| Author | Message | ||
     Geoff Wootton Grand Master Username: dounraey Post Number: 690 Registered: 5-2012 |
Hi Fellow Tax Payers I thought I'd have a moan about tax, or as the Americans say, a vent. I spent 9 months in Cleveland Ohio 2013/14, moving back to Florida mid July 2014. Ohio is one of four states that has state tax. By American standards I'm a leftie pinko commie, in true English tradition. I don't mind paying fair tax. Cleveland Ohio is a city in decline and there is a lot of social need there. State tax came in at $3400. But wait, there is also local tax to pay as well (2430). Ok - fair enough, the City needs all the money it can get. Then I find out there is a sin tax on tobacco and alcohol. What is this for - food banks? clothing distribution? maybe a major program for the rampant drug addiction in Cleveland. No, it's for the upkeep of the football stadium. Not your local community stadium, no, it's for the multi million dollar stadium used by the Cleveland Cavaliers for their major league football. I thought they did ok without the need to tax everyone who likes a drink. Anyway I'm safely back in Florida now. The dereliction and brutally cold winters of Cleveland are a long forgotten nightmare. My PTSD counseling sessions are over. So I'm sitting here enjoying the sun when a letter drops through the door from a delightful lady called Rita. She however turns out to be an acronym for Regional Income Tax Agency for Ohio. They are demanding a further $1334. I rang the supplied telephone number protesting that I'd already paid my local tax. After about half an hour of talking at cross purposes it suddenly dawned on me that Cleveland has two lots of local tax. A local tax for where you work and one for where you live. So for anyone wishing to live in Ohio, here is the tax situation - Federal Tax, State Tax, Local Tax, More Local Tax, Sin Tax. Bank account lightened by a further $1334. I'm just hoping there aren't any other taxes I do not know about. End of vent Geoff | ||
| David Gore Moderator Username: david_gore Post Number: 1608 Registered: 4-2003 |
Hi Geoff, Come to Australia where paying tax is optional for those wealthy enough to afford to pay for the services of accountants and advisors who know all the loopholes in our tax laws and where the Government has little or no interest in closing these loopholes. We even let multinationals shift most of their Australian profits off-shore to low tax jurisdictions whilst paying a token amount of tax in Australia. Pity those who are not self-employed or the beneficiary of a family trust and are employees; they have income tax taken out of their wages/salaries before they are paid and cannot structure their income to take advantage of the loopholes. In your situation, what would be relevant to me is the percentage of all Federal, State and Local taxes paid as a percentage of your gross income. P.S. It is my understanding the Government even allows the cost of getting advice on "managing" your tax affairs as a tax deduction. Imagine being able to substantially reduce tax or even pay no tax at all on million dollar + incomes with the government "helping" you with the cost whilst single income wage and salary earning families cannot even do a simple income split to the non-working spouse to reduce their tax. | ||
| Brian Vogel Grand Master Username: guyslp Post Number: 1294 Registered: 6-2009 |
David, You could change "Australia" to "the USA" (or the adjectival equivalents) and the same still holds. What's even worse, as far as I'm concerned, is that these things are well-recognized but the political climate in the USA (and, I'd presume, Australia based upon your post) has rushed headlong into re-embracing the public policies of the Gilded Age. We all know that the Gilded Age was gilded for the very, very few. I mourn the passing of the ethos of the post WW-II period through the 1970s, when there seemed to be a genuine concern in the body politic and on the part of politicians for the working person. That's long gone on these shores. Brian, who's never objected to paying taxes, but does object that the proportion of my income that goes into tax coffers is significantly larger than that of most multi-millionaires and beyond | ||
| Christian S. Hansen New User Username: enquiring_mind Post Number: 10 Registered: 4-2015 |
Geoff... You forgot sales tax. I doubt that the officials have missed that obvious source of revenue. I am eventually moving to Montana where the winters are of the same vein as Cleveland, but with a bit of trepidation. They have no sales tax which is nice, but something seems to have affected their brains. Apparently most of the smart ones moved elsewhere. Makes me wonder about myselef since I am going in the opposite direction. The anecdote is that one of the TV channels is a close circuit to various legislative committee sessions which are frequently good for a belly laugh or the incessant shaking of one's head. One prime example that comes to mind was a taxation committee episode. A few years back the State had a surplus of funds, which is in itself odd given that politicians ALWAYS manage to spend 110%+ of available revenues, but anyway the plan was to return it equally to all of the property tax payers. The speaker finished his presentation and asked for questions from the committee. "How do you plan to calculate the amount of the refund that will go to each taxpayer?" The speaker stood there in silence for a monent, disbelief probably that the legislator had obviously never even bothered to read the proposal that he was about to vote on, but was polite enough not to laugh and note that simple division would give that result. His reply was that they would take the total amount of funds to be returned and divide it by the number of parcels on which taxes had been paid, and the result would be the amount that would be returned. Apparently the legislator must have been asleep during entry level math class. Don't even ask for examples of judicial intellect and court decisions, but a hint is that the Supreme Court and both litigants' counsel generated a decision once where it was obvious that they had ALL failed to appreciate that there was a difference between the words "commence" and "complete". Wonderful place where there are more deer then humans and more trout that deer. Anyone for hunting or fishing? Go there, but if you anticipate an intellectual interaction, be aware that it is a wasteland in that regard...but low taxes! | ||
