Luna Bliss Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 4 minutes ago, Frank Lomba said: I think tax is awesome! I doubt it is being efficiently and well used everywhere. But it provides us with infrastructure, welfare, base income, healthcare and much more. The downside, a lot of it is being lost in bureaucracy and forms of corruption and horrible budgeting systems. But in general, I am all for taxes. Prefer paying taxes to living in a country where people have to live on the street or can not afford being healthy and such. Indeed, Frank. I think Michael explains this well, how the US residents actually end up with less (sometimes even incurring death due to lack of medical care) because we have all these hidden taxes not figured into the official tax rate: https://www.democracynow.org/2019/12/26/michael_moore_sicko_medicare_for_all 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luna Bliss Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 But back on track, I did not have a home for 15 years since my home & garden turned into a store....but now I have 4 Linden homes in Bellisseria 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tolya Ugajin Posted January 28, 2020 Author Share Posted January 28, 2020 2 hours ago, Lindal Kidd said: Not just at Britain, Garnet. I am violently against the whole VAT concept. Governments have come up with schemes to tax just about everything...income, birth, death, profits, sales, sin, property ownership, imports, exports. They collect money from us not only to run the general functions of government, but for every social welfare program imaginable. A relatively short time ago, some clever wonk came up with the idea of taxing "value added"...a way to extort money from citizens at every stage of a product's creation. Perhaps the citizens of Britain and the EU are used to this by now. You should not be. I'm telling you, you are being robbed. You are not free, you are slaves to your overlords. OK...now you know how I feel. So...back to your original comment that triggered my little rant: On re-reading it, I see that I did mistake your meaning, and that you were saying you got a feeling of liberty from owning your own virtual land, despite having to pay VAT. So please dissociate my VAT rant from your comment. I do hate VAT, and think everyone who consents to live under it is something of a numpty. But I do NOT hate you, or Britain, and I applaud your desire to own SL land. I think I'm in love. MARRY ME, YOU WONDERFUL WOMAN! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mahala Roviana Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 When I returned to SL some months ago, I started out by buying land and flipping it. While I waited for it to sell, I'd squat on a sky island until it was time to move on. I eventually bought a 1024 on the water, then eventually picked up the abandoned parcels bordering both the east and west, giving me a nice little 2560m lot. I realized I could buy another 512m without my monthly fees going up, so I grabbed a tiny sea parcel and set it up to lease. I spent a small fortune on the rental scripts and the parcel remains empty, but whatever lol. As for my home, I change the house out all the time. I have a house buying addiction. I have a building platform in the sky where I'm trying to master building and texturing my own. I figure it's cheaper than buying a new one every week. In the old days, I owned a small parcel that I used for business. There was a pretty little park on the ground and a "classy," by-the-hour boom-boom room in the sky. I used Bear Infohub as my home base and hung out there with friends most of the time. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tolya Ugajin Posted January 28, 2020 Author Share Posted January 28, 2020 1 hour ago, Luna Bliss said: Well Lindal, I think you and me (assuming you live in the US) are numpty supremes...because we allow 60% of taxes to go to the military * There actually needs to be more money funneled to social welfare programs....if you'd have seen what I've seen I think you'd agree. Ummmm, 60%? That's not even remotely close. The states and cities spend next to nothing on the military. The military is 15.5% of federal spending (FY 2020) at $738B. By contrast, 68.5% - $3,252B (or, $3.3T) of the federal spending is on social programs, including: $1.1T on Social Security $685B on Medicare $616B on other health spending (ie. Medicaid) $514B on income security (food stamps, welfare, housing assistance, and unemployment) Since the response when these facts are pointed out is normally to claim our military spending is growing much faster, if one looks at growth from 2007 (the last full FY before the last recession), military spending is up less than any of the above. Defense: 34% Social Security: 89% Medicare: 83% (BTW, the states have also significantly increased their spending here on Medicaid) Other health programs: 131% (that's thanks to Obamacare, by the way, with all the new Medicaid spending and giveaways to insurance companies) Income security: 41% (DESPITE the economy being far stronger today than in 2007). Sorry, the MSNBC and DNC talking points on government spending is really Mostly Stupid Nonsensical Bull Carp. Source: Table 3.1 here: https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/historical-tables/ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tolya Ugajin Posted January 28, 2020 Author Share Posted January 28, 2020 10 hours ago, Garnet Psaltery said: That's a frankly silly statement, with no apparent point other than to have a go at Britain. Of course the feeling of liberty does not come from paying extra tax. I expect better of you. 20% seems low, for Europe... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tolya Ugajin Posted January 28, 2020 Author Share Posted January 28, 2020 (edited) 1 hour ago, Luna Bliss said: I can't remember where I saw the 59 point something going to the military, but I know it was a reputable source. It would be interesting to see how different sources break down the spending, as there are all sorts of ways to obfuscate the actual numbers when revealing a 'budget'. * I know I've heard the US spends more on the military than 7 of the highest military spending countries combined... In my prior response quote I sent you the source of sources - the source that actually cuts the checks. 