What Does It Mean: DOMA Gutting

This past Wednesday was my birthday, and some very momentous things happened that had a very real effect on a lot of people, but, like my birthday, it had absolutely no affect of most folks.

I'm talking, of course, about the SCOTUS opinions published that day. Centering around Proposition 8 in California and the definitions of ‘marriage’ and ‘spouse’ provided by the Defense of Mariage Act (DOMA).

Our Current Tax System

The following was written as part of a comment on one of my facebook statuses. It concerns only my thoughts on the tax code (spending is a separate issue for another post).

Our current tax system is a horrid thing that is riddled with loopholes purchased by lobbyists, most for corporations or entire industries. Our tax system is fragmented into different kinds of taxation to benefit one group over another. Our tax system is set up in such a way that for taxes on earned income, the more you earn, not only the more you pay, but the greater percentage. Lastly, our tax system is set up in such a way that it is possible that through write-offs, grants, subsidies, etc. it is possible to "pay" negative taxes, and actually receive tax money instead of paying it.