| Geoff Wootton Grand Master Username: dounraey Post Number: 691 Registered: 5-2012 |
Hi Folks I was being a bit glib in my tax comments. It's just that the bill for $1300 "came from nowhere". In fact US tax rates are very low. I do agree with David and Brian as to how unfair, if not immoral it is how large corporations fiddle their taxes and pay very little. I know the same is true in England and probably the whole of the EU. Every cent they don't pay has to be made up by the general tax paying public or by increased government borrowing. The post WWII - 1970 period also applies to England. Growing up through the 1960's the economy was really picking up after post war austerity. I'd notice how new cars started appearing in the driveways of my neighbors houses and various other, admittedly, anecdotal signs of the pickup. The big change came in the early 1970s when the world globalized. One example of this was the lifting of import duties on foreign cars in 1973, with the resulting decimation of the British motor industry. Same applied all across industry in England. I have seen the results also in the US, having just moved from Cleveland, part of the rust belt. Of course the economists tell us we are all better off in the globalized economy and protectionism does not work. These are the same economists who preside over unprecedented levels of unemployment, low wage economies, national borrowing in the trillions and who, in 2008, failed to foresee the biggest economic crash since the 1930's. I'm always wary when "the establishment" distorts the meaning of a word and uses it to close down debate. Protectionist is one example. Racist, used to describe anyone who questions uncontrolled immigration is another. Denier, for anyone who questions AGW etc etc. Geoff. | ||
| Richard Treacy Grand Master Username: richard_treacy Post Number: 3191 Registered: 4-2003 |
What the hell does this have to do with Rolls-Royce and Bentley cars in Australia ? Elsewhere on this Forum topics have been hijacked into health issues in the UK for heavan's sakes. How about a few discussions about spheres and gears in Alice Springs or turbo lag in Melbourne. | ||
| Brian Vogel Grand Master Username: guyslp Post Number: 1295 Registered: 6-2009 |
It has nothing to do with Rolls-Royce and Bentley cars in Australia or elsewhere. Hence the reason the forum in question is entitled "Idler Chatter." It was created specifically for non-RR/Bentley related topics that members frequently wish to discuss and wanted a place in which they could do so without exactly the sort of complaint you've just made. This isn't your personal sandbox nor is anyone posting anything inappropriate to the specific forum in question. | ||
| Richard Treacy Grand Master Username: richard_treacy Post Number: 3192 Registered: 4-2003 |
If I look at the quality of the traffic on this site over the last year it needs no explanation why it has dived. Twitter is out there for chitchat. | ||
| Richard Treacy Grand Master Username: richard_treacy Post Number: 3193 Registered: 4-2003 |
Let's lift our game. | ||
| Brian Vogel Grand Master Username: guyslp Post Number: 1296 Registered: 6-2009 |
Sorry if the wishes of the broader membership don't match yours. Please do find some way to cope but don't have the temerity to complain about people posting material appropriate to a forum created explicitly for that purpose. You just can't please some people, nor should you try. | ||
| Richard Treacy Grand Master Username: richard_treacy Post Number: 3194 Registered: 4-2003 |
OK let's turn this into a family gallery.  | ||
| Richard Treacy Grand Master Username: richard_treacy Post Number: 3195 Registered: 4-2003 |
Photo courtesy my daughter, 14, from our boat. Sydney Harbour NYE 2015. | ||
| Richard Treacy Grand Master Username: richard_treacy Post Number: 3197 Registered: 4-2003 |
I would like to pay as much tax as imaginable, That would happen should I earn a huge bagful of taxable income. Those fortunate wealthy people earning more than $700k pay lots of tax. Only impecunious people pay no tax if the system functions. RT. | ||
| bob uk Unregistered guest Posted From: 188.29.164.83 |
Gentlemen the space in this forum is utlitmately infinite. So idler chatter does not matter. This forum has become an institution. The forum is not only about cars, it's also about the owners and this leads to how people think and their valid opinions. taxes and death etc. (Message approved by david_gore) | ||
| David Gore Moderator Username: david_gore Post Number: 1609 Registered: 4-2003 |
"If I look at the quality of the traffic on this site over the last year it needs no explanation why it has dived. Twitter is out there for chitchat. Richard Treacy" I leave it to individual members to decide whether the overall standard has declined or simply diversified and comment accordingly. I respectfully suggest many of our members most likely do not belong or want to belong to Twitter [myself included] preferring to converse with intelligent tolerant people who have similar interests including interests not related specifically to R-R/B motor vehicles and our Administrator created the Idler Chatter topic for this purpose. The level of posting on Technical Topics has been relatively constant over time however Idler Chatter has been a popular addition based on usage with the benefit that this keeps members accessing the Forum on a regular basis where they will also see technical posts they might otherwise miss and respond if they have something to contribute. Diversity is a fact of life and whilst we may not agree with certain content or opinions, we must respect and tolerate the rights of others to express their opinions subject to stipulations they cannot be defamatory, abusive, racist, sexist, xenophobic, bigoted and/or sectarian. | ||
