There is a commercial on television that makes me very angry. There is a firm that specializes in reaching agreements between their clients and the IRS concerning owed taxes. I think there is absolutely nothing wrong with using every ethical means of paying only what is required. Of course, the claims of the firm are outrageous and probably not 100% true, but I still almost blow a gasket every time I see the ad. (I know, I know. It doesn't take much to make the angry sometimes. And I spend way too much time thinking about perceived inequities that have very little to do with me.)
One person says, “I owed the IRS $300,000 and the IRS settled for $2.43.” Okay, that’s an exaggeration, but their numbers sound just as unbelievable. How long do you have to fail to pay taxes, or how much money do you have to make, to owe $300,000? Do the people owing $300,000 in taxes have no clue about managing their money? Maybe they simply over-extended their budgets with too many houses, too many cars, and too many vacations. Is that an acceptable excuse for not paying their fair share? It reminds me of a certain lady who said, “Only the little people pay taxes.”
My problem with the idea is that we, like most citizens, pay every cent we owe to the government without too much complaining. We don’t even itemize deductions since the children left home. The closest we ever came to cheating on our taxes was years ago when we did itemize deductions. Mr. Fixit saw a check made to Dr. Smith in the amount of $20.00 and added it to our medical expenses. It was only later after the return was mailed that I noticed the error on our copy of the return. Dr. Smith was our vet. Even though our dog was a member of the family, I don’t think her expenses were deductible.
This commercial makes me angry because it’s rather like shoplifting or insurance fraud. When someone shoplifts, retail prices go up. When some jerk commits insurance fraud, everyone’s rates go up. If that person who owes $300,000 doesn’t pay his share of his taxes, that means we all lose. No, not all of us lose; the guy who settles his huge debt with the IRS for a small sum makes out like a bandit and the company that represents him probably does better than anyone.
It would be interesting to know if the ad reflects the actual results of the firm’s advocacy.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
I think most of those ads are exaggerations. They are playng to greed.
Those ads irritate me, too. I know they're exaggerations, but they do show people how to avoid paying some taxes that are owed, while the rest of us pay up the full amount.
I agree with you. Good blog.
Post a Comment