can deduct college expenses things 217 00:12:57,880 --> 00:13:01,839 Speaker 1: like that. So that your adjusted gross income. Right when 218 00:13:01,880 --> 00:13:06,679 Speaker 1: you subtract your adjustments from your gross so that's your 219 00:13:06,720 --> 00:13:09,559 Speaker 1: A g I. And then you've got a couple of 220 00:13:09,640 --> 00:13:12,040 Speaker 1: choices here when you go to fill out your tax forms. 221 00:13:12,080 --> 00:13:15,439 Speaker 1: You can either do the standard deduction or itemize everything out. 222 00:13:15,679 --> 00:13:17,880 Speaker 1: You're gonna want to choose whichever one is greater. Obviously, 223 00:13:18,320 --> 00:13:21,719 Speaker 1: so you can get the biggest chunk for yourself. Um, 224 00:13:22,679 --> 00:13:25,760 Speaker 1: all sorts of itemized deductions. Like if we had a 225 00:13:25,800 --> 00:13:28,679 Speaker 1: tax accounting in here, they would probably laugh if we 226 00:13:28,800 --> 00:13:32,160 Speaker 1: tried to break down itemized deductions. There's a lot of them, 227 00:13:32,200 --> 00:13:34,480 Speaker 1: and they get really weird. Like, for example, a good 228 00:13:34,520 --> 00:13:38,160 Speaker 1: example that, um, if you're a bodybuilder, a professional body building, 229 00:13:38,200 --> 00:13:41,600 Speaker 1: which I am, Uh oil body oil, I write off 230 00:13:41,679 --> 00:13:45,240 Speaker 1: all my oils can be written off as a business expense. Yeah, 231 00:13:45,320 --> 00:13:47,079 Speaker 1: and you know I want. I used to freelance in 232 00:13:47,160 --> 00:13:49,439 Speaker 1: the film industry. They are all sorts of cool things 233 00:13:49,480 --> 00:13:52,400 Speaker 1: you can write off, like your movie tickets and your 234 00:13:52,400 --> 00:13:56,200 Speaker 1: cable bill and uh stuff like that. Um, you can 235 00:13:56,240 --> 00:14:00,640 Speaker 1: write off your interest on your home mortgage, charitable contributions, 236 00:14:01,400 --> 00:14:04,680 Speaker 1: some medical and dental expenses, all sorts of things within 237 00:14:04,760 --> 00:14:07,120 Speaker 1: the law that you can they call him right offs 238 00:14:07,200 --> 00:14:09,920 Speaker 1: your deductions or you can just go with the standard 239 00:14:09,960 --> 00:14:13,520 Speaker 1: deduction again. Right, you don't have to itemize everything out No, 240 00:14:13,760 --> 00:14:17,400 Speaker 1: but a lot of text people say, uh, tax professionals say, 241 00:14:17,640 --> 00:14:19,760 Speaker 1: at least go through and make sure you shouldn't be 242 00:14:20,080 --> 00:14:24,240 Speaker 1: itemizing because if it's even a penny more maybe not 243 00:14:24,360 --> 00:14:26,760 Speaker 1: a penny, but if it's a little more. It's worth 244 00:14:26,920 --> 00:14:29,080 Speaker 1: the trouble most of the time, and it is a 245 00:14:29,160 --> 00:14:32,560 Speaker 1: lot of extra paperwork. Um, but you know, you save 246 00:14:32,600 --> 00:14:35,240 Speaker 1: yourself some money as you're deducting from it. You're deducting 247 00:14:35,320 --> 00:14:38,320 Speaker 1: from your income. And then finally, after you have your 248 00:14:38,520 --> 00:14:41,320 Speaker 1: justice gross income and you subtract all the deductions for it, 249 00:14:41,840 --> 00:14:44,480 Speaker 1: that the number that you have that's your taxable income. 250 00:14:44,800 --> 00:14:47,480 Speaker 1: So the more you can deduct from it, the lower 251 00:14:47,600 --> 00:14:50,320 Speaker 1: your tax burden is going to be. Yeah, I can't 252 00:14:50,320 --> 00:14:53,080 Speaker 1: remember which. There's a commercial going around now about one 253 00:14:53,120 --> 00:14:57,280 Speaker 1: of the accounting firms that says that Americans left a 254 00:14:57,320 --> 00:15:00,600 Speaker 1: billion dollars on the table for Buffalo while Wings cafe. 255 00:15:03,160 --> 00:15:05,520 Speaker 1: If you're getting your taxes done at Buffalo Well Wings, 256 00:15:05,600 --> 00:15:09,520 Speaker 1: then you get a free dozen wings. That'd be awesome. 257 00:15:09,640 --> 00:15:12,880 Speaker 1: Did you hear that they may have Dorito's flavored wings 258 00:15:12,960 --> 00:15:15,120 Speaker 1: coming out. I can't tell you how excited I am 259 00:15:15,160 --> 00:15:19,440 Speaker 1: about this. I don't get the whole derito ization of everything. 260 00:15:20,200 --> 00:15:22,880 Speaker 1: You need to get on the bandwagon, dude, because there's 261 00:15:22,880 --> 00:15:26,840 Speaker 1: a lot of fun to be had eating Dorito based food. 262 00:15:27,000 --> 00:15:29,640 Speaker 1: Remember we were kids and that was derritos. That was 263 00:15:29,720 --> 00:15:32,000 Speaker 1: it was like the guy with a mustache would sell 264 00:15:32,040 --> 00:15:34,640 Speaker 1: you this one derito And now there's like, wait, what 265 00:15:35,240 --> 00:15:37,400 Speaker 1: where are you buying derrito's one at a time? From 266 00:15:37,400 --> 00:15:40,440 Speaker 1: a guy? When down the commercial he was he looks 267 00:15:40,480 --> 00:15:43,360 Speaker 1: for like jeans Shallotte. Oh, you're talking about the frido bandido. 268 00:15:43,840 --> 00:15:47,520 Speaker 1: That's different. I'm talking about the Dorito's guy. Really know 269 00:15:47,720 --> 00:15:51,800 Speaker 1: you're thinking of Mr Pringle's. But now they you know, 270 00:15:51,880 --> 00:15:55,040 Speaker 1: you go the store is just overwhelming. It's ridiculous. Yeah, 271 00:15:55,200 --> 00:15:58,920 Speaker 1: but different shape flavors, and they're they're just like, let's 272 00:15:59,000 --> 00:16:01,640 Speaker 1: throw everything at the let's see what sticks. Just give 273 00:16:01,680 --> 00:16:04,120 Speaker 1: me a derita or cool Ranch. Cool Rance is great. 