| Vladimir Ivanovich Kirillov Prolific User Username: soviet Post Number: 252 Registered: 2-2013 |
Ah yes there is a bit of Toad of Toad Hall amongst us all - nothing like reading two Grand Masters having a bit of a snarl. Richard that photo of Sydney your 14 year old daughter took is the most brilliant piece of propaganda I have seen in a long time and I have seen a lot of propaganda. If she is not a professional photographer she soon will be. There is only one city I hate in the world more than Manila Phillipines and that is Sydney. It is a total horror story and I would not drive even a rusty clapped out Shadow in it. I even make certain that when I fly out of Australia the flight is not going to Sydney. That said I have fine memories of Sydney in the 1960's - but after that it just went down hill fast. That aside, the new key for the Camargue arrived the other day and it fits the ignition and doors and also with it was the parts list on Spirits etc. That's right, the wrong parts list and this was after talking to them on the phone at FS. Then I got an emailed invoice/despatch confirmation totally against my instructions saying that they had sent the Camargue parts list to my home address instead of my work address so I was not impressed given that the distance between the two is 1,200 kilometres. Now I was going to place a very large order with FS but two mistakes make me wonder whether they have gone the way of Australian Government Departments and or Telstra ie "Highly Incompetent." Does anyone have a list of RR/B spares providers internationally. The reason I am thinking now of not placing the order with FS is that I don't want to be in a position where I have to return at my cost a heap of parts to the UK as that is costly inconvenient, annoying, frustrating and infuriating. I didn't bother to call FS management to a have a sook because I am mean nasty and brutal when it comes to matters of RR/B and I have no time for simplistic mistakes. Horror of horrors, the large cattle station I am working at has recently bought two Toyota Landcruiser Diesel V8s, the well Japanese designed motors with the starter motor in the middle of the V and a 9 hour job to replace when the plastic pad it sits on rots the starter motor casing - pure genius and on a par with the Cadillac 4-6-8 engines which really croaked the possum. I pleaded with the Station Manager not to buy any more and suggested Nissan but he won't have anything to do with Nissan and I understand that. Somebody in the forum once announced that late model vehicles were more reliable than early 60 70s vehicles. My retort is - go work on new vehicles as a living. One day I would like to buy a new vehicle but doom is upon us and though I may well be insane I see the regular occurrence of drinking a bottle of vodka and lighting my cigarettes with $100 notes and owning a Shadow as a cheaper alternative. | ||
| Brian Vogel Grand Master Username: guyslp Post Number: 1300 Registered: 6-2009 |
Vladimir, Download the RR & Bentley Parts, Repair, Restoration & Other Resources Compilation and you'll have more parts suppliers than you know what to do with. The general favorite Crewe Original parts source in the USA is Bentley Zionsville known more commonly as Albers (the name of the family that owns it, and what it was once actually named if memory serves). I have also had some luck with Post Oak Motors in Houston, TX. At this point in time if you're looking for support for the Camargue it's an authorized Bentley dealer that you need to contact. As part of the RR/Bentley split Bentley was the one that ended up with support duties for all of the pre-Goodwood-Phantom automobiles. Brian | ||
| Vladimir Ivanovich Kirillov Prolific User Username: soviet Post Number: 253 Registered: 2-2013 |
Thanks Brian I will look into your leads. Vladimir | ||
| Bob UK Unregistered guest Posted From: 188.29.164.55 |
This forum is very well conducted. None of the users continually critise or find petty arguments. Recently I posted a comment on another site that I was an expert on Shadow Hydraulic stuff only to be told that I can't call myself an expert but a specialist. A stupid troll like comment. Dave Gore called me an authority which I like. I also explained on the same UK based site about the importance of the suctiom side being free flowing on SU pumps. This was critised. Yet I know it to be correct. It's one of those engineering things that is obvious once mentioned. Back to taxes. I wish I could pay a million quid in taxes. Just think how much one would have to earn to be liable for a million. Keep it going for a few years and then whistle Dixey. The avarice of some is astounding. They can easily afford the tax but avoid or evade it. By using shell companies based aboard. Cayman Islands. A rich guy told me that he spends loads in the local community which is offset against his taxes. So instead of the central government getting all of it we get it locally. Fair enough. Nice man. He also said that sitting on a pile and not spending it is a waste. So when the greedy pile money up in the bank they are getting nothing but more money to pile up. Such a waste. The Who rock band had a big tax bill so to offset it they Brought Pinewood film studios which was losing money at the time. Then pinewood started making money so next years tax bill was even bigger. The Who ended up very rich. Dispite paying all the taxes after the traditional arguments from accountants. I have found that tax inspectors quite reasonable and I always got a bit knocked off for a reasonable argument. (Message approved by david_gore) | ||
