As a US citizen what do you feel you are entitled to?

[skyfall123]

51% of tax filers pay no federal income tax. Some of those actually receive money back, called a refund, for taxes they never paid. This is done through earned income credit.

THEY'RE STILL PAYING TAXES (MOST OF THEM, ANYWAY)

The majority of households who pay no income tax still pay net taxes to the IRS. Federal income taxes account for about 40 percent of total government receipts. Most of the rest comes from payroll taxes, which workers of all income levels do pay. Since every dollar up to $106,800 is subject to taxes, a typical middle class family pays payroll taxes on all its income while a millionaire employee pays payroll taxes on only a tenth of his income.

At the same time, there are Americans -- millions of them -- who really do pay practically zero overall taxes. About fifteen million American households, or 10 percent of all taxpayers, receive more cash from the IRS than they contribute in federal income taxes and payroll taxes. That's thanks to "refundable credits," tax credits that can bring your tax bill into negative territory. To some, these 15 million are low-income Americans benefiting from smart and targeted welfare run through the tax code. To others, they are unacceptable free riders, citizens with a vote but no stake in federal government.


Copied verbatim from article here...51% of Americans Pay No Federal Income Taxes - Derek Thompson - Business - The Atlantic

The individual income tax has consistently provided nearly half of total federal revenue since 1950, while other revenue sources have waxed and waned. Excise taxes brought in 19 percent of total revenue in 1950 but only about 3 percent in recent years. The share of revenue coming from the corporate income tax dropped from about one-third in the early 1950s to less than one-sixth in 2008. In contrast, Payroll taxes provided more than one-third of revenue in 2008, compared with just one-tenth in the early 1950s.

What are the federal government's sources of revenue?

[Lindagerr]

What you think you are entitled to can change with circumstances and point of view.

I know one 80 year old women who stayed home with her children (her husband insisted on this) and lived on very little income. She scrimped and saved all her life to just make ends meet. She was only in her 40's when her husband had an accident and was permanately disabled, she still had a child under 1o so she needed to be home for this child and her disabled husband, she found low paying work because she was not educated and worked until retirement age. Now her husband is dead she still gets more from his Social security then she would from her own, but it is not enough to live on so she is still scripming and trying to get by without. Just a few years ago she told me she had kept track and her food bill for the last year had worked out to ~$2.00 per day??? I don't know how she does it most people spend more then $2 for coffee a day. Does she deserve more? Less? or should she just be allowed to die? She has had 80 Good (ha ha) years.

I know another 80+ women who was a professional she made very good money went back to college and got her Ph.D. Put LOTS of money into a retirement account and her husband did the same. They had children sent them to good colleges (paid for all the way through Masters) and they had lots of savings. The husband has died wife is collecting from his pension and her own and also her (twice lady #1's) Social Security. This women waste money like there is no tomorrow, but don't even think of suggesting to her that she doesn't deserve every penny she gets she feels she worked for it. Does she deserve to make more after over 15 years of retirement then some full time workers make in 2 years? Well she did save it and pay into Social Security a lot of years.

I also know more then one man in his 50's who worked hard and stayed loyal to the same company for over 25 years. Then he became expendable or the company changed direction or ownership and he was layed off. Some of these men have lost the homes they worked all their lives for. Some are staying home while the wife works fulltime so they have benefits, some have taken lower paying less prestigous jobs just to stay alive. None of these men feel they deserve this treatment. All of them stayed on unemployment 1-2 years or as long as they could. All of these men had children in high school or college depending on the fathers for support. All of these men have become depressed by their situation. Do they deserve the "Free Lunch" they are getting? do they deserve to be on the streets? I don't think any of them Want to be in the position they are.

I also know 18-25 year olds that have worked 1-3 years and got fired or quit because they were tired of working. Some of them have families some don't some make maximum unemployment some make little. They are all happy to have "Free" money coming in every week and think they deserve it because they paid into the system. They have no interest in looking for a job because they can make out fine on unemployment and/or put the family on welfare. Do they desrve to do this? They did pay into the system.

I am not saying any of these are right or wrong, it is just that we all look at most things from our own perspective and forget there are always at least 2 sides to a story.

[ryoder]

Thanks for the stories and factual information.
The sad truth is that if we do not course correct and make these entitlement programs sustainable then they will not be there for those who need them the most.
I assume I will never ever receive a single penny of social security. In fact the law states that social security is not your right and that there is no guarantee you will ever receive a bit of it. Its all discretional spending. I don't have a direct quote to back this up but could provide it if needed.

Either way, I do worry about the country, our people, the education system but I do not believe that the gub mint is helping the problem by using scare tactics to avoid tackling the real issues we have. If our creditors called in our 14 trillion dollar debt we would be in a world of hurt.

I encourage everyone who thinks the Feds are great with spending money on needy programs to contribute an extra 10% of their salary to their federal income tax return each year to reduce the deficit. I bet you nobody would ever do that. Because we all know that the government wastes money on so many things.

I love science but check out the wasteful spending pouring into universities:
Examples of the more than $3 billion in waste and duplication outlined in the report include:

• $80,000 study on why the same teams always dominate March Madness;

• $315,000 study suggesting playing FarmVille on Facebook helps adults develop and maintain relationships;

• $1 million for an analysis of how quickly parents respond to trendy baby names;

• $50,000 to produce and publicize amateur songs about science, including a rap called “Money 4 Drugz,” and a misleading song titled “Biogas is a Gas, Gas, Gas”;

• $2 million to figure out that people who often post pictures on the internet from the same location at the same time are usually friends; and

• $581,000 on whether online dating site users are racist.