274 00:16:04,160 --> 00:16:05,680 Speaker 1: I have to abide by the color ranch. They brought 275 00:16:05,720 --> 00:16:08,000 Speaker 1: the original version out too, and those are pretty great 276 00:16:08,000 --> 00:16:10,520 Speaker 1: to just regular nacho cheese doritos. You know, even before 277 00:16:10,560 --> 00:16:14,280 Speaker 1: that there was an original version. It's like taco basically 278 00:16:14,320 --> 00:16:17,280 Speaker 1: it's orange bag. It's an orange bag. I think that's 279 00:16:17,640 --> 00:16:19,800 Speaker 1: that is when I grew up on. Obviously, no, the 280 00:16:20,480 --> 00:16:24,160 Speaker 1: nacho one is the red bag and then blue is cool. 281 00:16:24,240 --> 00:16:27,040 Speaker 1: What is this like the nine twenties? What do you 282 00:16:27,080 --> 00:16:30,640 Speaker 1: mean when they had the original like the sixties or fifties, 283 00:16:32,440 --> 00:16:37,840 Speaker 1: even before your time. So you've got your taxable income, 284 00:16:39,160 --> 00:16:40,880 Speaker 1: you go to the I R S tables. If you 285 00:16:40,880 --> 00:16:43,480 Speaker 1: make less than a hundred thousand dollars a year, you 286 00:16:43,560 --> 00:16:45,080 Speaker 1: go to the rate schedules. If you earn more than 287 00:16:45,120 --> 00:16:47,840 Speaker 1: a hundred thousand dollars a year. And like we said, 288 00:16:47,880 --> 00:16:52,120 Speaker 1: it's a marginal tax rate system. Um or graduated their 289 00:16:52,320 --> 00:16:54,720 Speaker 1: different tax brackets depending on how much you make. Yeah, 290 00:16:54,760 --> 00:16:57,440 Speaker 1: there's seven this year and two. So what's still low? 291 00:16:57,560 --> 00:17:03,280 Speaker 1: Is it still ten percent? Yep? Ten percent, fifty three percent, 292 00:17:03,520 --> 00:17:07,280 Speaker 1: thirty five percent, and then for earners of four hundred 293 00:17:07,359 --> 00:17:10,000 Speaker 1: thousand or over, I think single earners of four k 294 00:17:10,119 --> 00:17:14,640 Speaker 1: or over, it's thirty nine point six percent of your Hey. 295 00:17:15,040 --> 00:17:17,639 Speaker 1: But so it's a marginal tax rate, meaning that um 296 00:17:17,920 --> 00:17:20,879 Speaker 1: that you fall into one bracket or another. If you 297 00:17:21,000 --> 00:17:25,480 Speaker 1: earn a hundred thousand dollars, um you're not gonna owe 298 00:17:26,320 --> 00:17:29,120 Speaker 1: I think twenty eight thousand dollars. I think it falls 299 00:17:29,119 --> 00:17:32,560 Speaker 1: into maybe they percentile you wouldn't owe twenty eight thousand 300 00:17:32,600 --> 00:17:37,200 Speaker 1: dollars of your adjusted gross income or yeah, what you 301 00:17:37,280 --> 00:17:42,040 Speaker 1: would owe is ten percent up to the top of 302 00:17:42,080 --> 00:17:46,960 Speaker 1: the ten percent bracket of the high of the fifercent bracket. 303 00:17:47,000 --> 00:17:50,000 Speaker 1: And so on until you reach your bracket and you 304 00:17:50,080 --> 00:17:52,440 Speaker 1: subtract your adjusted gross income from the top of that 305 00:17:52,680 --> 00:17:54,200 Speaker 1: or from the bottom of that bracket, and then you 306 00:17:54,320 --> 00:17:57,800 Speaker 1: owe percent of that. That makes more sense. It's a 307 00:17:57,880 --> 00:18:00,239 Speaker 1: lot easier if if say, like you know, if you're 308 00:18:00,280 --> 00:18:02,000 Speaker 1: making a hundred thousand dollars less, you just go to 309 00:18:02,040 --> 00:18:03,920 Speaker 1: the text table and you're like, there it is. But 310 00:18:04,040 --> 00:18:06,960 Speaker 1: it's also fairly easily calculated as well. So what do 311 00:18:07,000 --> 00:18:11,800 Speaker 1: you want to make? Well, here's the thing. You want 312 00:18:11,840 --> 00:18:14,400 Speaker 1: to make as much as you possibly can, I think, 313 00:18:15,000 --> 00:18:18,280 Speaker 1: But then you want to have that's what you're Into're 314 00:18:18,320 --> 00:18:20,600 Speaker 1: not saying everyone has to pursue the dollar, right, But 315 00:18:20,720 --> 00:18:23,560 Speaker 1: if you are pursuing the dollar and you don't want 316 00:18:23,600 --> 00:18:27,440 Speaker 1: to pay more tax than you have to, UM, you 317 00:18:27,880 --> 00:18:32,680 Speaker 1: you want to make a high salary and then have 318 00:18:32,800 --> 00:18:35,879 Speaker 1: a lot of adjustments. UM. The problem is is that 319 00:18:36,040 --> 00:18:40,159 Speaker 1: there's this thing that was introduced in the sixties nineteen 320 00:18:40,280 --> 00:18:44,960 Speaker 1: sixty nine I think, or maybe the seventies. UM was 321 00:18:45,119 --> 00:18:48,800 Speaker 1: the alternative minimum tax. Sorry that came around in the eighties. 322 00:18:50,160 --> 00:18:54,520 Speaker 1: The alternative minimum tax was introduced to keep high earners 323 00:18:55,240 --> 00:19:00,040 Speaker 1: from just deducting absolutely everything and paying a very a 324 00:19:00,160 --> 00:19:03,960 Speaker 1: low tax. Um, and it made sense of the time 325 00:19:04,200 --> 00:19:07,040 Speaker 1: because it was imposed on higher earners. The problem is 326 00:19:07,119 --> 00:19:10,639 Speaker 1: is the cut off that was originally introduced, something like 327 00:19:10,800 --> 00:19:13,639 Speaker 1: sixty thou or something like that at that time was 328 00:19:13,760 --> 00:19:16,720 Speaker 1: a lot of money, but it was never index to inflation. 329 00:19:17,119 --> 00:19:21,320 Speaker 1: So as the value of the dollar grew weaker over 330 00:19:21,440 --> 00:19:24,080 Speaker 1: time through inflation, why didn't they index it to inflation. 331 00:19:24,200 --> 00:19:29,879 Speaker 1: That's weird. Well, because now something like of wag earners 332 00:19:30,200 --> 00:19:35,440 Speaker 1: fall subject to the minimum tax, so it's basically like 333 00:19:35,560 --> 00:19:39,000 Speaker 1: an extra tax now. And what the alternative minimum text 334 00:19:39,040 --> 00:19:40,720 Speaker 1: does is say, okay, great, you went through and you 335 00:19:40,760 --> 00:19:43,280 Speaker 1: figured out all your deductions. That's beautiful. What we're gonna 336 00:19:43,359 --> 00:19:46,680 Speaker 1: do is take your adjusted gross income minus deductions, that 337 00:19:46,880 --> 00:19:49,200 Speaker 1: nice little number that you got it too, and we're 338 00:19:49,200 --> 00:19:52,719 Speaker 1: gonna add those deductions back and we're gonna come up 339 00:19:52,760 --> 00:19:58,000 Speaker 1: with your alternative adjusted alternative income figure. And then we're 340 00:19:58,000 --> 00:20:00,600 Speaker 1: going to figure that how much ex tray you oh, 341 00:20:01,000 --> 00:20:05,160 Speaker 1: on top of your normal ten forty and that's your 342 00:20:05,200 --> 00:20:09,000 Speaker 1: full tax. You're gonna add that to the ten forty 343 00:20:09,320 --> 00:20:11,280 Speaker 1: tax amount that you owe, and we're gonna come up 344 00:20:11,280 --> 00:20:14,520 Speaker 1: with the actual tax you oh, including alternative minimum And 345 00:20:14,600 --> 00:20:17,399 Speaker 1: apparently Basically, everybody's subject to it one way or another. 