The Sad Truth

I just got off the phone with one of my company's vendors - she was looking for money, as are everyone of us during the bleak days of winter, it seems.

Since I couldn't give her what she wanted, and I told her it up front, we had a little discussion about economic realities and chia-pets. (don't ask.)

After a bit, it became apparent from her comments that she followed the "Teabagger" philosophies of governance - she was blaming her high real-estate taxes on President Obama.

Although I pointed out several times that the FEDERAL government does not control our real estate taxation here in Illinois, she kept repeating how President Obama was supposed to be lowering our taxes but her tax rate had gone up.

She was also upset about the high sales-tax rate - another thing that is controlled by the local and state governments, not the Federal.

Which gets me to thinking, just how many of the folks who are disappointed in President Obama are just as clueless and uninformed as this woman? How many of them are expecting the Republican and Teabagger candidates to solve all of their taxation woes, and won't understand that there are taxes that are NOT controlled by the federal government?

We are not subject to just ONE level of government here. We have the Federal government, then we have the State government, the County government, and then our municipality (city, town, village, etc.) government. Each has rules. Each issues laws. Each taxes us.

Is it possible that THAT MANY PEOPLE do not understand this? Could it be that their concept of what the "Government" is taking from them is a combined taxation that is not under the control of the House of Reps or the Senate of the US - but instead taxes from their State or County government?

Do they not realize that a lot of these "entitlement programs" that they hate are not Federal? Do they know that their workplaces fund unemployment through FUTA and SUTA taxes, which are NOT taken from wages, but are levied on their employers?

Seriously, Lady-on-the-phone, President Obama has NOTHING - NOTHING AT ALL - to do with the price of our vehicle registration (license plates) fees!