Income taxes

Our health insurance sucks rocks.
My wife is self employed and it's all we can get. At least I can file for Social Security this year.
It won't cover any medical bills until I'm 65 though...
We end up paying over 25k per year, just for the insurance and still have an annual 6k deductible to meet before insurance pays anything.
Income tax isn't even included in that amount. That's another fiasco of it's own.
My wife had back surgery a couple of years ago and insurance wouldn't pay a dime.
We had to eat the whole thing, even after paying out all that $$$, year after year.
Insurance refused to pay because they thought she rushed into surgery, without suffering with the condition long enough.:facepalm:
 
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Hackmaster said:
Our health insurance sucks rocks.
My wife is self employed and it's all we can get. At least I can file for Social Security this year.
It won't cover any medical bills until I'm 65 though...
We end up paying over 25k per year, just for the insurance and still have an annual 6k deductible to meet before insurance pays anything.
Income tax isn't even included in that amount. That's another fiasco of it's own.
My wife had back surgery a couple of years ago and insurance wouldn't pay a dime.
We had to eat the whole thing, even after paying out all that $$$, year after year.
Insurance refused to pay because they thought she rushed into surgery, without suffering with the condition long enough.:facepalm:
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And people complain here when we say "free" health care. Well I didn't exactly pay for it, as such. If we didn't have it, income tax would still be the same!
 
My wife does taxes for a living. She's done the volunteer work for Low Income tax relief for five years. Last year she got her degree and is working for her CPA while working with one of the largest Firms on the West Coast.

What baffles me, is how many Americans have zero understanding of our own tax codes and how they work.
 
Ghostman said:
My wife does taxes for a living. She's done the volunteer work for Low Income tax relief for five years. Last year she got her degree and is working for her CPA while working with one of the largest Firms on the West Coast.

What baffles me, is how many Americans have zero understanding of our own tax codes and how they work.
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Why should it baffle you. The tax code and laws and rules and how what goes where when changes so often almost no one can make sense of it.
 
Ghostman said:
yeah, but even the basics like how Taxes work seem to be elusive to most.
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I see what you mean now. I am guessing there might be a generational cut off to which this statement applies. For those of us who started working before we were 12 years old way back in the 70's, on up to those of society born, educated and working by the early 90's, I would say they understand " the tax system"

After that all bets are off as to what the hell those kids get taught in school.
 
chilipeppermaniac said:
I see what you mean now. I am guessing there might be a generational cut off to which this statement applies. For those of us who started working before we were 12 years old way back in the 70's, on up to those of society born, educated and working by the early 90's, I would say they understand " the tax system"

After that all bets are off as to what the hell those kids get taught in school.
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Yeah, but it seems like the older generations are the ones that are the toughest to teach about taxes. They are always, and I do mean "always" the ones that give my wife the most grief.
 
For example? GW Do you mean OLDER as in 70+. 50+ 40+?
And what specifically are some of the failures to communicate between your wife and her clients without a clue?

Here is my perspective and maybe I am included, maybe not. Background, I began working that was taxable way back in 1980. I anticipated earning below the minimum income to have to have taxes witheld. Therefore in order to take home the maximum of my wages, I filled out the form needed to claim 0 dependents and or just myself ( IIRC) on the witholdings form. Then I set about to learn and do the tasks that job entailed which lasted for the 4+ months of my part time arrangement. Once my school year came to an end in the summer, I wanted to work again until the next school year was underway. So, my employment ended until the following year at which time I was 17. Based on the my former manager's comment upon my leaving the job the last year, I decided to take him up on his offer. The previous year my boss told me that if I ever wanted to come back, I always had a job there if I wanted one. So, when I called to express my desire to work there again, I told him how much I enjoyed it and reminded him of his offer. Same deal with the tax forms.

This type summer work would happen until I graduated from college in 1986 and the tax form entries would change due to now starting employments that would last for full year durations and thus see me earning a taxable income above the standard deduction level.