346 00:20:17,680 --> 00:20:20,480 Speaker 1: Even if you don't itemize, even if you choose the 347 00:20:20,520 --> 00:20:25,359 Speaker 1: standard deduction, you probably owe something on the alternative minimum tax. 348 00:20:25,840 --> 00:20:27,399 Speaker 1: So it sounds like what you're saying is that no 349 00:20:27,520 --> 00:20:30,960 Speaker 1: matter what we do, and no matter how clever we 350 00:20:31,040 --> 00:20:32,960 Speaker 1: try to get with our accounting, all they have to 351 00:20:33,040 --> 00:20:37,199 Speaker 1: do is throw in the word another adjust right, they 352 00:20:37,200 --> 00:20:39,240 Speaker 1: add those adjustments right back them. They can just throw 353 00:20:39,240 --> 00:20:40,800 Speaker 1: in another word no, no, no, we need to adjust 354 00:20:40,840 --> 00:20:44,280 Speaker 1: it again and some at some point you gotta stop adjusting, right, exactly. 355 00:20:44,359 --> 00:20:46,879 Speaker 1: So the key here is then if you're still if 356 00:20:46,920 --> 00:20:49,440 Speaker 1: you're like, okay, I'm subject to the alternative minimum tax, 357 00:20:50,000 --> 00:20:52,560 Speaker 1: I'm um, I want to earn a high salary, but 358 00:20:52,600 --> 00:20:55,520 Speaker 1: I don't want to pay too much tax. The thing 359 00:20:55,640 --> 00:20:58,720 Speaker 1: that doesn't the adjustment or the deduction, I'm sorry, that 360 00:20:58,960 --> 00:21:03,639 Speaker 1: doesn't get added back um to your your gross income 361 00:21:03,680 --> 00:21:07,760 Speaker 1: when you're figuring the alternative minimum taxes charity charitable contributions. 362 00:21:08,520 --> 00:21:10,359 Speaker 1: So the key then would be to max those out 363 00:21:10,440 --> 00:21:15,400 Speaker 1: as much as possible, and then that would, I imagine, 364 00:21:15,440 --> 00:21:17,480 Speaker 1: lower your tax a little bit as far as alternative 365 00:21:17,480 --> 00:21:22,040 Speaker 1: minimum tax goes. Alright, it's like here's your tax, and 366 00:21:22,119 --> 00:21:27,639 Speaker 1: then now do it again and pay more. That's because 367 00:21:27,680 --> 00:21:34,080 Speaker 1: they didn't adjust it to inflation. All right, I think 368 00:21:34,119 --> 00:21:36,600 Speaker 1: we're here towards the end of this portion. You have 369 00:21:36,680 --> 00:21:39,240 Speaker 1: your gross tax liability finally, and we should say also, 370 00:21:39,320 --> 00:21:42,359 Speaker 1: I'm sorry, um that as of two thousand twelve it 371 00:21:42,480 --> 00:21:47,399 Speaker 1: became finally index to inflation. But I mean for thirty 372 00:21:47,520 --> 00:21:49,560 Speaker 1: years it wasn't, and it just kept hitting more and 373 00:21:49,600 --> 00:21:53,280 Speaker 1: more and more people. Well it's important though, that's good. Uh. 374 00:21:53,480 --> 00:21:56,440 Speaker 1: So we have your gross tax liability. Now Cyrus is 375 00:21:57,240 --> 00:21:59,480 Speaker 1: Cyrus is going to subtract any credits that are still there, 376 00:22:00,080 --> 00:22:05,080 Speaker 1: and then that final number is Cyrus's net tax. So 377 00:22:05,240 --> 00:22:07,320 Speaker 1: that's either what he's gonna pay or what he's gonna 378 00:22:07,359 --> 00:22:14,280 Speaker 1: get back. And come April, uh, some time between January one, 379 00:22:14,840 --> 00:22:17,520 Speaker 1: when he gets his W two from his employer in April, 380 00:22:17,960 --> 00:22:19,720 Speaker 1: he's gonna have to figure all that out, either by 381 00:22:19,800 --> 00:22:21,920 Speaker 1: himself or with the help of someone who knows what 382 00:22:22,000 --> 00:22:26,040 Speaker 1: they're doing. Um, your W two is gonna break down, uh, 383 00:22:26,640 --> 00:22:29,520 Speaker 1: everything you made Basically, it's also in your final paycheck, 384 00:22:29,640 --> 00:22:31,440 Speaker 1: but the W two is what you send in, so 385 00:22:31,520 --> 00:22:35,200 Speaker 1: you need a separate copy and Supposedly, the UM, your employer, 386 00:22:35,440 --> 00:22:39,000 Speaker 1: you're anybody who who is going to send you money 387 00:22:39,040 --> 00:22:41,920 Speaker 1: about income you made or documents about income you made, 388 00:22:42,359 --> 00:22:45,600 Speaker 1: UM has to give you those documents by January thirty one. 389 00:22:46,160 --> 00:22:50,520 Speaker 1: That's right, okay. Uh And then here's the fun part. 390 00:22:51,080 --> 00:22:53,960 Speaker 1: They take all your information and they store it on 391 00:22:54,359 --> 00:22:58,719 Speaker 1: magnetic tape machines from the nineteen fifties. Yeah, you found this, UM, 392 00:22:59,280 --> 00:23:01,000 Speaker 1: this is pretty crazy easy. Well, it stood out to 393 00:23:01,040 --> 00:23:02,800 Speaker 1: me when I saw magnetic tape machines. I was like, 394 00:23:03,240 --> 00:23:05,720 Speaker 1: how old is this right? And apparently that's still the 395 00:23:05,760 --> 00:23:09,440 Speaker 1: case because UM they don't have the funding to upgrade 396 00:23:09,640 --> 00:23:14,760 Speaker 1: their systems, so they have the magnetic tape program. And uh, 397 00:23:16,440 --> 00:23:19,960 Speaker 1: Obama's is trying to think UM in two thousand twelve 398 00:23:20,000 --> 00:23:22,560 Speaker 1: to increase funding to correct that by like a billion 399 00:23:22,600 --> 00:23:24,920 Speaker 1: and a half dollars two point one billion. I don't 400 00:23:24,920 --> 00:23:28,480 Speaker 1: know if it went through or not. So, like you found, Chuck, 401 00:23:28,560 --> 00:23:33,560 Speaker 1: you stumbled upon the very reason why tax refunds take forever, 402 00:23:34,400 --> 00:23:37,280 Speaker 1: because there's up to a two week period between when 403 00:23:37,359 --> 00:23:41,040 Speaker 1: this the refund or the tax return is filed UM 404 00:23:42,000 --> 00:23:45,200 Speaker 1: and and it ends up on the magnetic tape where 405 00:23:45,320 --> 00:23:47,600 Speaker 1: it's like it doesn't even exist as far as irs 406 00:23:47,680 --> 00:23:52,560 Speaker 1: is can. There's no data whatsoever because they're using magnetic tapes. Um. 407 00:23:52,960 --> 00:23:55,760 Speaker 1: All right. So oh and apparently also in this article 408 00:23:55,840 --> 00:23:58,240 Speaker 1: that you sent, UM, they were saying that the the 409 00:23:58,480 --> 00:24:02,040 Speaker 1: encryption for the I r US is like pretty sad 410 00:24:02,359 --> 00:24:06,119 Speaker 1: as well, that's parting. Yeah, and the security breaches is 411 00:24:06,200 --> 00:24:09,280 Speaker 1: all but inevitable. Yeah, if it hasn't happened, like if 412 00:24:09,320 --> 00:24:12,840 Speaker 1: it doesn't happen in a daily basis already. Wow. All right. 