59% is ridiculously wrong, and any source that claims that is the correct percentage should be branded unreliable in the extreme. We do spend more than the next 7 countries combined - mostly to counter #2 (China) and #4 (Russia) so that the rest of Europe as well as Japan, South Korea, etc. don't have to spend as much as they would need to if they had to be prepared for a war with China and Russia on their own. Edited January 28, 2020 by Tolya Ugajin ETA 59% is likely what you have heard is federal spending AFTER entitlement programs (ie. SS, Medicare, Medicaid, and welfare programs) which means defense is the biggest single expense item in the 1/3 of the budget AFTER social programs are funded. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luna Bliss Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 (edited) 34 minutes ago, Tolya Ugajin said: military I don't trust government stats completely and the picture is way more complicated than those simplistic graphs paint it. But the fact that we have military bases all over the world in an attempt to stick our noses where we should not for profit is all I need to understand we spend way too much -- how much too much is beside the point. But military spending doesn't totally address the the point I was trying to make. I was countering Lindal's assertion that European residents are numpty because they spend so much in taxes compared to her view of the the superior position of taxation in the US. But taxes are really no higher in Europe than they are here because we have hidden fees we pay in the US that are not CALLED taxes. If we called all these hidden fees what they are (taxes) our tax rate would be higher than in Europe. In addition, we'd all have guaranteed health care, free college, free daycare and so many other benefits we are lacking in the US. You can fact check all that elsewhere, although it is summed up nicely in a funny clip from one of Michael Moore's movies, comparing France & the US:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HP2qOpL2U1Y&feature=emb_logo Edited January 28, 2020 by Luna Bliss 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seicher Rae Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 I'm impressed, y'all. I live for thread derailment. (Not literally but it is a fun thing to say.) By the end of page one you twisty-turny'd this from buying a bridge (I'll take the orange one on the West Coast, please), to land in SL, to...woot! Taxes! Politics. [sincere font]: Well done! 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tolya Ugajin Posted January 28, 2020 Author Share Posted January 28, 2020 2 minutes ago, Luna Bliss said: I don't trust government stats completely and the picture is way more complicated than those simplistic graphs paint it. But the fact that we have military bases all over the world in an attempt to stick our noses where we should not for profit is all I need to understand we spend way too much -- how much too much is beside the point. But military spending doesn't totally address the the point I was trying to make. I was countering Lindal's assertion that European residents are numpty because they spend so much in taxes compared to her view of the the superior position of taxation in the US. But taxes are really no higher in Europe than they are here because we have hidden fees we pay in the US that are not CALLED taxes. If we called all these hidden fees what they are (taxes) our tax rate would be higher than in Europe. In addition, we'd all have guaranteed health care, free college, free daycare and so many other benefits we are lacking in the US. You can fact check all that, summed up nicely in a funny clip from one of Michael Moore's movies, comparing France & the US:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HP2qOpL2U1Y&feature=emb_logo So, you'd rely on a film maker who is quite open about espousing a political agenda but you're skeptical of the government agency which literally is responsible for overseeing and documenting all incoming receipts and disbursing outgoing checks? That's like saying you'll take your kid's word on your household budget over your financial advisor's. The idea "hidden fees" (by which is normally meant "what you spend on your own instead of what would be paid by the government in the EU") are the same as taxes is sophomoric at best. A "tax" is a mandatory payment for everyone. Whether or not I need or choose to go to the doctor - whether for chemo or a just doctor's note to get out of work, and pay the bill, is a choice. By the way, I've found a lot of Americans think things are "free" in other countries when they are not. I frequently hear Canadians, for instance, complain about how expensive college is and they laugh when I tell them "oh college is free in Canada, just ask any Americans". Pretty sure it's not free in Britain, either. So, don't be so quick to assume all that is "free" in those other countries, despite their high tax rates. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rolig Loon Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 2 hours ago, Pussycat Catnap said: How can any sane person NOT like avocado on toast? I would never have dreamed of that combination in a thousand years and am skeptical about its yumminess. I admit I am not much of an avocado enthusiast, but I can think of much better things to do with one. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sylvia Tamalyn Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 3 minutes ago, Rolig Loon said: I would never have dreamed of that combination in a thousand years and am skeptical about its yumminess. I admit I am not much of an avocado enthusiast, but I can think of much better things to do with one. