No Picture Monday, but an Important message all the same!

It's that day today.  You know the one you dread every year (if you are not expecting a refund that is!).  Yes, it's tax day.  And Oh My God, is it ever tax day!  Mr. Tax Man is not a very nice man this year.  He insists we owe him lots of money and I just don't get it.  What did I do to deserve such a severe penalty?  Was I un-American?  Did I sit home on my butt and not pay my fair share to live in the best country in the world?  Did I insist that someone else pay my way, buy my food, cross over my borders uninvited to have my babies so they were considered legal and could partake in my hard earned money (that I now have to go in debt to give away to others?).  NO, I didn't do any of those things!  I worked until my government decided it wasn't important to have a space industry anymore.  Then I took the lay off and happily accepted the severance payment to pay off my middle class debt.  I became debt free and thought I was going to live the good, ole American retirement.  Yeah, right.  Now I get to go into debt AGAIN, to pay the tax man.  It's not that I didn't prepare for this day, Oh yes I did save money for this day... I just didn't save enough.  Oh well, that's the American way of life right?  I am grateful to be in the country, and I am grateful to have my own home, and my cars and my animals, and the freedom to have all of those things.  I will pay Mr. Tax Man what he says I owe him and move along because I like having my home and cars and all the things I own.   My message today is a rant and I am sorry if I offend anyone with it.  But, I can write these words because I have the freedom to do such things, and I am grateful for that.  But think about this:

How many zeros is in a billion? (This is too true to be funny)

The next time you hear a politician use the word 'billion' in a casual manner, think about whether you want the 'politicians' spending YOUR tax money.

A billion is a difficult number to comprehend, but one advertising agency did a good job of putting that figure into some perspective in one of it's releases.

A.  A billion seconds ago it was 1959.
B.  A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.
C.  A billion hours ago our ancestors were Living in the Stone Age.
D.  A billion days ago no-one walked on the earth on two feet.
E.  A billion dollars ago was only 8 hours and 20 minutes, at the rate our government is spending it.

While this thought is still fresh in our brain...let's take a look at New Orleans   ...
It's amazing what you can learn with some simple division.

Louisiana Senator, Mary Landrieu (D) is presently asking Congress for 250 BILLION DOLLARS to rebuild New Orleans .  Interesting number... What does it mean?  (not that I would wish that tragedy on anyone again, because it was very tragic).  But, there is a limit to my charitability senses.

A.  Well .. If you are one of the 484,674 residents of New Orleans (every man, woman, and child) you each get $516,528.
B.  Or... If you have one of the 188,251 homes in New Orleans , your home gets $1,329,787..
C.  Or... If you are a family of four....your family gets $2,066,012.

Washington, D.C.      HELLO!  Are all your calculators broken??

Building Permit Tax
CDL License Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Federal Income Tax (Fed)
Federal Unemployment Tax  (FU TA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax
Fuel Permit Tax
Gasoline Tax
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Inventory Tax
IRS Interest Charges (tax on top of tax)
IRS Penalties(tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Tax
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service charge taxes
Social Security Tax
Road Usage Tax (Truckers)
Sales Taxes
Recreational Vehicle Tax
School Tax 
State Income Tax 
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone Federal Excise Tax
Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax
Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Tax
Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax
Telephone Recurring and Non-recurring Charges Tax 
Telephone State and Local Tax
Telephone Usage Charge Tax
Utility Tax
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft Registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax
(And to think, we left British Rule to avoid so many taxes)

STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY?

Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago.....And our nation was the most prosperous in the world.
We had absolutely no national debt.... We had the largest middle class in the world..... And Mom stayed home to raise the kids.

What happened?  Can you spell:
'POLITICIANS!'

And I still have to Press '1' For English. 
Don't misunderstand me:  I still love my country and wish to be no where else in the world.  And if you don't like my message, you are free to leave whatever kind of comment you like.  Of course, I am free to disagree with it too!  Love you all!