413 00:24:12,920 --> 00:24:15,720 Speaker 1: So that a lot of people complain about taxes in 414 00:24:15,800 --> 00:24:19,400 Speaker 1: this country and probably worldwide. Um. So over the years 415 00:24:19,440 --> 00:24:22,200 Speaker 1: have been a lot of different UH solutions proposed, different 416 00:24:22,280 --> 00:24:27,080 Speaker 1: kinds of taxes, alternatives, if you will. One very popular one, um, 417 00:24:27,880 --> 00:24:30,080 Speaker 1: because it keeps coming back up at least is the 418 00:24:30,119 --> 00:24:34,360 Speaker 1: flat tax. UM. I think also people like to say 419 00:24:34,400 --> 00:24:38,760 Speaker 1: it flat tax. Uh. Steve Forbes and Dick Army, Um, 420 00:24:39,400 --> 00:24:42,199 Speaker 1: we're big on the flat tax. And that was one 421 00:24:42,240 --> 00:24:45,760 Speaker 1: of Steve Forbes's big one of the foundations of his 422 00:24:45,840 --> 00:24:52,560 Speaker 1: presidential campaign was a flat tax of se ish um. Basically, 423 00:24:52,640 --> 00:24:56,400 Speaker 1: everyone pays the same tax no matter what. Um, You're 424 00:24:57,960 --> 00:25:01,040 Speaker 1: complicated tax code is going to be bye bye, and 425 00:25:01,080 --> 00:25:03,080 Speaker 1: you're gonna get something about the size of a postcard 426 00:25:03,119 --> 00:25:07,320 Speaker 1: to fill out about ten lines your personal income, any 427 00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:10,760 Speaker 1: personal allowances, your wage, your salary, and then what is 428 00:25:10,800 --> 00:25:15,680 Speaker 1: your seventeen percent and nut that you owe? Makes sense? 429 00:25:15,920 --> 00:25:19,840 Speaker 1: What's the problem seventeen percent? That'd be great for everybody. Yeah, Well, 430 00:25:19,920 --> 00:25:22,240 Speaker 1: critics will say that it's a favorite the wealthy and 431 00:25:22,320 --> 00:25:25,680 Speaker 1: puts higher taxes on the burden on those who don't 432 00:25:25,680 --> 00:25:28,840 Speaker 1: make as much money. Yeah, because if you're paying ten percent, 433 00:25:29,160 --> 00:25:31,640 Speaker 1: if you're in the ten percent bracket, suddenly you're paying 434 00:25:31,680 --> 00:25:35,360 Speaker 1: seven percent more on your income. True. Under Dick armies 435 00:25:35,880 --> 00:25:39,879 Speaker 1: um flat tax that he proposes, anyone making less than 436 00:25:39,920 --> 00:25:42,920 Speaker 1: thirty six thousand, eight hundred pays no taxes, which is 437 00:25:42,960 --> 00:25:46,680 Speaker 1: different than Forbes is right, which if if that's still 438 00:25:47,000 --> 00:25:49,520 Speaker 1: part of his plan, I couldn't find if he'd adjusted it, 439 00:25:50,280 --> 00:25:52,520 Speaker 1: then that that it actually is a pretty good plan 440 00:25:52,600 --> 00:25:56,879 Speaker 1: if it would still satisfactorily fund the government, because that 441 00:25:56,960 --> 00:26:02,120 Speaker 1: would mean that everybody, if you were like you, would 442 00:26:02,119 --> 00:26:08,000 Speaker 1: pay no tax for thirty eight six right, and so 443 00:26:08,359 --> 00:26:12,879 Speaker 1: anybody above that would still be paying less because that 444 00:26:13,119 --> 00:26:18,360 Speaker 1: falls in the bracket, which means that you would automatically 445 00:26:18,480 --> 00:26:22,960 Speaker 1: everybody would automatically be downgraded tax wise, which is pretty good. 446 00:26:23,359 --> 00:26:26,120 Speaker 1: The problem is, you know, would that fund the government? 447 00:26:26,920 --> 00:26:29,480 Speaker 1: Is that the issue? Well? Yeah, I mean think about this. 448 00:26:29,600 --> 00:26:33,320 Speaker 1: So we're at historically low levels of income taxes right 449 00:26:33,440 --> 00:26:40,399 Speaker 1: like UM in the sixties under JFK and lb j's watch, 450 00:26:41,520 --> 00:26:47,600 Speaker 1: the tax rates were in the nine percentile, the highest 451 00:26:47,640 --> 00:26:54,200 Speaker 1: TAXI was up to and it was like, people think 452 00:26:54,240 --> 00:26:56,760 Speaker 1: taxes are bad now that it's not. There's been plenty 453 00:26:56,840 --> 00:27:01,520 Speaker 1: of other times during the during boot mean times like 454 00:27:01,600 --> 00:27:04,800 Speaker 1: the post war period saw high taxes where taxes have 455 00:27:04,880 --> 00:27:07,800 Speaker 1: been up to sev for people UM, and these are 456 00:27:07,840 --> 00:27:10,040 Speaker 1: the high this is the highest bracket, but there have 457 00:27:10,280 --> 00:27:12,520 Speaker 1: been many times where it's very high, very low. And 458 00:27:12,560 --> 00:27:16,280 Speaker 1: apparently the situation is we UM will have like a 459 00:27:16,600 --> 00:27:20,800 Speaker 1: bubble an economic boom cycle and as a result will 460 00:27:20,880 --> 00:27:25,600 Speaker 1: lower taxes, and then things get tight and then extremely 461 00:27:25,680 --> 00:27:30,280 Speaker 1: high taxes follow. So apparently, considering the amount of federal 462 00:27:30,359 --> 00:27:33,200 Speaker 1: spending going on right now, our taxes are alarmingly low. 463 00:27:33,760 --> 00:27:37,000 Speaker 1: So the idea of a seventeen percent tax across the board, 464 00:27:38,080 --> 00:27:42,919 Speaker 1: we basically bankrupt the the the US, well, maybe they 465 00:27:42,920 --> 00:27:45,120 Speaker 1: should be a little smarter with how they spend their money. Well, 466 00:27:45,160 --> 00:27:47,560 Speaker 1: it's a lot of people say that. Maybe we talked 467 00:27:47,560 --> 00:27:50,440 Speaker 1: about that in the Dead Ceiling episode. Um. But there 468 00:27:50,480 --> 00:27:54,560 Speaker 1: are some some countries that have instituted flat taxes, especially 469 