The media is screeching about the tax plan...

[RoadKingLarry]

The tax payers in "high tax states" should blame their state governments for their situation. It isn't the Federal government's place to subsidize their state's poor fiscal policies with my tax money.

[Ben]

"Tax winnings" 

https://twitchy.com/dougp-3137/2017/12/29/come-on-ny-times-comes-up-with-doozy-of-a-spin-on-tax-cuts/

[charby]

The tax payers in "high tax states" should blame their state governments for their situation. It isn't the Federal government's place to subsidize their state's poor fiscal policies with my tax money.

or pack up and move to a lower property values/tax state.

I don't see myself itemizing with the new tax law, but if I did it would be killer in North Central Iowa. I pay $2200 a year in property tax for 2600 sq ft house on a 3/4 acre lot that is on a lake where I own the riparian area too.

[230RN]

or pack up and move to a lower property values/tax state.

...

Son1 finally gave up on Colorado.  Sold his house here, moved eastward to a gun-friendly state, bought a house on some heavily wooded acreage for around 250K which would have been a mil around here.  Leveraged himself into a pretty good situation, he did.

I note there's been some concern by the State that people are emigrating at a higher rate than theyre immigrating.

Sure.  We've been saying for many decades, "Don't Californicate Colorado."  So that's what happened.  (Amusing aside:  Maybe it won't be long before people in [name of State] start saying "Don't Colorape-oe [name of State].")

Terry

[Scout26]

https://www.illinoispolicy.org/illinois-losing-1-resident-every-4-6-minutes-to-other-states/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickgleason/2017/12/23/mass-exodus-from-states-run-by-democratic-machines-continues/


Would the last person left in Illinois please turn off the lights...

[Scout26]

And then Vox punches Dem/leftist Tax narrative right in the nuggets...

https://twitchy.com/dougp-3137/2017/12/28/doh-vox-punches-dems-gop-tax-bill-narrative-in-the-mouth-in-haste-to-jab-trump/

[K Frame]

"Tax winnings" 

https://twitchy.com/dougp-3137/2017/12/29/come-on-ny-times-comes-up-with-doozy-of-a-spin-on-tax-cuts/

The voice over is certainly skewed as hell, but the message isn't a particularly bad one. In fact, they are bolstering the Republican rhetoric by telling people that they should do exactly what the Republicans say will happen with the new tax structure.

Thanks, idiotic liberals!

[Ben]

The voice over is certainly skewed as hell, but the message isn't a particularly bad one. In fact, they are bolstering the Republican rhetoric by telling people that they should do exactly what the Republicans say will happen with the new tax structure.

Thanks, idiotic liberals!

Oh, I agree on the basic message, which those of us on the other side of the argument use a lot - "Nobody is stopping you from writing a check to the IRS." I'm more irritated by the term "tax winnings" as it is just another wordsmith to try and get people on the "the money wasn't really yours" bandwagon.

[K Frame]

I suspect that what has happened is that the article, which I believe appeared in the Times first, was then picked up by the Time's social media department and was likely uploaded by a mun-wearing sissy (insert gender preference here) who is incredibly triggered by the thought that the government will be taking less money from American workers. Because anyone who works is by (insert gender preference here) definition a wealth hoarder taking money from the hands of the truly deserving.

[Ben]

NYT article on how high tax states are responding to the tax plan. I found this potential response somewhat interesting:

Another idea would be to allow residents to replace their state income tax payments with tax-deductible charitable contributions to their state governments.

I at first thought maybe it was some scheme to allow you to deduct more of your contributions to private charities off of your state taxes, but:

Some proposals are more complex. Kirk Stark, a law professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, has suggested that states encourage residents to donate money to their state governments, then let the governments credit those donations against their state income taxes. Such donations would qualify as charitable donations, which are still fully deductible on federal taxes.