| Chris Browne Prolific User Username: chrisb Post Number: 198 Registered: 2-2010 |
Hi Vlad, Sorry to hear of your dissatisfaction with Spying Flares but having used them many, many times in the restoration of our Silver Cloud and spent a great deal of hard earned cash with them, I feel that their errors with you are very out of character. Without them, our restoration project would simply not have happened. I can understand your frustration and sympathise with your point of view but please do not dismiss them out of hand as it is outfits such as theirs which enable enthusiastic amateurs like us to keep our old cars on the road. They are in the middle of a large and comprehensive expansion and reorganisation, as we speak, which has been very disruptive to the day to day running of the business. Having got to know the staff there over the last few years, I know they would be mortified to find that they had upset a customer, especially on the other side of the world, where it takes time to make amends. We all make mistakes. I say all this having no vested interest in the company other than as a grateful and satisfied customer for all the help and advice we have received. Kind regards, Chris | ||
| Vladimir Ivanovich Kirillov Prolific User Username: soviet Post Number: 256 Registered: 2-2013 |
Thanks for your input Chris. I did think it was out of the ordinary but I guess as I approach 60 with trepidation my giving the benefit of the doubt persona has taken the dive. I will give them another go, after matching up prices etc but I will be calling the management to make him swear that he has the order correct on penalty of me doing an Ozzy Osbourne and promising to fly to the UK and eat his favourite pet. | ||
| John Kilkenny Prolific User Username: john_kilkenny Post Number: 195 Registered: 6-2005 |
A large part of this forum's success is due to the past efforts of a few enthusiasts providing technical documentation, manuals, circuit diagrams and miscellaneous articles (including Tee One Topics) for inclusion in the RROCA Technical Library. The technical knowledge of this group and the willingness to share this knowledge has attracted other members and the forum has developed into probably the best source of advice for some RR and B models. However many recent posts are quite irrelevant to the forum's purpose and seem to reflect the need to share philosophical and other points of view, which though occasionally interesting or entertaining could be more usefully put in other social media. This current thread started as a complaint about the US Tax System which is of limited interest to most members. And while Bob's inputs on technical issues are always worth reading, to introduce a separate thread dedicated to his health does lack some relevance to RR and B. Brian infers that he represents the “broader readership” who approve of this use of the forum and deplores “the temerity” of anyone questioning it. I wonder if this is so and would be interested to see other members' considered opinion and perhaps that of the RROCA. It may be what we need is a more active selection for what is posted. It would be unfortunate if the forum degraded to a small group of Grandmasters swapping gossip. | ||
| Brian Vogel Grand Master Username: guyslp Post Number: 1302 Registered: 6-2009 |
John, I suggest that your concerns regarding the forums becoming a small group of people swapping gossip are misplaced. David Gore put it quite well. I would also suggest that the connection between the forums and the technical library is tenuous, at best, though we owe a great debt of gratitude to those who brought the library into being. Take a look at the vast majority of forums out there for other marques or other subjects. Virtually all of them include a forum with some variant of "(Almost) Anything Goes" as their title. Many use the term "Lounge" for that sort of forum as well. I did not infer that I represent "the broader readership" but I have yet to see any forum that didn't already an area such as "Idler Chatter" have one added unless there has been enough input over time to suggest it is wanted. You, or anyone else, complaining that people are using an individual forum whose sole purpose for being is miscellaneous off-central-forums-topic chatter for that purpose is insulting. They're using that forum for its intended purpose. It's there, you are not forced to read it or participate in it, and others clearly choose to do so on a regular basis. Those who wish to see technical conversations only can easily do so by simply not reading the "Idler Chatter" forum. Technical issues are consistently discussed on these forums, which is one of the things that attracted me to them. The lack of "strong moderation" is also something that attracted me to them. I have yet to see a forum where there is "more active selection for what is posted" have traffic for very long, and I doubt this one would be any different. People need to be able to express their viewpoints on technical issues freely, and there will be heated disagreements upon occasion. The introduction of the "Idler Chatter" forum also solves the problem (and, yes, I think it is one) of not being able to consult with people whose advice you've come to know and trust about other marques. Questions do arise and a great many of them are applicable to RR/Bentley in the broad sense, but not in the specifics. I've learned quite a bit on many forums from questions and answers related to other marques that later became quite useful when working on my RRs. In the final analysis I just don't see what the problem is here. Technical issues wax and wane as a natural thing. During the slow periods some members like to chat (and, even during the fast and furious periods, too). I don't see any less participation in the technical forums than there used to be when questions arise and a number of the participants on "Idler Chatter" are very active when technical questions arise. You simply can't force technical content to spring forth unless someone has a specific question or problem. Soon we'll probably have someone bemoaning thread drift, which also cannot be avoided, and has a spectacular example right here in this thread. Brian | ||
