This is something everyone must be sure to read. My father can personally relate to this story. Many years ago there was a man who worked very hard to build a very successful business selling farm equipment in Ft. Scott, Kansas. After many years of having to comply with the taxes he was required to pay and the expense of doing so---He just got fed up and closed the business. As a result his employees lost their jobs and of course the city, county, state and federal government lost their cash cow. This took place back in the mid 40's. You can just imagine how much more the burden is today for a small business owner.
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To All My Valued Employees, There have been some rumblings around the office about the future of this company, and
more specifically, your job. As you know, the economy has changed for the worse and presents many challenges.
However, the good news is this: The economy doesn't pose a threat to your job. What does threaten
your job however, is the changing political landscape in this country. However, let me tell you some little tidbits of
fact which might help you decide what is in your best interests.
First, while it is easy to spew rhetoric that casts employers against employees, you have to understand that for every
business owner, there is a back story. This back story is often neglected and overshadowed by what you see and hear.
Sure, you see me park my Mercedes outside. You've seen my big home at last years Christmas party. I'm sure; all
these flashy icons of luxury conjure up some idealized thoughts about my life. However, what you don't see is the back
story. .I started this company 28 years ago. At that time, I lived in a 300 square foot studio apartment for 3 years.
My entire living apartment was converted into an office so I could put forth 100% effort into building a company,
which by the way, would eventually employ you. My diet consisted of Ramen Pride noodles because every dollar I spent
went back into this company. I drove a rusty Toyota Corolla with a defective transmission. I didn't have time to date.
I stayed home on weekends, while my friends went out drinking and partying. In fact, I was married to my business -
hard work, discipline, and sacrifice. Meanwhile, my friends got jobs. They worked 40 hours a week and made a
modest $50K a year and spent every dime they earned. They drove flashy cars and lived in expensive homes and wore
fancy designer clothes. Instead of hitting the Nordstrom's for the latest hot fashion item, I was trolling through the
discount store extracting any clothing item that didn't look like it was birthed in the 70's. My friends refinanced their
mortgages and lived a life of luxury. I, however, did not. I put my time, my money, and my life into a business with a
vision that eventually, some day, I too, will be able to afford these luxuries my friends supposedly had.
So, while you physically arrive at the office at 9 am, and then leave at 5 pm, I don't. There is no "off" button for me.
When you leave the office, you are done and you have a weekend all to yourself. I unfortunately do not have the
freedom. I eat, and breathe this company every minute of the day. There is no rest. There is no weekend.
There is no happy hour. Every day this business is attached to my hip like a 1 year old special-needs child.
You, of course, only see the fruits of that garden - the nice house, the Mercedes, the vacations ...
you never realize the back story and the sacrifices I've made.
.
Now, the economy is falling apart and I, the guy that made all the right decisions and saved his money have to bail-out
all the people who didn't. The people that overspent their paychecks suddenly feel entitled to the same luxuries that
I earned and sacrificed a decade of my life. Yes, business ownership has is benefits but the price I've paid is
steep and not without wounds. Unfortunately, the cost of running this business, and employing you, is starting to
eclipse the the threshold of marginal benefit and let me tell you why:
I am being taxed to death and the government thinks I don't pay enough. I have state taxes, Federal taxes, Property
taxes. Sales and use taxes, Payroll taxes, Workers compensation taxes, Unemployment taxes. Taxes on taxes.
I have to hire a tax man to manage all these taxes and then guess what? I have to pay taxes for employing him.
Government mandates and regulations and all the accounting that goes with it, now occupy most of my time. On Oct
15th, I wrote a check to the US Treasury for $288,000 for quarterly taxes. You know what my "stimulus" check was?
Zero........ Nada........... Zilch.
.
The question I have is this: who is stimulating the economy? Me, the guy who has provided 14 people good paying
jobs and serves over 2,200,000 people per year with a flourishing business? Or, the single mother sitting at
home pregnant with her fourth child waiting for her next welfare check? Obviously, government feels the latter is the
economic stimulus of this country.
.
The fact is, if I deducted 50% of your paycheck you'd quit and you wouldn't work here. I mean, why should you?
That's nuts. Who wants to get rewarded only 50% for their hard work? Well, I agree which is why your job is in jeopardy.
.
Here is what many of you don't understand ... to stimulate the economy you need to stimulate what
runs the economy. Had suddenly government mandated to me that I didn't need to pay taxes, guess what?
Instead of depositing that $288,000 into the Washington black-hole, I would have spent it, hired more
employees, and generated substantial economic growth. My employees would have enjoyed the wealth of that
tax cut in the form of promotions and better salaries. But you can forget it now.
.
