Time To Play Up The Bunnypants Tax Increase!

The other day I heard from a very distraught friend. She had just gotten her quadrenial assessment on her property and has seen her property taxes jump $200 a month. At first I didn't believe this. I asked if she misread things...maybe this was semi-annual or quarterly. Today she came in with her new assessment, and sure enough, we compared her bill from last year with her new one...and sure enough, $1,250 dollars higher...a nice round $2,500 for the year. I still didn't believe it (my house gets the treatment next year) until another person stopped in and related a similar increase.

Looking closer at the tax bill, there were large increases for public schools and "community services" (translation: health and elderly)...followed by "administrative". The school problem is a double-whammy...lower taxes (between the "tax cut" the wealthy got and the lower tax revenues from the loss of jobs and those not earning what they previously did)...thus this "tax cut" created tremendous shortfalls we all are starting to pay for.

It's a pattern of this regime to stomp on the states for its own political power and greed...from "No Child Left" behind, Homeland "defense" and now Gay marriage...hell, they turned the SC on the states to steal the election...so much for the "party favoring states rights".

After more bitching, my friend...who considers herself a moderate Republican, started to follow the string as we looked at why her taxes were higher and you could see the light go on. It didn't take much previously to get her to think this regime isn't telling it to her straight...(she started to wake up with the WMD lie)...and this just put her over the top. For the remainder of the afternoon she would throw in another Bushbot lie she's heard...school vouchers, privitization, outsourcing and so on and started to find holes and lies in those positions. I just played Cheshire Cat.

It's time to bitchslap these GOOP maggots who claim not only is Kerry in favor of a tax increase (a utter lie since the sunset provisions on this tax cut will faze out those cuts to return things to 2001 level in 2011...and most middle class people won't see much of a cut at all...in fact, are starting to pay the piper and it's time to point this out...it's so simple to do.

The evidence and truth is there...the Repugnicans are total hypocrites on almost all economic issues these days and we just need to hammer with the facts any time these morons attempt to play Bizzaro world. Many people are hurting, they just haven't connected with why it is. Shine this light, tell the truth and this regime is toast!

Cheers!

Sounds like BigBucksVille

Praise be to the almighty Bush.

This is the Northwest suburbs...middle and upper middle class (average homes around $250k for a 3 - 4 bedroom). Again, I took a double-take on this, but I've learned this has been a "rolling" problem. The tax revenues began to shrink in 2001 and various "triggers" began to kick in that allowed incrimental increases in various local taxes that were then totalled for the individual's tax bill (I'm far from being knowledgeable in tax law, but my accountant is the one who pointed this out to me years ago).

This area's industrial/commercial base took a real hit in the dot com bust (Motorola and Ameritech are my neighbors) then the tax cuts took a lot of additional revenue away. Property are reassessed every 4 years, thus the last time her area was done was 2000 (based on data from '99). Mine was last done in 2001 with an increase (tell me a tax re-evaluation that work in your favor?), but I don't recall it being that jumping more than 5%.

A year ago, when the bite really started to hit the state and then local governments that's when you started reading about people who saw their property and other taxes jump...but it's one thing reading it in the paper, and another when it hits you...especially compounded like this economic crisis is.

Sidenote: my daughter is a Golden Apple scholar...a program to develop quality teachers for "distressed" schools. Funding comes primarily from Dept. Of Education and State grants...teachers then must work for 5 years at a school of the state's choosing (usually in Chicago). The other day, I got a letter saying that funding for her program had been cut out of next year's budget and we're gathering the troops to lobby in the state capital next month to get some, if not all, of the funding restored. Not only does this regime's reckless defecits and recession hurt those getting educated, it's now taking a real hard hit on those who most want to educate. Figures!

It's costing me at least $50.00 a week more now that Bush gave me that $1.00 a week tax cut. Thank you mr. bush.

I have a lot of Republican friends too. We have to talk to them, to help them see the light. They are otherwise good people.

I swear! Sometimes it is like what I imagine deprogramming a cult member, or a kidnap victim would be like. It can be traumatic for them.

Just consider all the lies these people have bought into! What would it be like to wake up one morning and realize, everything you believed in politics since Reagan, was a lie?

There's a lot of that going around this year.

their theology has been based on GOP talking points rather than the teachings of Jesus, their alleged leader. Ouch!!

and lead them back to the light! When people finally, really wake up, I hold no grudges...they have been abused, as far as I am concerned. Programmed. Often indoctrinated since childhood!

I hate the ones who did it to them, though.

Cut state taxes and used a slash and burn approach to pay for them. County and city governments had to take up the slack for essential services and property taxes went skyward. That started the 'taxpayer revolt' which resulted in Prop 13 back in the day.

Whenever you hear people complain about local taxes going up, do remind them it is to make up for federal $$ bush* gave back to the richest 1%. And on top of that, every time he or Chicken Hawk Dick fly into a city to collect fat cat donations, local governments have to make a demand campaign contribution via the cost of all the security man hours they have to provide for traffic control and to squelch the freedom to assemble and speak as they are required to herd the locals into free speech zones. Sorry, your taxes have to go up or we have to close the schools...

#$*@&$@$($*@!($)#$*! thieves. No child left behind? That's right, they are shaking down kids for lunch money, just like the school yard bullies we all knew and loathed.

last year too, as i have said, we didnt get a tax break, just given to the state to do