| Vladimir Ivanovich Kirillov Prolific User Username: soviet Post Number: 257 Registered: 2-2013 |
Well I for one would be disappointed if "Idler Chatter" disappeared and then entire forum was simply just RR/B relevant. I have managed to make friends through this forum who have even welcomed me into their homes even though they live in a culture which is alien to my Australian/Russian background. Idle chatter gets people to know each other which I think is very important. Does everybody who goes to a RR/B meet converse only about matters of RR/B? I think not. So Idle Chatter is I think like being together at a RR/B meeting but in cyber space. I have grasped much wisdom through Idle Chatter. Bob's contribution to this forum is enormous as his knowledge is vast. Geoff's squark about the US tax system is very interesting to me, indeed the entire Australian Tax law is based upon a USA legal case and additionally Australia is highly influenced by what happens in the USA. If Idle Chatter stays Idle Chatter, those contributors not wishing to share and or gain information outside the realm of RR/B technical advice are perhaps not encumbered too much by not clicking on Idle Chatter, whereas if Idle Chatter gets the censorship bullet and is axed then much information swapping between contributors will cease to exist. The general public has a great misconception about RR/B ownership and idle chatter proves to me beyond reasonable doubt that gentlemen who chose to own/drive RR/B are far from being the rich stuffy shirt types they are generally perceived to be. And while there is the occasional disagreement the diplomacy exercised by contributors in this forum is something I find interesting and highly educational. | ||
| Bob UK Unregistered guest Posted From: 94.197.120.167 |
Vladimir thanks for the compliment. I think the same way. Idler chatter shows the non owner that RRB owners are the same as every body else we are not special. (Message approved by david_gore) | ||
| Geoff Wootton Grand Master Username: dounraey Post Number: 695 Registered: 5-2012 |
I have to say my vote is with Vladimir, Brian and Bob. Brian and Vladimir have more than covered my reasons for hoping idler chatter continues. I think it also helps prevent thread drift on the technical forums and is a good way of concentrating the "gossip" onto a forum that can be easily ignored by members who are solely interested in technical matters and Q&As. These forums cater for a relatively small group of people so it is no surprise that we "get to know each other". Off topic conversations are a natural consequence of that, IMHO. Geoff | ||
| richard george yeaman Prolific User Username: richyrich Post Number: 279 Registered: 4-2012 |
Hi all I must say that I enjoy reading this section of the forum with its many varying subjects. I agree with Geoff no one has to read them in fact it should have a WARNING READING THESE JOTTINGS MIGHT MAKE ONE SMILE Anyway it works for me. Richard. | ||
| Ben Handford Unregistered guest Posted From: 82.69.11.41 |
Dear Vlad, This is Ben Handford, the MD of Flying Spares. Just wanted to apologise for the two oversights - sending the SZ catalogue rather than the SY catalogue for your Camargue and then posting it to your home rather than work address. These were genuine mistakes and not symbolic of some underlying inefficiency within the company. For a better overview of how we operate please have a look at our customer feeback via trustpilot: https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.flyingspares.com I do hope that we will hear from you again - I was trying (but failed)to load a photo of Poppy, our Jack Rusell, in the hope that we will not cause an Ozzy Osbourne reaction... BH PS Thanks to Chris Browne for your vote of confidence - much appreciated. (Message approved by david_gore) | ||
| Vladimir Ivanovich Kirillov Prolific User Username: soviet Post Number: 260 Registered: 2-2013 |
Well just look at that, FS appears to be on the ball. If only I could get that service from Telstra or an Aussie Government Department. Still waiting for a call back from a traffic inspector about Kunifer pipes and its only been a month. Typical of government - totally incompetent as usual and we pay them for that. All forgiven Ben, but I do like Jack Russells and I think they would make a tasty meal if properly herbed up with the additional plumb in the mouth for ascetic effects. | ||
| Lluís Gimeno-Fabra Grand Master Username: lluís Post Number: 355 Registered: 8-2007 |
Hello all, Just to say that I use FS (from The Netherlands) and they have been fanstastis all the way. Best regards, Lluís | ||
| Mark Aldridge Prolific User Username: mark_aldridge Post Number: 209 Registered: 10-2008 |
Ordered a shockabsorber late Monday afternoon, arrived 10.30 am this morning. Brilliant service as always. I have bought both cars and parts from FS for many years and always had extremely good service and advice. Mark | ||
| richard george yeaman Prolific User Username: richyrich Post Number: 280 Registered: 4-2012 |
Hi I have found FS staff to be very knowledgeable helpful and pleasant they get a thumbs up from me. Richard. | ||
| John Kilkenny Prolific User Username: john_kilkenny Post Number: 198 Registered: 6-2005 |
