Occupy movement... Fall out for supporters?

[The Blue Lotus]

I was informed that I am going to be audited. I think mostly due to the fact that I am a vocal, avid supporter for the Occupiers world wide.

Others have been fired, leases have been revoked etc...

Is this how we live now-a-days?

Seriously, and they wonder why people are upset... Pfft!
No this does not have anything to do with writen work, but it does relate to freedom to speak your mind and express yourself. Don't you think?

 

[Lord Darkstorm]

Audited by who?

 

[The Blue Lotus]

The IRS.. whom else. LOL the letter I recived said it had made an "expedited" decision to audit my business and personal returns.
Funny how that comes 2 weeks after I start working with OWS.

 

[Lord Darkstorm]

Don't give that any credit. The IRS is usually 4 years behind, so expedited is probably a few years old. You run a small business I presume? They are the major targets of audits because they are usually the ones most likely to confuse tax laws, and easiest to extract more money from...and if you haven't notice, the govt is in the red by a few trillion...

While I'm not saying it isn't possible, I'm betting it is more they are hoping you have made mistakes that you will have to pay for (with interest) than your political beliefs.

 

[The Blue Lotus]

I hope so... but H and R block does my taxes every year, so I know all my things are in order.
Let em break their heads over my paperwork... I'll sip tea and laugh @ thm

 

[Lord Darkstorm]

You should be fine then. It's just one of those things that happens, and if you run a small business, get used to it. I've known some people who run small businesses that get audited every other year. Ask H&R Block next time what can be done to minimize the chances of getting audited. From what I understand of the IRS System (I have a friend who works there) there are flags that are raised for a number of things, and if you get x number of them, then you get audited. Doesn't mean anything is wrong, it's just that you have enough things that are potential issues that they feel it worth the money to audit you.

Crappy system, but you are the least likely to be able to fight them, so you are, sadly, the easiest prey.

 

[The Blue Lotus]

you are the least likely to be able to fight them, so you are, sadly, the easiest prey.

ROFL, yeah I'm kinda looking forward to it hahaha... I'm insanely organized and I do love to argue. So... I almost feel sorry for whom ever has to go through my things. I saved every reciept even if it were a pack of gum since I turned 18.

 

[Lord Darkstorm]

Sounds like my wife, of whom I've learned never to argue with when it comes to something she paid for...she HAS the receipt.

 

[The Blue Lotus]

I have heard of people losing their jobs, and thats just the nice things... IDK, the whole mess bothers me. The system is broken in a fundamental way. Sadly the morans the TV tends to interview have no clue what they are standing for. I have to trust that something good is going to come of it however.
At least there is hope, however fleeting.

 

[Lord Darkstorm]

If you used a decently trained h&r block person, you will be fine. Audits are a part of the small business life. Ok, not a good part, but it happens. The best way is to be cooperative and show what they want. Once they figure out that you aren't hiding anything, you should be fine.

 

[Shadoe]

Oh Good Lord, don't mess with the IRS. I used to work with a drug enforcement task force made up of the GBI, FBI, Customs, DEA, and the IRS. When the other groups were out of ideas on getting someone, they'd use the IRS. They're the only government law enforcement agency that can seize all your stuff without a warrant. We once went after a guy and seized everything but his kids' beds and the dog. I seized a subdivision once. Got an award for that one.

I usually don't like to feed suspicions, but... well, the timing is interesting. But really, unless you're high up in the hierarchy with the Occupiers, then it's probably just a normal audit.

 

[Fnord]

Audits aren't instantaneous so I imagine it's just a coincidence. Though if I owned a business, I'd probably keep my politics on the down-low (though easy for me to say, since I tend to be on the side of capitalism more often than not) because it's never a good idea to polarize oneself against customers.

 

[The Blue Lotus]

I think this might help you understand what I am supporting I am not Anti corp, I am anti un level playing field.

Why We Occupy (The short list.)

OK, since so many seem to have a totally wrong idea about what is really going on I will tell you.

We occupy because we are sick of seeing 1% of the nation control 95% of the money.
...
We want a fair playing field. We want equal justice EX: rich people do not get away with crimes simply because they are rich, and can afford a better lawyer than you or I.

We want wages that someone can actually live on.

We want your freedoms which were Guaranteed by our bill of rights to be worth something.

We don't want our kids sent off to a war that is pointless.
I for one am all about cutting the head off evil people, but does it have to cost billions of dollars a month? Does congress really need a pay raise while you are still looking for a job?

Do you really make enough money that you are not worried about anything at all?
I work 3 jobs I know I sure don't.