So as they complain about the feds "taking money" from their residents, the response is to make themselves a "charity". So I guess the way that would work is, if you would have deducted $12K for SALT but can now only deduct $10k, the state will "let you" write them a check for $2K as a charitable contribution? So they get $2k from you, and you can maybe at best save $200 on your fed taxes? That sounds like a stealth state tax increase (albeit voluntary).

I'd rather just write a $2K tax deductible check to my favorite charity and let the money do some good vs buying new laptops for state employees.

https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/12/31/business/high-tax-states-law.html?referer=https://www.googleapis.com/auth/chrome-content-suggestions

[Scout26]

Lowering taxes is just not an option....

[makattak]

https://www.illinoispolicy.org/illinois-losing-1-resident-every-4-6-minutes-to-other-states/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickgleason/2017/12/23/mass-exodus-from-states-run-by-democratic-machines-continues/


Would the last person left in Illinois please turn off the lights...

I keep encouraging my parents to leave that failing state...

[Scout26]

I keep encouraging my parents to leave that failing state...

As soon as my son graduates, I'll be the first thing smokin' headed south...

[charby]

As soon as my son graduates, I'll be the first thing smokin' headed south...

Be nice if his post high school educational route is there too.

[Scout26]

Nope, sending him off to Uncle Sugar.  He's thinking A&P Mechanic initially and then perhaps applying to be a Warrant Officer Pilot.

[Fly320s]

Nope, sends him off to Uncle Sugar.  He's thinking A&P Mechanic initially and then perhaps applying to be a Warrant Officer Pilot.

Pilot?  He can do better than that.

[makattak]

As soon as my son graduates, I'll be the first thing smokin' headed south...

I keep telling my parents that Southwest Virginia is very nice...


However, if the Eastern and Northern side of Virginia keep winning elections, that may not last for very long.

[Scout26]

Pilot?  He can do better than that.

He wants to fly Helicopters (has since he's been 9 or so), as a plus being in Warrant Officer pilot means that he JUST flys.  Nothing else.  None of the Commissioned Officer crap, like being put on Staff, no Extra Duties, Staff Duty Officer, or other crap.  Fly, write up any issues, go home, come back, inspect the bird, Fly, write up any issues, go home...   All the fun, none of the BS. 

[Scout26]

The unofficial answer is:

The joke goes that they are the officer equivalents of Specialists, except times 10.

Sham level: Asian.

The Official Answer is:

First thing is that ALL Warrant Officers are Officers. They are to be saluted, addressed as "sir" or "ma'am", and their proper title is Mr. or Miss. They officially fall between the Enlisted and Commissioned branches of the Army. However, if you think that a 2LT telling a CW4 (that's a field grade rank, folks) what to do is a good idea, you might need to check your compass. It'd be a lot like a 2LT telling a SGM what to do: yeah, you might have the authority, but it still is a bad idea.

Second is there are two kinds of Warrant Officers: Flight and Technical (aka Walking Warrants, but don't call them that to their face).

Flight Warrant Officers: These are your pilots, your flyboys, and generally what you think of when you think of Army pilots. Though there are commissioned officers that fly, the bulk of the work falls to the Warrant Officer Corps. After they pass WOC (Warrant Officer Candidate) school, they go to flight school, where they will learn to fly helicopters. Upon graduation, they will be assigned a platform based on their selection and their position in the Order of Merit List. From there, it is intensive flight training. You will fly and progress, up to about the rank of Chief Warrant Officer 3, where you will be prompted to branch into one of two directions. Safety or Maintenance Test Pilot

Safety Warrant Officers are focused on exactly what it sounds like. They are experts in Composite Risk Management (See Benjamin Norwood's answer to When considering military action, how do leaders determine what an acceptable loss of life is?) and they focus on the safety aspects of missions and flight operations. This can be very useful when considering a civilian job in the standardization world of aviation.

Maintenance Test Pilots are the guys the crew chiefs go to and say, well we put this together and it should work, so take it up! Okay it doesn't exactly work like that, but it also doesn't not work like that (double negative intended). Aircraft have to be proven in flight after they have major work done on them, and that is primarily what an MTP is for. They are the guys who work hand in hand with the crew chiefs, know the mechanical aspects of their aircraft, and are able to report anomalies in how she flies, feels, and *expletive deleted*s.