Brian, Of course you are quite right, no one has to read Idler Chatter. However I do not believe the connection between the forums and technical library is tenuous as you say. I use it frequently and in fact you yourself have recently referred other members to it. A quick look at the forum postings over the last two months shows 20 threads for Idler Chatter for a total of 221 postings and the rate is increasing. The combined total for the two major technical threads, Shadows and Spirits was 22 with postings of 270. This to me seems unbalanced and has been increasingly so. While there are many posts in Idler Chatter that have useful information and could be in the General Discussion Section quite a few have no connection with the Forum's purpose and are much more suited to Social Media. John | ||
| Randy Roberson Grand Master Username: wascator Post Number: 388 Registered: 5-2009 |
I like Idler Chatter. I don't have to open it if I decide I don't like it. I am highly suspicious of the tax man because it is so conducive to abuse of the citizenry. I buy from FS and their service to the USA has been great for me. If I ever get to Blighty I'm going to stop by to see them. | ||
| Geoff Wootton Grand Master Username: dounraey Post Number: 696 Registered: 5-2012 |
I have used FS many times over the past 3 years. They have always dispatched goods promptly and it has often been less than a week for delivery to the US. Great Company and I'd recommend them to anyone. However, I had a slight hiccup a couple of months ago with a main fuel filter I had ordered. The street number printed on the package was wrong. In fact it did not exist. Fortunately the postman was able to deliver the parcel as he recognized my name on it. Strange error though, as I would have thought the package labels would have been printed automatically with the invoice, which had the correct address. Anyway, one slight hiccup in 3 years is fine with me. As I said, a great Company. Geoff | ||
| Benoit Leus Prolific User Username: benoitleus Post Number: 207 Registered: 6-2009 |
Well, I might throw in my two cents worth. I do like the Idle Chatter section. It ensures the so important technical sections aren't polluted by unrelated discussions. And, as on this forum we are not that many, it is nice to get to know other people and their opinions on a variety of things. On FS : I have been using them for 6 years now and have always been pleased with their service. Once I used another supplier who was cheaper, but it really backfired as the reconditioned item turned out to be a used one that had been cleaned up. A lesson learned : you get what you pay for. | ||
| John Kilkenny Prolific User Username: john_kilkenny Post Number: 199 Registered: 6-2005 |
Well it doesn't seem I have any support about my concern with the growth of Idler Chatter so I won't be commenting about it further. Hopefully this concern is misplaced. John | ||
| richard george yeaman Prolific User Username: richyrich Post Number: 281 Registered: 4-2012 |
John you are entitled to your opinion and this idler chatter is the right place for you to express your views within the parameters of this forum and long may that be the case. Richard. | ||
| Richard Treacy Grand Master Username: richard_treacy Post Number: 3201 Registered: 4-2003 |
I shalln't comment here again other that to say that I feel this section so far is akin to adding a copy of Hustler magazine to the Boy Scouts' Manual. At least it could be changed to a Members' Only area so that the whole world can't read it. | ||
| Brian Vogel Grand Master Username: guyslp Post Number: 1311 Registered: 6-2009 |
Ya gotta love hyperbole and overreaction to the completely typical. Whatever . . . | ||
| Patrick Lockyer. Grand Master Username: pat_lockyer Post Number: 943 Registered: 9-2004 |
Back to the topic tax moan,I never mind the tax I pay as the more I pay I know the more money I have made. I keep my postings short, I have not a mainia for reams of writings. | ||
| Benoit Leus Prolific User Username: benoitleus Post Number: 208 Registered: 6-2009 |
Patrick, you're posting makes sense as paying a lot of taxes indeed means you made a good living. However, I think there is a limit to what is a reasonable tax rate. I live in Belgium and we are one of the most taxed countries in the world. Here is what I pay : - 52% income tax (in addition the employer pays an extra tax on your gross income, which means that for me to have €48,-, it costs the employer €139,-) - my yearly bonus is taxed at 60% - 21% VAT - +/- €2.000,- city & province tax/year - €2.100 housing tax/year - average road tax/car : €640/year - registration tax on a new car : between €400-€12.000 Granted, we have an excellent education and social security system. A doctor's visit only costs €40,- and studying is virtually free. On the other hand a lot of tax money is completely wasted. We are a country of 11 mio people and we have five (5!) governements. Unemployement benefits can be held for life, even if you have never worked a day in your life and thus never payed any taxes. And at the end you get a full pension. The reiterement age has been raised to 67 but in reality the average age people retire is 58. So for me there is a difference between paying a lot of taxes and paying a fair amount of taxes. Rant over :-) | ||
| Geoff Wootton Grand Master Username: dounraey Post Number: 699 Registered: 5-2012 |
Hi Benoit Sounds like Belgian rates are about the same as in the UK. I am not sure of the actual US scales, but stoppages here, which include Social Security and Medicare, are around 30%. I believe annual bonuses are taxed the same. Sales tax (VAT) is 6-7%. Our house tax (Florida) is quite high at $6000, however there is no local or state tax. I think road tax is around $150. You forgot to mention petrol tax. I believe it is 18% in Florida. Current price is $2.60 a US gallon (68 cents per liter). So taxes are obviously much lower in the US, but there is the insecurity of very little welfare if you fall out of work and also the headache of medical insurance. In the UK for sure, much tax is wasted. It seems to me the government mentality of taxing people can become a little too easy. This is why a lot of Americans are, as Randy put it, "highly suspicious of the tax man because it is so conducive to abuse of the citizenry". I do get that argument, but then on the other hand, I don't get why the richest country on the planet can't run a sensible medical service. Not a Rant - this is an international forum (courtesy of the Australians) and I for one find different national perspectives really interesting. Geoff | ||