You call the occupiers "Lazy" I call them "Sick of the crap."
You see mobs, of kids, I see people who are really honestly trying to find a better way of doing things.

I watch my grandfather who worked his whole life as he struggles to make by on his retirement all the while the place he retired from is trying to take away his pension... Really? But hey they are making record profits so it's "ok" right?

Yeah there are a lot of them who don't really understand what it is all about, but the vast majority of them do. They are not "making demands" They are voicing their point of view, Hoping that our over inflated GOV will finally "Get a clue!" With out the 99% who work smaller jobs and are not millionaires this country WILL fall. Of that there is no doubt.

This is the best country in the world, sadly a few have hijacked it from us all. We want the people to have the power to decide their own fates once more, the way it was meant to be.

I leave you with this quote, read it and you might begin to understand what we mean.

"We're not a democracy. It's a terrible misunderstanding and a slander to the idea of democracy to call us that. In reality, we're a plutocracy: a government by the wealthy." -----Ramsey Clark, former U.S. Attorney General

"Somebody has to take governments' place, and business seems to me to be a logical entity to do it." - D. Rockefeller

Is that really how you want to live, in a place where you can vote, but it is just for show.? Where your jobs are sent to places like china because our GOV has decided it's better that way, to give companies like GM, Ford, Verizon, etc tax breaks for outsourcing?

I don't. I want MY country back! I want OUR country to be the wonderful place it used to be, where when they exited College you could find a job with out having to sit and eat Ramon noodles for months on end because there are no jobs to have.

I don't want to take anything form anyone, I want to give you the world, and I hope that you will treat it as the special treasure that it is. If you own a business I want you to make lots of money, But I want you to pay your share of the taxes. I don’t want a lobbyist to convince our elected officials that we don’t really need to pay for emergency room visits because someone can’t bring a young child’s fever down to a safe level.

If big corps Paid their taxes and we bring the jobs back home where they belong, everyone would have what they needed…

Did you know that our military’s clothing is NOT made in the USA? How is that for ironic…

This is what I stand aginst, People who feel like no matter what they do they will never get to the top of the pile.

Are there lazy ppl out there yes. are there people who work their rear ends off and still get nowhere absolutly.

I refuse to hide my beliefs because they are unpopular... but than again I will die for someones right to call me a moran to.
I hope everyone is right and this is not BL for my stance, but I know of others who have had BL (fall out) and that is really sad. :'(

No I did not pen this, but it is exactly how I feel.

 

[Fnord]

Well if it was just about getting the cronyism out of banking and government (or corporations and government in general), I'd be a lot more sympathetic. But a lot of the issues above take pretty simplistic takes on very complex issues. And maybe I'm a lot more cynical *because* I'm so close to this stuff. But I'm a big supporter of global trade and free enterprise, so I get alarmed when people want to "ship jobs back home" or demand that everyone should "get a guaranteed livable wage". It's not that I support people losing their jobs or not making any money, but that I understand the complexities in those systems and how working counter to them is actually *not* in our best interest.

For example, minimum wage laws are one of the biggest contributors to youth unemployment because young people with few skills or experience are priced out of the job market. Outsourcing labor-intensive jobs to countries with comparative advantages in labor-intensity have huge domestic advantages: it lowers the cost of production (which leads to lower prices paid by the consumer), it allows domestic exports to compete on the world market, it allows firms to move operations closer to other customer bases throughout the world, it lowers production costs so that there can be increases cash flows which allows those firms to engage in expansion activities--activities that usually begin in the home country (thus expanding the job pool of higher-skilled, higher-paying jobs in the home country), it improves wages in the outsourced country (which puts more money into the hands of future consumers), and it promotes global economic dynamism, which is good for all of us. I'm a big proponent of the "Made on Earth" sentiment.

I can understand people being mad about the system, but I tend to feel things like this are huge steps in the right direction to addressing these problems. Use the market and hurt these people where it counts!

 

[Fnord]

And here I told Nathan Lauffer that I was going to relax this weekend and not think about the economy for once (I've had a high-stress few weeks about it) and here I am prattling on about it over my morning coffee. You can take the economist out of the economy but you can't take the economy out of the economist.

 

[The Blue Lotus]

Well if it was just about getting the cronyism out of banking and government (or corporations and government in general), I'd be a lot more sympathetic. But a lot of the issues above take pretty simplistic takes on very complex issues. And maybe I'm a lot more cynical *because* I'm so close to this stuff. But I'm a big supporter of global trade and free enterprise, so I get alarmed when people want to "ship jobs back home" or demand that everyone should "get a guaranteed livable wage". It's not that I support people losing their jobs or not making any money, but that I understand the complexities in those systems and how working counter to them is actually *not* in our best interest.