When you have a comatose man on the verge of death, you don't defibrillate and shock his thumb thinking that will
bring him back to life, do you? Or, do you defibrillate his heart? Business is at the heart of America and always has
been. To restart it, you must stimulate it, not kill it. Suddenly,the power brokers in Washington believe the poor of
America are the essential drivers of the American economic engine. Nothing could be further from the truth and this is
the type of change you can keep.
So where am I going with all this? It's quite simple. If any new taxes are levied on me, or my company, my reaction
will be swift and simple. I fire you. I fire your co-workers. You can then plead with the government to pay for your
mortgage, your SUV, and your child's future. Frankly, it isn't my problem any more. I will close this company down,
move to another country, and retire. You see, I'm done. I'm done with a country that penalizes the productive and gives
gives to the unproductive. My motivation to work and to provide jobs will be destroyed, and with
it, will be my citizenship. So, if you lose your job, it won't be at the hands of the economy; it will be at the hands of a
political hurricane that swept through this country, steamrolled the constitution, and will have changed its
landscape forever. If that happens, you can find me sitting on a beach, retired, and with no employees to worry about .
Signed,
Your boss
May 2004 June 2004 July 2004 August 2004 October 2004 November 2004 December 2004 May 2005 March 2006 April 2006 May 2006 June 2006 July 2006 September 2008 October 2008 January 2009 February 2009 March 2009 April 2009 June 2009 July 2009 August 2009 September 2009 October 2009 November 2009 December 2009 January 2010 February 2010 April 2010 May 2010 June 2010 August 2010 November 2010 February 2011 March 2011 April 2011 June 2011 July 2011 August 2011 May 2012 July 2012 August 2012 September 2012 October 2012 November 2012 March 2013 September 2013 October 2013 December 2013 January 2014 February 2014 May 2014 June 2014 July 2014 August 2014 September 2014 October 2014 November 2014 December 2014 February 2015 March 2015 April 2015 June 2015 July 2015 December 2015 May 2016 August 2016 September 2016 November 2016 December 2016 October 2017 October 2018 April 2019 May 2019 November 2019
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Not only do we need a tea party. I want a divorce!!
Dear American liberals, leftists, social progressives, socialists, Marxists, et al:
We have stuck together since the late 1950’s, but the whole of this latest election process has made me realize that I want a divorce. I know, we tolerated each other for many years for the sake of future generations, but, sadly, this relationship has run its course. Our two
ideological sides of America cannot, and will not ever agree on what is right, so let’s just end it on friendly terms.. We can smile, chalk it up to irreconcilable differences, and go our own way.
Here is a model separation agreement:
Our two groups can equitably divide up the country by landmass each taking a portion. That will be the difficult part, but I am sure our two sides can come to a friendly agreement. After that it should be relatively easy! Our respective representatives can effortlessly divide other assets since both sides have such distinct and disparate tastes.
We don’t like redistributive taxes so you can keep them. You are welcome to the liberal judges and the ACLU. Since you hate guns and war, we’ll take our firearms, the cops, the NRA, and the military. You can keep Oprah, Michael Moore, and Rosie O’Donnell (You are, however, responsible for finding a bio-diesel vehicle big enough to move all three of them.)
We’ll keep the capitalism, greedy corporations, pharmaceutical companies, Wal-Mart, and Wall Street. You can have your beloved homeless, homeboys, hippies, and illegal aliens. We’ll keep the hot Alaskan hockey moms, greedy CEO’s, and rednecks. We’ll keep the Bibles and give you NBC and Hollywood ..
You can make nice with Iran and Palestine and we’ll retain the right to invade and hammer places that threaten us. You can have the peaceniks, and war protesters. When our allies or our way of life are under assault, we’ll help provide them security. We’ll keep our Judeo-Christian values. You are welcome to Islam, Scientology, Humanism, and ShirleyMcClain. You can also have the U.N. But we will no longer be paying the bill.
We’ll keep the SUVs, pickup trucks, and oversized luxury cars. You can take every Subaru station wagon you can find. You can give everyone health care, if you can find any practicing doctors. We’ll continue to believe health care is a luxury and not a right.
We’ll keep The Battle Hymn of the Republic and the National Anthem. I’m sure you’ll be happy to substitute Imagine, I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing, Kum By Ya, or We Are the World. We’ll practice trickle down economics, and you can give trickle up poverty your best shot. Since it often so offends you, we’ll keep our history, our name, and our flag.
In the spirit of friendly parting, I’ll bet you ANWAR which one of us will need whose help in 15 years.
Sincerely,
John
Law Student and an American
P.S. Also, please take Barbara Streisand & Jane Fonda,And we'll throw in Sean Penn, Bill Mahr and the Baldwins as well as all liberal newspapers and all liberal tv media!