| Brian Vogel Grand Master Username: guyslp Post Number: 1314 Registered: 6-2009 |
Geoff, Yes, our overall tax rate (all of 'em rolled together) is lower than most of the countries that are our western allies. We pay for that with crumbling infrastructure [odd how we could fund, for instance, the interstate highway system in the 1950s through the 1970s but can't pay for maintaining it now - oh, wait, tax rates have been being cut, consistently, for almost 40 years now. . . hmmmm], lack of universal medical care, and a social safety net that's almost non-existent and that requires you to be absolutely destitute before assistance can even be considered. We get exactly what we pay for. This is one reason that, even though I will acknowledge Randy's point, I have known in my heart of hearts we must reverse direction on our attitudes toward taxation and the role of government. Electing people whose central position is that "government is the problem" who then set about doing their level best to make that be true over the course of almost four decades now has brought the United States to the pretty pass it finds itself in. If you want good government you need to elect people who view government as one of the many tools available to bring about improvements in the common good. One need not be on any one side of the political spectrum to genuinely hold that belief. Here, though, the far right-wing adamantly eschews the notion that government at any level is or can be a tool for good. This philosophy was once at the fringes, but has taken over the bosom of the Republican Party at this point in time. Even those at what is the "far left" in the USA recognize that there are problems with government, but believe that it can be a positive force and that issues can and should be worked out as they present themselves. Somehow, the latter view has become complete anathema to a significant portion of the American electorate. Brian, also not a rant, just my opinion based on my observations during my adult life and looking back to what was happening before that, starting post-WWII | ||
| Vladimir Ivanovich Kirillov Prolific User Username: soviet Post Number: 265 Registered: 2-2013 |
Geoff, I hate paying tax not because I have to pay it but because the government uses it here on very stupid things ie like $22 million to stop the radicalization of young moslems and their wanting to go and join a bunch of murdering raping loons like ISIS. My solution would be the immediate revocation of their citizenship, a free one way airplane ticket with a permanent ban on re-entry to this country. Terrorism in some form has been around for a very long time and while western countries tout it daily via the media as a reason to restrict our civil liberties to protect us from idiots the government itself has let freely into the country without any vote by the people, terrorism in not a new concept that has just appeared recently. Our governments (and it really does not matter which party) is like a fish with a hook in its mouth and the hook is called the media. I question whether the USA is the richest country in the world given that every time I have been there and what appears over the internet, the USA appears to have many times more homeless people and jailed people and people with monsterous drug and alcohol problems on a scale far beyond that of Russian Federation. The key to America's problems is its military machine which saps the guts out of the tax money stock pile. The world does not need a policeman and if it does America's role as a world policeman is a tardy one at best. So to me its attempts to police the world is just a gigantic waste of the hard working American peoples money. The Russian Federation is not the Soviet Union so America no longer has its counter balance and can go on rampaging here and there at will with the very sad results it has so far produced. Its meddling in the Ukraine is guaranteed to turn extremely ugly at any time as Russia will not tolerate it - right or wrong that may be. I cannot understand the USA being the richest country in the world when its tax system can't provide adequate medical care as that is no indication of wealth at all but a sign of great poverty. Young people in Australia have almost no hope of buying and or paying off a house, that being a fundamental need for the raising of the family and this is one thing the government never concentrates upon. In the unlikely even the Australian government ever tackles the idiotic cost of housing in Australia, I will be quite happy to pay more in tax - but I am very doubtful that will ever happen. | ||
| David Gore Moderator Username: david_gore Post Number: 1616 Registered: 4-2003 |