00:27:54,560 --> 00:27:57,800 Speaker 1: a handful of Baltic states. I mean, they've been doing 470 00:27:57,840 --> 00:27:59,919 Speaker 1: it since the nineties, some of them have. It's kind 471 00:28:00,040 --> 00:28:02,360 Speaker 1: hard to compare though, you know, yeah, because I mean, 472 00:28:02,680 --> 00:28:07,119 Speaker 1: you know, apples to oranges, apple to a slightly different 473 00:28:07,160 --> 00:28:10,200 Speaker 1: type of apple, Smith to the red delicious. Um. But 474 00:28:10,320 --> 00:28:12,400 Speaker 1: there's also a lot of people who say, well, yeah, 475 00:28:12,520 --> 00:28:16,680 Speaker 1: Estonia is still around, its economy is growing, but there's 476 00:28:16,720 --> 00:28:18,960 Speaker 1: also this thing called the value added tax that is 477 00:28:19,080 --> 00:28:22,280 Speaker 1: really helping their revenue as well, is in addition to 478 00:28:22,359 --> 00:28:28,320 Speaker 1: the flat tax. Interesting. So another alternative, the national sales taxes, 479 00:28:29,440 --> 00:28:31,760 Speaker 1: been floated for a while now, and it seems to 480 00:28:31,800 --> 00:28:36,520 Speaker 1: be gaining traction or maybe I'm just reading into it. Um. Basically, 481 00:28:36,600 --> 00:28:41,040 Speaker 1: this is the argument that taxing income decreases productivity, which 482 00:28:41,080 --> 00:28:45,800 Speaker 1: sort of makes sense when you think about it. Like, basically, 483 00:28:45,840 --> 00:28:48,040 Speaker 1: what they want to do is eliminate corporate income tax, 484 00:28:48,120 --> 00:28:51,719 Speaker 1: eliminate capital gains tax, eliminate a state in gift taxes, 485 00:28:52,320 --> 00:28:57,320 Speaker 1: and institute anywhere between fifteen and National Sales Tax also 486 00:28:57,400 --> 00:29:01,000 Speaker 1: eliminate Social Security tax the employer part employee part, and 487 00:29:01,120 --> 00:29:03,920 Speaker 1: abolished the I R S as they want to repeal 488 00:29:03,960 --> 00:29:09,720 Speaker 1: the sixteenth Amendment. Yeah, pretty much, um and under I 489 00:29:09,720 --> 00:29:11,480 Speaker 1: don't know if it was Alan Keys, if it was 490 00:29:11,600 --> 00:29:15,840 Speaker 1: his plan specifically or just generally. With the National Sales Tax, 491 00:29:15,880 --> 00:29:19,560 Speaker 1: they would exempt all consumption up to the poverty line. 492 00:29:19,920 --> 00:29:22,640 Speaker 1: So at the end of the year, if your total 493 00:29:22,760 --> 00:29:26,640 Speaker 1: expenditures were less than the poverty line, then you would 494 00:29:26,640 --> 00:29:28,480 Speaker 1: get all that money refunded to you that you paid 495 00:29:28,520 --> 00:29:31,920 Speaker 1: a national sales tax. That's a big deal because the 496 00:29:33,000 --> 00:29:36,520 Speaker 1: National sales tax any is a consumption tax, and a 497 00:29:36,640 --> 00:29:40,840 Speaker 1: consumption taxes um by nature regressive, meaning that the burden 498 00:29:41,000 --> 00:29:44,440 Speaker 1: is is heavier on the poor. And the reason the 499 00:29:44,520 --> 00:29:46,720 Speaker 1: burden is heavier on the poor with the consumption taxes 500 00:29:46,800 --> 00:29:50,920 Speaker 1: because the poor spend more of their money on necessities 501 00:29:51,560 --> 00:29:54,760 Speaker 1: that would be taxed. These are retail items, right, so 502 00:29:54,880 --> 00:29:58,160 Speaker 1: therefore more of the poor's income is tax and somebody 503 00:29:58,160 --> 00:30:01,200 Speaker 1: who's wealthy like if the poor, Like if if you 504 00:30:01,320 --> 00:30:05,680 Speaker 1: have a lower income person spending eighty percent of their 505 00:30:05,760 --> 00:30:11,720 Speaker 1: money on necessities, food, whatever, um, that means eight percent 506 00:30:11,840 --> 00:30:15,080 Speaker 1: they pay an eight taxes or they pay taxes on 507 00:30:15,160 --> 00:30:17,520 Speaker 1: eighty percent of their income, Whereas if you're wealthy and 508 00:30:17,560 --> 00:30:20,840 Speaker 1: you're spending twenty of your income on these necessities, you're 509 00:30:21,120 --> 00:30:25,080 Speaker 1: only spending you're only being taxed on of your income, right, 510 00:30:25,480 --> 00:30:27,560 Speaker 1: So that makes it a regressive tax, which is the 511 00:30:27,640 --> 00:30:30,520 Speaker 1: big the big criticism of the sales tax, the National 512 00:30:30,560 --> 00:30:33,520 Speaker 1: Sales tex that and it probably wouldn't provide enough funding 513 00:30:33,720 --> 00:30:36,320 Speaker 1: to fund the government once again to fund a big 514 00:30:36,400 --> 00:30:40,120 Speaker 1: bloated government at least, and they say that, Uh, some 515 00:30:40,280 --> 00:30:42,520 Speaker 1: people that advocate for it said, well, if we tweetd 516 00:30:42,520 --> 00:30:44,400 Speaker 1: it to where it was only retail and it was 517 00:30:44,960 --> 00:30:48,080 Speaker 1: also stocks and bonds included, then that might change the 518 00:30:48,200 --> 00:30:52,080 Speaker 1: arguments um um. But there is definitely an argument to 519 00:30:52,120 --> 00:30:55,920 Speaker 1: be made that the current system punishes people who save 520 00:30:56,000 --> 00:30:59,920 Speaker 1: money like that that don't spend, because you get tax 521 00:31:00,000 --> 00:31:02,800 Speaker 1: don your money, and then let's say you want to 522 00:31:02,880 --> 00:31:04,600 Speaker 1: take that money and put it in your bank, you 523 00:31:04,680 --> 00:31:06,920 Speaker 1: get tax on that again on the interest you learn, 524 00:31:07,360 --> 00:31:09,600 Speaker 1: all right, so it's that like you're getting taxed twice. 525 00:31:09,840 --> 00:31:12,280 Speaker 1: So there's the government has set up a lot of 526 00:31:12,320 --> 00:31:15,200 Speaker 1: incentive to go out and earn as much and save 527 00:31:15,240 --> 00:31:18,520 Speaker 1: as much as you can. Yeah, you know. Well, plus 528 00:31:18,560 --> 00:31:22,000 Speaker 1: banks aren't exactly encouraging savings right now with the terrible 529 00:31:22,080 --> 00:31:26,440 Speaker 1: interest rates they are offering. Yeah, yeah, that's true. Um, 530 00:31:26,680 --> 00:31:28,960 Speaker 1: what about corporate taxes? You know much about those? I 531 00:31:29,080 --> 00:31:32,680 Speaker 1: know that the income tax national income tax would get 532 00:31:32,720 --> 00:31:36,120 Speaker 1: rid of corporate income tax as well as the individual right. 