Technical Warrant Officers emerged from the Technical Sergeant role in World War 2. These are the technical masters of a specific MOS, and are embedded at the company level until CW4 (at which they will move to the higher echelon staff level, or may even be offered a Command of their own). They often fill the rule of Executive Officer (XO), Safety Officer, or Platoon Leader in a Company. As they progress through the ranks, they will be expected to absorb greater responsibilities, and once they are CW5 (the highest rank), they will begin moving up in echelon of command. It is not uncommon to see CW5s at the Pentagon, Division Level, or Corps level. CW5s are considered VIPs. Many Flight Warrants eventually transition over to this role after they are no longer either fit to fly (due to injury or extenuating circumstance prohibiting their passing of a flight physical), or as their time has just passed at the sticks (which happens).

While the average Soldier may see Warrants as lazy (and there are some lazy Warrants), generally nothing is further than the truth. Warrants exist in their own world, generally left alone by the direct rigors of Commissioned to Enlisted command process unless directly involved in leadership.

[dogmush]

He wants to fly Helicopters (has since he's been 9 or so), as a plus being in Warrant Officer pilot means that he JUST flys.  Nothing else.  None of the Commissioned Officer crap, like being put on Staff, no Extra Duties, Staff Duty Officer, or other crap.  Fly, write up any issues, go home, come back, inspect the bird, Fly, write up any issues, go home...   All the fun, none of the BS. 

Wanna bet?


Obviously Warrant Officer is the best gig in the Army, but NOBODY escapes that listed BS.  Staff and Broadening assignments, especially are needed for career progression.

He should definitely do it, but know that the BS hits everyone.  And recruiters lie. Even WO recruiters.

[mtnbkr]

I keep telling my parents that Southwest Virginia is very nice...


However, if the Eastern and Northern side of Virginia keep winning elections, that may not last for very long.

A few years ago, when my parents, my wife's parents, her brother and SIL all lived in SW VA, it was a goal of ours to find a way to move back.  My parents have since moved back to their "ancestral home" in NC and my BIL and his wife now live in SC, so the pull is lessened (still love the area, but there are other regions just as attractive). I've been eyeballing parts of WV or even East TN, though neither is likely to happen as long as we need to be drivable to both our families (NoVA is about as central as we can get in an area with the work I do).

Chris

[K Frame]

And, why would you want to move farther away from me?

Farther away from Jamis, I understand. I mean, we all have that particular dream.

[Ben]

Barbara Streisand is upset that she'll be paying more taxes. Funny how people like her make sure to always use "billionaires" instead of "millionaires" when talking about "the rich".

https://twitchy.com/dougp-3137/2018/01/04/aww-barbra-streisands-gop-tax-bill-blues-causes-run-on-tiny-violins/

[Angel Eyes]

"The rich: anyone who has more than I do."

[Firethorn]

So as they complain about the feds "taking money" from their residents, the response is to make themselves a "charity". So I guess the way that would work is, if you would have deducted $12K for SALT but can now only deduct $10k, the state will "let you" write them a check for $2K as a charitable contribution? So they get $2k from you, and you can maybe at best save $200 on your fed taxes? That sounds like a stealth state tax increase (albeit voluntary).

More like $480. (24% marginal tax rate bracket)

From what I've heard on how it would work:
1.  You owe $20k in SALT. (might as well make them a high roller)
2.  You write a $10k check to the new "state" charity.
3.  They give you a $10k state tax credit, so now you only owe $10k in SALT, while the state has still gotten $20k.  $10k of it in 'charity', 'balance the budget' type nonsense.
4.  Because charity contributions are 100% deductible, you save $3,200 on your federal taxes.

It's changing the nature of the expense from SALT, limited to $10k, to 'charity', which is only limited to something like 50% of your income.