Monday 08-30-10

Update on the Garands and M1 Carbines From South Korea
August 17, 2010
I was contacted by someone from the ODCMP. It turns out the reason the USA will not allow South Korea to sell the M1 Garands and Carbines is that the US government already owns them. This has been going on for 5 years. The USA handed the rifles to South Korea through a lend-lease program. As such, they can not be sold. They can only be returned to the US government (which would then give them to the ODCMP to sell).

What a joke, it has spawned a new tag "If it moves tax it"
Bagelers decry New York schmear tactics
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Any way you slice your bagel, if you slice it in New York, it's going to cost you more.

New York State tax officials are enforcing a sales tax for sliced or prepared bagels (with cream cheese or other toppings), along with whole bagels eaten in the store, according to the state Department of Taxation and Finance.

Whole bagels sold for takeout are not subject to sales tax, but "any handling or preparation at the shop turns it into a taxable event," says Brad Maione, a spokesperson for the DTF.

Although Maione says the sales tax is not a new provision and that the stepped up enforcement is due to better technology, bagel-store owners say the tax was news to them.

Kenneth Green, the owner of 33 Bruegger's Bagel franchises throughout New York, says he never charged patrons the bagel tax and says he found out he owed back taxes this summer when the state audited his company.

"We think it's unfair. They audited us four times in the past 20 years and never raised this before. We are a law abiding company and tax payers. They are requiring us to pay three years worth of taxes we never collected," said Greene.

The tax on a sliced bagel is roughly 8 cents. Greene estimated that because of the audit he'll have to pay thousands in back taxes.

And Greene isn't alone. In 2009 2,732 restaurants were audited state-wide. That year, 646 restaurants were audited for bagel malfeasance in New York City alone. In 2010 that number jumped to 1,077.

Why the spike in bagel audits? Skeptics say it isn't new technology or better methodology, they say it's because New York state is broke.

"I think it's the way the state gets more money. I didn't expect that slicing a bagel would require taxing," said Linda Wilpon, owner of Ess-a-bagel.

This all comes at a bad time for small businesses struggling to hold on during the recession, according to Tad DeHaven, a budget analyst at The Cato Institute.

"Instead of thinking what can be done to encourage small business owners, they are wasting their time and taxpayer money, harassing job creators to fund the state budget," he said.

And the tax code seems unclear. A sliced bagel gets taxed are but sliced bread at a bakery apparently isn't.

http://money.cnn.com/2010/08/25/smallbusiness/bagel_tax/index.htm?hpt=Mid

Recieved this email, thought it was worth passing on, is our president this stupid on purpose?

I check this out on the snoopes site and it is true. Linda

ANOTHER REMINDER
Apparently they think that putting hearts and
butterflies on the new stamp will
make most people not realize that the rest is
Arabic and probably not something we want to
support.

New Stamp - the second one!!!

USPS New 44-Cent Stamp Celebrates a Muslim
holiday. If there is only ONE thing you
forward today... let it be this!

President Obama has directed the United
States Postal Service to REMEMBER and
HONOR the EID MUSLIM holiday season with a
new commemorative 44-Cent First Class
Holiday Postage Stamp.

REMEMBER to adamantly & vocally BOYCOTT
this stamp, when you are purchasing your
stamps at the post office.

All you have to say is "No thank you, I do
not want that Muslim Stamp on my letters!"


To use this stamp would be a slap in the
face to all those AMERICANS who died at
the hands of those whom this stamp honors.
REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of Pan Am
Flight 103!

REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the World
Trade Center in 1993!

REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the Marine
Barracks in Lebanon !

REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the
Military Barracks in Saudi Arabia !

REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the
American Embassies in Africa !

REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the USS COLE!

REMEMBER the MUSLIM attack on 9/11/2001 !

REMEMBER all the AMERICAN lives that were
lost in those vicious MUSLIM attacks!