533 00:31:36,600 --> 00:31:39,640 Speaker 1: So with corporate income taxes as it stands now, the 534 00:31:39,800 --> 00:31:42,680 Speaker 1: US has a U flag guess a flat rate of thirty. 535 00:31:44,320 --> 00:31:48,360 Speaker 1: But um, very famously, a lot of companies have great 536 00:31:48,400 --> 00:31:52,640 Speaker 1: accounting departments that are really good at getting around paying taxes. 537 00:31:52,960 --> 00:31:55,680 Speaker 1: Companies do that. Yeah. So ge in two thousand ten 538 00:31:55,800 --> 00:31:59,000 Speaker 1: made fourteen billion dollars. Okay, that's more than me, almost 539 00:31:59,080 --> 00:32:00,760 Speaker 1: five and a half bill And that's more than you 540 00:32:00,840 --> 00:32:03,760 Speaker 1: and me combined. Almost five and a half billion were 541 00:32:03,800 --> 00:32:07,640 Speaker 1: made in the US, and um, they paid zero dollars 542 00:32:07,680 --> 00:32:10,080 Speaker 1: in taxes in the US and in fact applied for 543 00:32:10,160 --> 00:32:15,320 Speaker 1: a three point two billion dollar tax credit. Okay, okay, um. 544 00:32:15,600 --> 00:32:19,200 Speaker 1: Apple paid zero taxes to any government between two thousand 545 00:32:19,280 --> 00:32:22,240 Speaker 1: nine and two thousand and twelve despite making thirty billion dollars. 546 00:32:22,880 --> 00:32:25,440 Speaker 1: But their iPhones are so cute, right, And then um, 547 00:32:25,720 --> 00:32:29,160 Speaker 1: in two thou also Warren Buffett very famously pointed out 548 00:32:29,200 --> 00:32:32,120 Speaker 1: that he paid UM six point nine million dollars in 549 00:32:32,160 --> 00:32:36,520 Speaker 1: personal income taxes, but where his assets not incorporated in 550 00:32:36,640 --> 00:32:40,360 Speaker 1: Berkshire Hathaway, he would have paid um one point six 551 00:32:40,440 --> 00:32:43,720 Speaker 1: billion dollars and extra billion dollars in income taxes. So 552 00:32:43,800 --> 00:32:46,120 Speaker 1: he points us out to say, like, the corporate tax 553 00:32:46,160 --> 00:32:50,560 Speaker 1: system is broken. You don't like anybody can get around it. 554 00:32:50,880 --> 00:32:53,200 Speaker 1: So we need to fix this as well, not do 555 00:32:53,360 --> 00:32:56,080 Speaker 1: away with it. You need to close the loopholes that 556 00:32:56,200 --> 00:32:59,560 Speaker 1: are allowing this. But then that brings up the big argument, Well, 557 00:32:59,600 --> 00:33:02,160 Speaker 1: it's going to keep America from being competitive because we're 558 00:33:02,200 --> 00:33:04,880 Speaker 1: gonna pay higher taxes. It's going to drive jobs overseas, 559 00:33:04,920 --> 00:33:06,880 Speaker 1: and companies are gonna shut down here in the US. 560 00:33:07,600 --> 00:33:10,800 Speaker 1: Apparently that's not ever been proven that that's all this 561 00:33:10,960 --> 00:33:17,040 Speaker 1: kind of hot air. Yeah, um, they they Some people 562 00:33:17,080 --> 00:33:20,840 Speaker 1: contend that high tax rates on the rich, um, don't 563 00:33:20,920 --> 00:33:27,080 Speaker 1: hurt the economy and don't disincentivize people to work hard. Um, 564 00:33:28,160 --> 00:33:29,760 Speaker 1: like you said, in the fifties and sixties, it was, 565 00:33:31,040 --> 00:33:34,040 Speaker 1: and the economy and the stock market were booming back then. 566 00:33:34,720 --> 00:33:36,120 Speaker 1: And I'm not arguing for any of it. I think 567 00:33:36,160 --> 00:33:39,080 Speaker 1: it's all just broken and and I don't know if 568 00:33:39,120 --> 00:33:43,760 Speaker 1: there is a solution because corporations and wealthy are the 569 00:33:44,080 --> 00:33:48,520 Speaker 1: very people that have the ability to find the loopholes. Yeah, 570 00:33:48,600 --> 00:33:50,440 Speaker 1: that's where people go to H and R Block and 571 00:33:50,520 --> 00:33:52,720 Speaker 1: just still out their taxes in bam. Yeah, it's sad 572 00:33:53,280 --> 00:33:57,440 Speaker 1: like that's that's we don't have an accounting department. You 573 00:33:57,560 --> 00:34:00,120 Speaker 1: and I know, like you know, we hopefully get as 574 00:34:00,160 --> 00:34:02,040 Speaker 1: many deductions as we want and then we get slapped 575 00:34:02,080 --> 00:34:05,120 Speaker 1: with the alternative minimum tax and they get added right 576 00:34:05,200 --> 00:34:07,200 Speaker 1: back in. I don't do you have a Swiss bank account. 577 00:34:07,680 --> 00:34:09,719 Speaker 1: I'm not talking about that, you have a bank in 578 00:34:09,760 --> 00:34:14,200 Speaker 1: the Cayman Islands. Let's change the subject. But yeah, that's 579 00:34:14,280 --> 00:34:16,879 Speaker 1: I mean, just the unfairness of it is is um 580 00:34:18,760 --> 00:34:22,440 Speaker 1: reason enough to change the tax structure of the tax code. 581 00:34:22,640 --> 00:34:25,799 Speaker 1: Well that's why a flat tax initially makes a little sense, 582 00:34:25,800 --> 00:34:30,279 Speaker 1: because it's just everyone pays the same. But people will 583 00:34:30,320 --> 00:34:34,560 Speaker 1: still find their way around that. Well, healthy people will 584 00:34:34,560 --> 00:34:36,600 Speaker 1: still find their way around it. It seems like somehow 585 00:34:36,840 --> 00:34:38,560 Speaker 1: the way that you find your your way around it 586 00:34:38,680 --> 00:34:41,759 Speaker 1: is it's just again, it's through loopholes. It's through and 587 00:34:41,840 --> 00:34:44,759 Speaker 1: whether it's a personal deduction or if you hold your 588 00:34:44,800 --> 00:34:47,320 Speaker 1: money overseas, you don't owe tax on it. If you 589 00:34:47,480 --> 00:34:50,480 Speaker 1: do away with loopholes and instituted a flat tax of 590 00:34:50,520 --> 00:34:55,880 Speaker 1: sev then for corporations as well, then that would I mean, 591 00:34:56,040 --> 00:34:58,200 Speaker 1: if it could, if it could fund the government, if 592 00:34:58,280 --> 00:35:00,520 Speaker 1: it didn't have to cut social service is and all 593 00:35:00,560 --> 00:35:03,120 Speaker 1: this other stuff, then I'm all for it. All right, 594 00:35:03,160 --> 00:35:06,920 Speaker 1: we have you found an interesting story from about fourteen 595 00:35:07,000 --> 00:35:10,160 Speaker 1: years ago where some businesses decided to stop paying taxes. Yeah, 596 00:35:10,200 --> 00:35:12,400 Speaker 1: and we'll talk about it right now, right, no, right 597 00:35:12,440 --> 00:35:18,160 Speaker 1: off this message break, Okay, all right, So you found 598 00:35:18,200 --> 00:35:20,279 Speaker 1: this story which I thought was pretty interesting, where some 599 00:35:20,440 --> 00:35:24,200 Speaker 1: small businesses in the early two thousand's thought they had 600 00:35:24,239 --> 00:35:29,680 Speaker 1: found a loophole um that basically said that they are 601 00:35:29,719 --> 00:35:33,200 Speaker 1: not subject to pay taxes as a small business owner. 