[skyfall123]

Examples of the more than $3 billion in waste and duplication outlined in the report include:

2.3+ TRILLION dollars is spent annually on US health care, and some estimates predict that figure will reach nearly 25% of GDP within the next few years if nothing is done.

Seven hundred billion dollars. That's a ballpark estimate of how much money is wasted in the U.S. medical system every single year, according to a new Thomson Reuters (TRI) report. A sum equal to roughly one-third of the nation's total health-care spending is flushed away on unnecessary treatments, redundant tests, fraud, errors, and myriad other monetary sinkholes that do nothing to improve the nation's health. Cut that figure by half, and there would be more than enough money to offer top-notch care to every one of America's 46 million uninsured.

10 Ways to Cut Health-Care Costs Right Now - BusinessWeek

Interesting that an estimated 62% of all bankruptcy's in 2007 were due primarily to medical costs and that 78% of the people filing HAD INSURANCE

Study Links Medical Costs and Personal Bankruptcy - BusinessWeek

[skybirds]

If some one is considering Canada don't. You do get basic health care but the rest you pay thru the nose. Theres no section 8, foodstamps, Pell Grants.
The grass and money is greener on the other side.

[grauwulf]

@Geezer: thank you for posting your sources. I appreciate that you have taken the time to have an informed opinion.

@ryoder: I agree with you that the tax burden is really lopsided, but I see it from a different perspective. Federal income tax is capped just over $100K so the people and families that are taxed the 'most' are the ones approaching that number, not the ones over it. Amazingly the USA is one of 'lowest' taxed industrialized nations in the world. 12 Countries With The Highest & Lowest Tax Rates | Business Pundit
On the upper end: it is common practice to set up a dummy 'small business' to dodge taxes. This can reduce taxes to zero or even into refund territory.
On the lower end: the tax system is designed to get heavier as you go up the scale, so they are taxed slightly lower than 'average'.
The middle class carries the majority of the functional tax burden, and the middle class is shrinking every year. Consider this : NALP - The Association for Legal Career Professionals | Salary Distribution Curve : notice how there is a huge trough right through the middle class? The corporate pay system seems to have bent the curve at the opposite end of the 'pursuit of happiness'. Energy companies with billion dollar profit margins get huge tax breaks while middle class citizens worry about health care.

A hand up to the poor + a hand out to the wealthy = a middle class that can't support them both at the same time, e.g. large national debt.

I agree that something is wrong with the system, but I disagree with the idea that the tax system needs to be adjusted. If everybody that earned money paid taxes on that money we would go a long way to addressing the debt that you speak of. I think all governments are fraught with wasteful spending, and you point out some really good examples of that (sadly that is often money given to schools and research institutions is good faith that they end up 'having to spend' to maintain future funding... which is just silly ). Should those silly projects be dropped, most likely. The money could be pushed back into education and the long term benefits would be tremendous.

Then again, it's easy for us to sit in our chairs in front of our computers and rue the lack of action by congress/corporations/citizens/whatever.

[Lindagerr]

This is not the first time I have seen comments about schools getting so much money they have to figure out ways to spend it, That is a gross stereo typing which at least in NJ could not be further from the truth.

In NJ there are somewhere around 600 school districts there are only 31 so called Abbott districts. Yes those Abbott districts get a ridiculous amount of money which is supposed to BUY a better education, but that is only a small percentage of districts. Small rural districts just keep getting thier budgets cut and losing teachers and programs because people are upset that so much money is wasted in the Urban districts.

Everyone including elderly and people who never had children need to pay for education because education is everyones responsibility. Do you want to grow older in a United States that is no longer a world leader. If we do not do a better job of educating our future leaders AND our future workers we will lose any footing we have in the world market.

Many things in the US need to be done better, but at this point and time I can't think of any country in the world that does not have it's own share of economic or social problems that need to be done better. I would rather live in the relative comfort of the US then any other country. I just wish more of my Middle of the middle class friends and neighbors were able to maintain a relative level of comfort too.

[MomOfMany]

Actually NJ is known for it's crooked school districts.

Netflix has a documentary on it available in streaming.

The Cartel by Bob Bowden

Heaven knows NJ isn't alone it it either, so I'm sure not picking on them.

Fact is the USA spends a ridiculous amount of money compared to every other 1st world nation and even a few 2nd world nations too, yet nets some of the worst over all health care and education outcomes compared to those same nations.

That's just an embarrassment of waste and it is the duty of citizens to push our elected reps to act with responsibility and common sense when using our hard earned money.

[BELLA]

that's a loaded question :confused:

[Lindagerr]

As I said before NJ has around 600 school districts. I do not have Netflicks but I did some research on that film and it seems to point out the NJEA and teacher tenure as big problems, I do not argue those points. The film also appears to talk alot about how much is spent per pupil in NJ, but I don't see a breakdown of cost per student in Abbott Districts (supposedly poor inner city ) districts and the other 570 or so districts. If you look at a ranking of NJ districts you will find there are few to none of the Abbott districts in the top 50%.

The Governors and others have tried to stop this throwing money at the poor districts but again this month they were overturned by the state supreme court.

I am not saying there is no waste in education or that there is not a reason for change. I am just trying to say as in any stereo type you are judging the whole on the publisized wrongdoings of a few.

Many school districts in NJ and elsewhere in the US are doing great things with dedicated teachers and not enough money. I hate to see the general education bashing and "I didn't have that when I was in school" complainers keep the working districts from getting what they need to continue the good work.

I work in 2 small districts that have very limited budgets, very low administrator to teacher ratios and many long term dedicated teachers. They are both in the top 50% of NJ schools. I just wish they had more of the resources that have been cut over the years because people believe we spend too much on education.