So basically there were forms for the Social Security, W2, and eventually 1040 or 1040 EZ.

Now, while being an employee from 1986-1989, I managed to do my own taxes based on the 1040 or 1040 EZ I forget which due to 40 years gone by. Then after 1989 I became a sole proprietor and eventually an S Corp. at which time I hired a tax accountant.

Now, I basically had to keep records of my expenditures and incomes, investments profits and losses, and then present them to the accountant at year's end. There would be quarterly withholdings of estimated tax burden ( forms filled out to calculate this) FICA forms, and 1099 etc.

How hard is this?

Now for more complex things. At tax time, there would be the Individual Return and the Corporate return. Profit and loss, Capital gains and losses, Business Property taxable portions forms, and if I had employees which I did not, any forms the Govt requires for them. Duplicate info for our Maryland State taxes.

Now, if one wants to make a case for HOW a Joe public can get clueless of tax things, then put the tax code in front of them and see the result of trying to figure out just wtf the rules and regs say is taxable income, vs deductions vs who the heck can tell.

This is the only complicated part unless the IRS has added numerous changes a person was unaware of since the last time they went through tax season.
 
I will be having hip replacement surgery in a couple of months. When I had the other one done 6 years ago the bill was over $45,000 and I was in the hospital for a total of 30 hours between the operation and recovery. I'm sure it will be more this time. IMO this is just inherently wrong. Somewhere in the system, probably the insurance companies, someone is making a whole lot of money they don't deserve. I've had a windshield replaced in the same car twice in the past. The first time I had full coverage and the bill was about $645 and cost me nothing. The second time I didn't have glass coverage and cost me about $230. I'll just leave it at that.
 
Ghostman said:
Yeah, but it seems like the older generations are the ones that are the toughest to teach about taxes. They are always, and I do mean "always" the ones that give my wife the most grief.
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That's because they want to make sure, they get every tax deduction they can..;)
 
Cadorman said:
I will be having hip replacement surgery in a couple of months. When I had the other one done 6 years ago the bill was over $45,000 and I was in the hospital for a total of 30 hours between the operation and recovery. I'm sure it will be more this time. IMO this is just inherently wrong. Somewhere in the system, probably the insurance companies, someone is making a whole lot of money they don't deserve. I've had a windshield replaced in the same car twice in the past. The first time I had full coverage and the bill was about $645 and cost me nothing. The second time I didn't have glass coverage and cost me about $230. I'll just leave it at that.
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Well we know the answer to that one don't we..;)
 
Cadorman said:
I will be having hip replacement surgery in a couple of months. When I had the other one done 6 years ago the bill was over $45,000 and I was in the hospital for a total of 30 hours between the operation and recovery. I'm sure it will be more this time. IMO this is just inherently wrong. Somewhere in the system, probably the insurance companies, someone is making a whole lot of money they don't deserve. I've had a windshield replaced in the same car twice in the past. The first time I had full coverage and the bill was about $645 and cost me nothing. The second time I didn't have glass coverage and cost me about $230. I'll just leave it at that.
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$45 thousand DOLLARS for a HIP?

WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW, And the guy probably does 6 or 7 of em in a day.
 
Cadorman said:
I will be having hip replacement surgery in a couple of months. When I had the other one done 6 years ago the bill was over $45,000 and I was in the hospital for a total of 30 hours between the operation and recovery. I'm sure it will be more this time. IMO this is just inherently wrong. Somewhere in the system, probably the insurance companies, someone is making a whole lot of money they don't deserve. I've had a windshield replaced in the same car twice in the past. The first time I had full coverage and the bill was about $645 and cost me nothing. The second time I didn't have glass coverage and cost me about $230. I'll just leave it at that.
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I’m thinking that our country’s largest manufacturing sector has shifted to become “healthcare costs”. I will delve no further here.
 
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