602 00:35:33,560 --> 00:35:38,040 Speaker 1: Right that not only personal income, right, but the business both. Okay. 603 00:35:38,360 --> 00:35:41,080 Speaker 1: So basically there's this thing called the eight sixty one 604 00:35:41,280 --> 00:35:46,400 Speaker 1: arguments that legally you don't really have to pay income tax. Yes, okay, 605 00:35:46,560 --> 00:35:50,240 Speaker 1: that's not true though, Uh well it was up for interpretation. 606 00:35:50,360 --> 00:35:53,680 Speaker 1: I think had these people um sued the government and 607 00:35:53,800 --> 00:35:56,800 Speaker 1: continued to pay taxes, this movement would have had a 608 00:35:56,840 --> 00:35:59,480 Speaker 1: lot more teeth but instead a lot of people, just 609 00:35:59,680 --> 00:36:02,520 Speaker 1: a lot of tax resistors, just out of protests stop 610 00:36:02,640 --> 00:36:06,560 Speaker 1: paying taxes. There's a trend in the late nineties and 611 00:36:06,840 --> 00:36:10,200 Speaker 1: up to two thousand, two thousand three or four where 612 00:36:10,360 --> 00:36:14,640 Speaker 1: people were very loudly in public, holding press conferences saying 613 00:36:14,640 --> 00:36:17,400 Speaker 1: I'm a business owner and I'm not paying income taxes 614 00:36:17,440 --> 00:36:21,000 Speaker 1: any longer, and I'm not going to withhold my employees 615 00:36:21,080 --> 00:36:23,719 Speaker 1: taxes on behalf of the federal government. I don't have to. 616 00:36:24,480 --> 00:36:27,719 Speaker 1: That's a service that businesses provide the federal government. It's 617 00:36:27,760 --> 00:36:30,279 Speaker 1: not a mandate, and I think it's illegal that they're 618 00:36:30,280 --> 00:36:33,040 Speaker 1: paying taxes. So we're not doing it, and we're not 619 00:36:33,120 --> 00:36:35,920 Speaker 1: filing taxes either as a business. They head backup from 620 00:36:35,920 --> 00:36:38,600 Speaker 1: a former I R. S employee, right that said, you're right, 621 00:36:38,680 --> 00:36:41,200 Speaker 1: they can't come after you. Yeah. So apparently in the 622 00:36:41,360 --> 00:36:46,640 Speaker 1: code there's um there's a a part called eight sixty 623 00:36:46,719 --> 00:36:52,040 Speaker 1: one where it says that taxes are generated by non 624 00:36:52,239 --> 00:36:56,160 Speaker 1: American business activities. So the eight sixty one position is 625 00:36:56,200 --> 00:36:58,480 Speaker 1: that if you work for an American company and you're 626 00:36:58,480 --> 00:37:02,680 Speaker 1: an American, like any income you make it's domestic, which 627 00:37:02,760 --> 00:37:05,480 Speaker 1: is anything that you or I do, or anything most 628 00:37:05,600 --> 00:37:09,600 Speaker 1: people do um is not subject to taxation, and these 629 00:37:09,640 --> 00:37:12,359 Speaker 1: people tried it. They tested it, but they didn't really 630 00:37:12,440 --> 00:37:15,040 Speaker 1: test it in the courts, and most of them got 631 00:37:15,160 --> 00:37:17,960 Speaker 1: dragged to jail and are have just gotten out of 632 00:37:18,000 --> 00:37:21,880 Speaker 1: prison or are still serving prison terms, but a lot 633 00:37:21,920 --> 00:37:26,040 Speaker 1: of them aren't being forced to pay back taxes, which 634 00:37:26,120 --> 00:37:30,120 Speaker 1: is weird. Well, apparently the I r S is woefully 635 00:37:30,239 --> 00:37:35,279 Speaker 1: underfunded in terms of how much they can pursue these people. 636 00:37:35,840 --> 00:37:38,719 Speaker 1: That's why you could be a tax cheat and get 637 00:37:38,719 --> 00:37:41,200 Speaker 1: away with it, right if you're if your number isn't called, 638 00:37:41,280 --> 00:37:43,759 Speaker 1: but you know, you take that risk. That's why they 639 00:37:43,840 --> 00:37:48,640 Speaker 1: were Um. They apparently these people misinterpreted the i r 640 00:37:48,760 --> 00:37:53,279 Speaker 1: S is inability to prosecute them with the IRIS is 641 00:37:53,480 --> 00:38:01,000 Speaker 1: umbility legal ability to go after them, and they took 642 00:38:01,040 --> 00:38:04,160 Speaker 1: it as I r S capitulating to their argument and 643 00:38:04,440 --> 00:38:07,200 Speaker 1: instead really it was like, um, we were kind of 644 00:38:07,239 --> 00:38:09,759 Speaker 1: busy right now, but we'll come get you in two 645 00:38:09,760 --> 00:38:11,880 Speaker 1: thousand five. What was your name again? And they did, 646 00:38:12,040 --> 00:38:14,000 Speaker 1: thank you sir. Yeah, So a lot of people went 647 00:38:14,040 --> 00:38:17,279 Speaker 1: to jail. Um and six one is kind of dead 648 00:38:17,680 --> 00:38:22,080 Speaker 1: and Wesley Snipe's famously invoked argument, interesting, wonder if Willie 649 00:38:22,120 --> 00:38:25,680 Speaker 1: did uh not that I saw. You know, there's a 650 00:38:25,680 --> 00:38:28,640 Speaker 1: big push now that the um, you know, the NFL 651 00:38:29,719 --> 00:38:34,120 Speaker 1: National Football League is tax exempt, and there's a lot 652 00:38:34,160 --> 00:38:36,320 Speaker 1: of stink being you know, because I don't think a 653 00:38:36,320 --> 00:38:38,200 Speaker 1: lot of people knew this until sort of recently, and 654 00:38:38,239 --> 00:38:40,879 Speaker 1: of course now the internet. He gets on social media 655 00:38:40,920 --> 00:38:43,400 Speaker 1: and people are like what they're They're not a nonprofit? 