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pussycat Catnap Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 (edited) 10 minutes ago, Rolig Loon said: I would never have dreamed of that combination in a thousand years and am skeptical about its yumminess. I admit I am not much of an avocado enthusiast, but I can think of much better things to do with one. Really? I guess this is a California thing? Pretty much a default way to serve an avocado, is spread on toast. Or a bagel. Who needs porn, when I have this: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=avocado+toast&t=ffab&ia=images&iax=images Edited January 28, 2020 by Pussycat Catnap 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janet Voxel Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 20 minutes ago, Seicher Rae said: I'm impressed, y'all. I live for thread derailment. (Not literally but it is a fun thing to say.) By the end of page one you twisty-turny'd this from buying a bridge (I'll take the orange one on the West Coast, please), to land in SL, to...woot! Taxes! Politics. [sincere font]: Well done! This one was pretty bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth Macbain Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 Just now, janetosilio said: This one was pretty bad. And nary a single scorn laugh from me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janet Voxel Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 2 minutes ago, Beth Macbain said: And nary a single scorn laugh from me. I would do a laugh reaction, but it might be interpreted as a scorn laugh, when it really was a laugh laugh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rolig Loon Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 6 minutes ago, Pussycat Catnap said: I guess this is a California thing? Pretty much a default way to serve an avocado, is spread on toast. Or a bagel. Must be. Avocados aren't much of a thing in the midwest, so we are left to our imaginations when we find them in the grocery store. "Funny lookin' potatoes they have out there.... " 😜 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth Macbain Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 1 minute ago, janetosilio said: I would do a laugh reaction, but it might be interpreted as a scorn laugh, when it really was a laugh laugh. It's the most dangerous emoji of them all. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pussycat Catnap Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 (edited) 6 minutes ago, Rolig Loon said: Must be. Avocados aren't much of a thing in the midwest, so we are left to our imaginations when we find them in the grocery store. "Funny lookin' potatoes they have out there.... " 😜 We put them on pretty much everything. I suspect my Tesla might actually be powered by them and not electricity. It isn't ready until it has an avocado in or on it. Doesn't matter what it is... Edited January 28, 2020 by Pussycat Catnap 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth Macbain Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 5 minutes ago, Rolig Loon said: Must be. Avocado toast is all the rage in the south, or at least in Kentucky... or at least in Louisville, which isn't really Kentucky... but it's definitely not just a California thing. And it's vile. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seicher Rae Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 25 minutes ago, Rolig Loon said: 35 minutes ago, Pussycat Catnap said: I guess this is a California thing? Pretty much a default way to serve an avocado, is spread on toast. Or a bagel. Must be. Avocados aren't much of a thing in the midwest, so we are left to our imaginations when we find them in the grocery store. "Funny lookin' potatoes they have out there.... " 😜 FOOD FIGHT!!!! I thought avocado toast was pretty ubiquitous in all major USA cities and college towns. It's definitely a millennial thing. (I really want to #OKBoomer here but I won't.) But it is also delicious. If you like it on corn chips as guacamole, it really isn't a huge leap to putting it on other starchy things, like bread/toast, bagels, tortillas... @Pussycat Catnap's post made me all crave-y. I recently purchased an animated avocat pet for Seeker. I should take a photo. It is adorbs. 1 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rufferta Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 On 1/27/2020 at 7:42 AM, Tolya Ugajin said: OK, not really I'm curious as to people's attitudes towards land ownership. In RL, people tend to identify heavily with their homes, and I see some of it here in SL. Do you own/rent SL land? If so, how much? How do you use it? If you had a significant increase in RL finances, would you allocate some to owning more SL land? If so, what would you do with it? I have a houseboat I got on the second day Bellisseria was open. I enjoy the community there, and I can sail quite a distance from my dock. I do worry that there is a very small contingent of Bellisserians who complain about "those crazy neighbors" on the forums and who may some day decide my sea serpent does not conform to 'community standards'. I also have a small parcel in Ukanipo for my Unofficial Tourist Information Office (which is on a sky platform). Right now I am working on landscaping at ground level. Here my worry is that a lot of the Region is for sale, and I have no idea who my new neighbors will be. I already have more tier expenses than I can really afford, seeing as my RL rent has just gone up, but if I had a significant increase in RL finances I would buy more Mainland. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela Galli Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 53 minutes ago, Pussycat Catnap said: Really? I had not felt the need to try until that pic w smoked salmon and onion. 🤩 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleMe Jewell Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 (edited) I've never had avocado toast, but we do put sliced avocados on sandwiches and wraps here -- Colorado - and various other places that I've been to. I'd not use avocado in place of cream cheese on my bagel unless it is a bagel sandwich of some sort. Otherwise, I simply want the sin of bagel totally smothered in cream cheese. Edited January 28, 2020 by LittleMe Jewell 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rolig Loon Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 OK, I know when I have been outflanked. I just got off the phone with my daughter, who said, "Of course you put avocado on toast! We do it all the time in North Carolina!" She's not the daughter I raised, clearly. In her 40s, her tastes have morphed in unfamiliar ways. Now I am suddenly faced with a food challenge that I hadn't imagined when I woke up this morning. I better rush out and find an avocado to torture this evening. 😋 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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