For example, minimum wage laws are one of the biggest contributors to youth unemployment because young people with few skills or experience are priced out of the job market. Outsourcing labor-intensive jobs to countries with comparative advantages in labor-intensity have huge domestic advantages: it lowers the cost of production (which leads to lower prices paid by the consumer), it allows domestic exports to compete on the world market, it allows firms to move operations closer to other customer bases throughout the world, it lowers production costs so that there can be increases cash flows which allows those firms to engage in expansion activities--activities that usually begin in the home country (thus expanding the job pool of higher-skilled, higher-paying jobs in the home country), it improves wages in the outsourced country (which puts more money into the hands of future consumers), and it promotes global economic dynamism, which is good for all of us. I'm a big proponent of the "Made on Earth" sentiment.

I can understand people being mad about the system, but I tend to feel things like this are huge steps in the right direction to addressing these problems. Use the market and hurt these people where it counts!

I used to say the same things, Until my bank up and closed on me overnight.

I had asked them if they were gong to be ok and I was told they were just fine. two days later they were gone. People I talked to that day were scared, some of them having lived through the Great Depression were down right petrafied.

I agree that the Occupy movement is not as slicked out as some of the others *yet* but it is fledgling still and I think once people start taking it seriously some inovative thinkers will hellp bring some cohesion to the movement.

Fun fact we dismissed the gold standard, now a dollar is worth about 10-20 cents. How lame is that?
If a dollar was worth a dollar, perhaps the wages that we get paid as a minimum would work?
But as it stands, if you work minimum wage have an apartment, and a car a very old one mind you. You have to either work 80 hrs or more a week leaving no time for college or to find another (better) job or you have to work more thn one job. again no time to better yourself.

I have been there, I was turned down for state health care because I made too much money I pulled in after taxes a full 8 grand whipty do... :/ No a possiability to go to college, I did try... It was only after I quite all my jobs and decided to live out of my car for six months, taking od jobs paid under the table did my sistuation get to the point where I was able to find a decent job and go to college, I do NOT want my son or my baby sister to have to do that.

 

[Shadoe]

During the time of America's founding, European countries were ruled by a wealthy elite. This wealthy ruling elite set laws and policies to benefit themselves. The common man could only hope that the laws and policies this wealthy ruling elite made would benefit them as well, or some of the benefits would trickle down to them, or that the wealthy ruling elite would be so happy by the benefits raining down on them by their new laws, that they'd treat the common man a little better. This rarely happened.

The founding fathers decided that was an undesirable situation, and they set up America to be governed by the common people and for the common people - not for the wealthy ruling elite.

Today, America is governed by a wealthy ruling elite. They set laws and policies to benefit mainly themselves. The common man can only hope that the laws and policies this wealthy elite make will benefit him as well, or some of the benefits will trickle down to him, or that the wealthy ruling elite will be so happy by the benefits raining down on them by their new laws, that they'd treat the common man a little better. This doesn't happen.

 

[The Blue Lotus]

During the time of America's founding, European countries were ruled by a wealthy elite. This wealthy ruling elite set laws and policies to benefit themselves. The common man could only hope that the laws and policies this wealthy ruling elite made would benefit them as well, or some of the benefits would trickle down to them, or that the wealthy ruling elite would be so happy by the benefits raining down on them by their new laws, that they'd treat the common man a little better. This rarely happened.

The founding fathers decided that was an undesirable situation, and they set up America to be governed by the common people and for the common people - not for the wealthy ruling elite.


Today, America is governed by a wealthy ruling elite. They set laws and policies to benefit mainly themselves. The common man can only hope that the laws and policies this wealthy elite make will benefit him as well, or some of the benefits will trickle down to him, or that the wealthy ruling elite will be so happy by the benefits raining down on them by their new laws, that they'd treat the common man a little better. This doesn't happen.

Exactly, Our founders must be so disapointed in us for what we have done to their country.
It is time we take it back, or burn it down and start over... but something has to change, the system is beyond broken now.

 

[Shadoe]

I think things are going to change, but it's going to take some time. Unfortunately, we're going to lose a lot of what it means to be America before that change comes along.

 

[mythique890]

While I agree with the main idea of the movement, Fnord is right about the jobs. Yes, it would be great if we could bring them home, but companies cannot afford to pay for American workers. Bringing back outsourced jobs would result in the costs of those products going through the roof. At the same time, it seems that during our best years, most people worked in factories and could still afford a decent life (3 out of 4 of my grandparents had factory jobs and my parents came from families of 5 and 7 kids). Honestly curious, and maybe the resident economist can answer/correct me, but why isn't that possible anymore?