656 00:38:44,239 --> 00:38:48,480 Speaker 1: So um yeah, socialition helps things quite a bit, doesn't it. Yeah, 657 00:38:48,520 --> 00:38:52,919 Speaker 1: their petitions going around, Uh, remove the NFL from that text? 658 00:38:53,360 --> 00:38:57,399 Speaker 1: Why would they be tax exempt? Uh, it's complicated, it's 659 00:38:57,480 --> 00:39:01,000 Speaker 1: so stupid. It's like you, Joe Public, you're paying the 660 00:39:01,040 --> 00:39:05,920 Speaker 1: alternatimentum text, But this enormous economic engine over here is 661 00:39:06,480 --> 00:39:10,040 Speaker 1: is exempt? Why not? Yeah? And not the individual teams 662 00:39:10,080 --> 00:39:12,800 Speaker 1: and owners like Arthur Blankett, the Falcons and the Falcons 663 00:39:12,880 --> 00:39:16,080 Speaker 1: organization has to pay taxes, but the NFL as a 664 00:39:16,400 --> 00:39:20,400 Speaker 1: as the larger body does not. But um yeah, it's 665 00:39:20,480 --> 00:39:22,560 Speaker 1: kind of messed up. They should probably pay taxes. So 666 00:39:22,680 --> 00:39:25,320 Speaker 1: we could sit here all day alternately giving facts and 667 00:39:26,440 --> 00:39:30,560 Speaker 1: railing on um, yeah, the income tax. But I think 668 00:39:30,600 --> 00:39:33,239 Speaker 1: we we got it. Yeah, and I'm sure we'll hear 669 00:39:33,280 --> 00:39:36,160 Speaker 1: from all sides on this one. Bring it on I 670 00:39:36,280 --> 00:39:38,239 Speaker 1: look forward to it. If you want to learn more 671 00:39:38,239 --> 00:39:40,719 Speaker 1: about the income tax, you can type income tax into 672 00:39:40,760 --> 00:39:43,799 Speaker 1: the search part how stuff works dot com. And uh, 673 00:39:44,040 --> 00:39:46,400 Speaker 1: since I said search part how stuff first dot com, 674 00:39:46,480 --> 00:39:50,160 Speaker 1: it means the time for listener mail. I'm gonna call this. 675 00:39:50,280 --> 00:39:52,480 Speaker 1: We may have saved the life. Hey guys, my name 676 00:39:52,520 --> 00:39:54,839 Speaker 1: is Zach Freeland. I'm a graphic design student at Grand 677 00:39:54,920 --> 00:39:59,120 Speaker 1: Valley State University, Go lakers Um. This is about its concussion. 678 00:39:59,600 --> 00:40:01,160 Speaker 1: He I went to sit down his bed one night 679 00:40:01,200 --> 00:40:03,239 Speaker 1: in his dorm and smacked the back of my head. 680 00:40:03,600 --> 00:40:05,719 Speaker 1: My roommates bunk heard a bit, but I went to 681 00:40:05,840 --> 00:40:08,960 Speaker 1: class and forgot all about it. About five hours later, 682 00:40:09,120 --> 00:40:10,759 Speaker 1: in a drawing class, I began to get all the 683 00:40:10,800 --> 00:40:14,160 Speaker 1: symptoms I usually got with a migraine. The next day 684 00:40:14,200 --> 00:40:15,840 Speaker 1: I had a bit of a headache, and then the 685 00:40:15,960 --> 00:40:18,680 Speaker 1: next day as well. So that Wednesday I started to 686 00:40:18,719 --> 00:40:20,880 Speaker 1: suspect I had a concussion and planning to go to 687 00:40:20,920 --> 00:40:23,319 Speaker 1: the hospital the next day. But that night I put 688 00:40:23,400 --> 00:40:27,440 Speaker 1: on the podcast and listen to the one on concussions, 689 00:40:28,239 --> 00:40:30,640 Speaker 1: and he said it was alarming enough to where I 690 00:40:31,160 --> 00:40:33,359 Speaker 1: went to the e R immediately and didn't wait till 691 00:40:33,360 --> 00:40:36,000 Speaker 1: the next day. And at the e R the doctor 692 00:40:36,040 --> 00:40:38,960 Speaker 1: told me I had an aneurysm or brain cancer, and 693 00:40:39,080 --> 00:40:41,719 Speaker 1: I was it was odd to predecide relief to find 694 00:40:41,760 --> 00:40:44,640 Speaker 1: out it was only an aneurysm. Um, I talked to 695 00:40:44,680 --> 00:40:50,040 Speaker 1: the doctors. Well, it's better than brain cancer. I guess. Uh. 696 00:40:50,640 --> 00:40:52,239 Speaker 1: I talked to the doctors. They said I should be 697 00:40:52,280 --> 00:40:55,279 Speaker 1: fine to finish my time at school, which made it 698 00:40:55,680 --> 00:40:58,239 Speaker 1: possible for me to get further treatment at home. Went 699 00:40:58,280 --> 00:41:02,960 Speaker 1: into surgery. They off my aneurism with platinum coils. I 700 00:41:03,040 --> 00:41:05,279 Speaker 1: guess that's what they do. And the doctor said if 701 00:41:05,320 --> 00:41:06,560 Speaker 1: I had not have come in, I might not have 702 00:41:06,640 --> 00:41:09,360 Speaker 1: lived a whole lot longer. Uh. The aneurism had already 703 00:41:09,400 --> 00:41:12,680 Speaker 1: grown from the first hospital visit to this second. So guys, 704 00:41:12,800 --> 00:41:17,160 Speaker 1: I want to say thank you for letting you know that. 705 00:41:17,480 --> 00:41:20,680 Speaker 1: Uh you make this podcast. And because of the concussion 706 00:41:20,760 --> 00:41:23,360 Speaker 1: one hadn't scared the crap into me, I might not 707 00:41:23,440 --> 00:41:26,640 Speaker 1: be here today. That is pretty awesome. And hey, if 708 00:41:26,680 --> 00:41:28,040 Speaker 1: this ends up in the air, give a shout out 709 00:41:28,080 --> 00:41:31,319 Speaker 1: to the Detroit City Football Club minor league soccer team 710 00:41:31,920 --> 00:41:35,200 Speaker 1: most passionate fans in the nation. No joke, So uh 711 00:41:35,719 --> 00:41:39,640 Speaker 1: go Detroit City Football Club. Yeah, let's good shout up. 712 00:41:39,760 --> 00:41:42,799 Speaker 1: That's Zach Freeland. Thanks Zach. If you're recouping well, sir, 713 00:41:42,920 --> 00:41:45,000 Speaker 1: this is a while ago. Yeah, sorry it took so 714 00:41:45,040 --> 00:41:46,759 Speaker 1: long to get on the air. Take care of Zach. 715 00:41:47,120 --> 00:41:49,839 Speaker 1: Thank you for listening to us and letting us save 716 00:41:49,920 --> 00:41:52,640 Speaker 1: your life. If we saved your life, you know me 717 00:41:52,719 --> 00:41:54,880 Speaker 1: and Chuck always want to hear about those. You can 718 00:41:54,920 --> 00:41:57,000 Speaker 1: tweet to us at s y s K podcast. You 719 00:41:57,040 --> 00:41:59,239 Speaker 1: can join us on Facebook dot com slash Stuff you 720 00:41:59,239 --> 00:42:02,000 Speaker 1: Should Know, and you can send us an email to 721 00:42:02,080 --> 00:42:05,200 Speaker 1: Stuff Podcasts at Discovery dot com and has always joined 722 00:42:05,239 --> 00:42:07,240 Speaker 1: us at our home on the web, Stuff you Should 723 00:42:07,239 --> 00:42:14,719 Speaker 1: Know dot com. For more on this and thousands of 724 00:42:14,800 --> 00:42:17,040 Speaker 1: other topics, Is it how Stuff Works dot com