Vladimir, In my younger days, I remember Government being described as "Government of the people by the people for the people". There is no way an unbiased observer could acknowledge this is what happens in the world today. I suggest a modern description would be something along the following lines "Government of ill-informed and essentially unaware people by scheming and manipulative people for a relatively small number of people who believe they are entitled to benefit at the expense of other members of the community." I am concerned that the increasing disparity between the rich and the poor in the world will see a repeat of past uprisings such as the French and Russian Revolutions where the lifestyle and privileges of the "elite" created resentment in those who could never achieve this status in their life. George Orwell summarised this succinctly in his book "Animal Farm" when the pigs adopted the following philosophy after assuming power in the farmyard "all are equal but some are more equal than others". The role of taxation in redistributing wealth within a society has been and always will be a contentious issue as evidenced by comments in preceding posts. I believe this is a direct consequence of governments taxing income which many individuals regard as "theft" rather than being their contribution towards those less successful, lucky and/or privileged than themselves. I suggest a possible way of overcoming this perception would be to eliminate income taxes and replace them with purchase and transfer taxes when income is spent. This quickly and efficiently stops the "black economy" and contrived schemes to reduce declared income and facilitates the introduction of "flat rate" taxation. Money is merely a "store of value" and is only useful when it is used to acquire value such as goods, services, shelter, entertainment etc. The more money you have, the more you can spend and the more tax you will pay which can then be used for the benefit of the wider community. I can hear the reaction of the cynical already, "pie in the sky utopia", "impractical" etc etc etc. This proposal will only work if it is accompanied by major changes in the way our governments are elected to ensure representatives are elected as individuals and are not beholden to political parties and "backroom manipulators" who currently determine government decisions. The current "politicised" public service must revert to its original role as an apolitical source of advice to the Legislature and an independent provider of government services to the community free of political control. A simple way of doing this is for individuals to be randomly selected from the electoral roll to serve as members of an Assembly for a defined term [e.g. 4 years] to propose, consider and vote on legislation to be submitted to the public by way of a referendum/plebiscite for approval. Electronic voting would allow this to be implemented and conducted efficiently and at minimum cost to ensure all legislation has majority approval from the electorate at large. This would have the additional benefit of reducing the increasing level of petty and often ignored regulation that characterises our parliaments. How long will it be before we are completely restricted by unnecessary legislation resulting from others abusing their responsibilities and not acting ethically and responsibly? Major infrastructure projects that are currently ignored for political reasons and required for our future benefit e.g. renewable energy, passenger and freight transport etc would be more likely to be approved and those subject to environmental concerns e.g. mining, coal seam gas extraction would be more likely to face more stringent scrutiny and possible rejection where the community decide preventing the long-term risks and damage are more important than short-term profits. The current Australian form of government is no longer relevant to both the present and future needs of our country and our children/grandchildren will be asking why did we let short-term profits for the few dictate decisions that created long-term environmental and agricultural problems and loss of resources that are no longer available to them and their descendants. For example, thanks to recent NSW State Governments of both political persuasions, prime agricultural land on the Mid-North Coast of NSW is about to be destroyed by contamination/disruption of groundwater aquifers and salt contamination of the land by mining related activities that will last for 20 to 30 years and disappear leaving the consequences for generations to come who will lose a valuable ongoing supply of food and the Manning Valley community faces the possibility of a permanently contaminated water supply that will require constant and expensive water purification if the community is to survive. No-one and I mean no-one can guarantee there will not be problems which have already occurred elsewhere in the world with similar projects. Who is going to pay for the remediation? Not the mining companies who will be liquidated as soon as the project is completed for this reason. Not the investors who live elsewhere and do not believe they have any responsibility for the consequences. Just the locals who didn't want the project in the first place, whose objections subsequently proved to be right and whose elected representative placed party loyalty ahead of the strong local community concerns will end up with the consequences. You might ask how could this be remedied - my answer is when we have media diversity and no media company let alone a sole proprietor controls a majority of any form of media within a country. The role of one such company in both Britain and Australia in influencing the election of governments favourable to their politics and to the implementation of policies which will benefit their business interests is an example of the power that can result from a lack of media diversity. Limits on editorial/journalistic freedom of expression in the various forms of media and by government legislation to restrict factual comment is another hindrance to increasing public knowledge of contentious matters. I do not object to paying tax providing everyone else does the same on a fair and equitable basis. What I do object to is those who make false income declarations, use contrived and artificial financial structures to reduce or eliminate completely their obligations to pay tax. What I have no tolerance for are the low-life politicians who knowingly create, maintain and even use "legal" tax avoidance measures that are not equally available to every tax payer. Just another manifestation of "all are equal but some are more equal than others". The inevitable revolution will come; the question is when? |
