I believe that many of our problems today that arise from our monetary woes in this country, if tied in together, could go a long way into helping us resolve these woes. For instance, rather than cutting programs like Welfare, Medicare, Social Security, Veterans benefits, etc., if only we went after all the corruption, fraud and waste in these programs, these efforts would go a long way in saving probably millions, if not billions of dollars being thrown away. Simply by cutting funding to these programs, it is only those that truly need them who will be hurt. Those who don't will still be reaping what they don't need or deserve.
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Ron Paul has waged war on the widespread federal spending he views as outside constitutional boundaries. A LITTLE KNOWN FACT: Ron Paul often votes against spending bills, including funds for the Iraq war, but he leads the Houston-area delegation in the number of earmarks, for special funding requests, he is seeking for his district.
LITTLE KNOWN FACT: Ron Paul adds his little bit of pork barrel, that is to say he puts in for his goodies, then cleverly votes against the bills...they pass anyway because everybody else who has put in for their pork votes for the bill. You tell me, is this clever or SLICK? I'm tired of slick politicians aren't you?
PRESIDENT B. OBAMA IS JUST A SIMPLE TOOL BEING
USED ,OUT OF HIS LEAGUE TO DO THE JOB FOR THE UNITED STATES. CONGRESS AND THE DEMOCRATS
HAVE BEEN DUPED BY THE TSARS , ZAMBIANS, AND
A SMALL GROUP OF LOBBYISTS, AND THE PRESIDENT.
AMERICA HAS BEEN SOLD DOWN THE RIVER, BY THE
CORPORATIONS THAT HAVE THERE PRODUCT PARTS
MADE IN CHINA, AND PUT TOGETHER HERE. THAT IS
WHY THERE IS NO JOBS AND WILL NOT BE TILL THIS IS STOPPED, AND TURNED AROUND !
THE WAR AGENTS THE MUSLIM TERRORIST'S IS NOT
ONLY BEING FOUGHT ON THE BATTLE FIELD BUT IN
THE COURTS AND STATE HOUSES IN THE US. TO CHANGE OUR LAWS, AS WE SIT HERE AND LOOK AT
OUR P.C.'S
WE ALL NEED THE E-MAIL ADDRESS OF OUR CONGRESS PERSON TO LET THEM KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON IN THIS COUNTRY EACH DAY !!
AND THEN DO IT!!! BEFORE IT IS TO LATE.
A Sad Day, Death of a Patriot
An Obituary printed in the London Times.....Absolutely Brilliant !!!
Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as: - Knowing when to come in out of the rain; - Why the early bird gets the worm; - Life isn't always fair; - and maybe it was my fault. Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge). His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition. Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion. Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault. Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement. Common Sense was preceded in death, by his parents, Truth and Trust, by his wife, Discretion, by his daughter, Responsibility, and by his son, Reason. He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers; I Know My Rights I Want It Now Someone Else Is To Blame I'm A Victim Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing. |
In another stunning act of either ignorance, intentional myopia, or outright promotions of falsehood, the Liar-n-Thief announced he would REDUCE REGULATORY OVERSIGHT to increase American business and CREATE JOBS!!!!
YAAAAAYYYYHHHH!!!
Now, how does he deal with this little gem?---
DOJ Raids Gibson Guitars looking for Illegal Wood
The Department of Justice is under fire for taking the bold step of sending armed agents into the factories of Gibson Guitar in Nashville and Memphis to seize what it believes to be illegal wood.
Via press release from Gibson:
The Federal Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. has suggested that the use of wood from India that is not finished by Indian workers is illegal, not because of U.S. law, but because it is the Justice Department’s interpretation of a law in India. (If the same wood from the same tree was finished by Indian workers, the material would be legal.) This action was taken without the support and consent of the government in India.
Unbelievably enough, this was not the first time that the Gibson factories have been raided for this same reason.
In 2009, more than a dozen agents with automatic weapons invaded the Gibson factory in Nashville. The Government seized guitars and a substantial amount of ebony fingerboard blanks from Madagascar. To date, 1 year and 9 months later, criminal charges have NOT been filed, yet the Government still holds Gibson’s property. Gibson has obtained sworn statements and documents from the Madagascar government and these materials, which have been filed in federal court, show that the wood seized in 2009 was legally exported under Madagascar law and that no law has been violated. Gibson is attempting to have its property returned in a civil proceeding that is pending in federal court.
So why has the DOJ gone crazy for wood? They believe they are complying with the Lacey Act, specifically, this provision:
Anyone who imports into the United States, or exports out of the United States, illegally harvested plants or products made from illegally harvested plants, including timber, as well as anyone who exports, transports, sells, receives, acquires or purchases such products in the United States, may be prosecuted. In any prosecution under the Lacey Act, the burden of proof of a violation rests on the government. (emphasis mine)
It doesn’t seem that the DOJ has lived up to the standard emphasized above according to Gibson. They are asserting that the Justice Department is actually trying to shut down indefinitely the civil court case that Gibson filed to have their property returned. Given that Gibson is the premier guitar manufacturer worldwide, you have to wonder where the music industry is on this issue.
Reuters is reporting that the guitar maker is being charged with illegally importing wood under a U.S. law barring importation of endangered plants and woods.
In an affidavit, agent John Rayfield of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said U.S. Customs agents in June detained a shipment of sawn ebony logs from India.
The paperwork accompanying the shipment identified it fraudulently as Indian ebony fingerboards for guitars and it did not say it was going to Gibson, the affidavit said.
Of course there will be some back and forth apparently on the legitimacy of the case and whether or not Gibson actually broke any laws, but one thing from the press release stood out to me:
The wood the Government seized on August 24 is from a Forest Stewardship Council certified supplier and is FSC Controlled, meaning that the wood complies with the standards of the Forest Stewardship Council, which is an industry-recognized and independent, not-for-profit organization established to promote responsible management of the world’s forests.FSC Controlled Wood standards require, among other things, that the wood not be illegally harvested and not be harvested in violation of traditional and civil rights. See www.fsc.org for more information. Gibson has a long history of supporting sustainable and responsible sources of wood and has worked diligently with entities such as the Rainforest Alliance and Greenpeace to secure FSC certified supplies. The wood seized on August 24 satisfied FSC standards. (emphasis mine)
I find it fascinating that Gibson had been in compliance with a self-regulatory agency like the FSC and has also been picked on bythe government for alleged non-compliance. I’ve always believed that self-regulation is a viable alternative for many industries that currently answer to the overreaching government.
It’s hard not to see this as the government getting territorial about who gets paid to oversee American industry.
In another stunning act of either ignorance, intentional myopia, or outright promotions of falsehood, the Liar-n-Thief announced he would REDUCE REGULATORY OVERSIGHT to increase American business and CREATE JOBS!!!!
YAAAAAYYYYHHHH!!!
Now, how does he deal with this little gem?---
DOJ Raids Gibson Guitars looking for Illegal Wood
The Department of Justice is under fire for taking the bold step of sending armed agents into the factories of Gibson Guitar in Nashville and Memphis to seize what it believes to be illegal wood.
Via press release from Gibson:
The Federal Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. has suggested that the use of wood from India that is not finished by Indian workers is illegal, not because of U.S. law, but because it is the Justice Department’s interpretation of a law in India. (If the same wood from the same tree was finished by Indian workers, the material would be legal.) This action was taken without the support and consent of the government in India.
Unbelievably enough, this was not the first time that the Gibson factories have been raided for this same reason.
In 2009, more than a dozen agents with automatic weapons invaded the Gibson factory in Nashville. The Government seized guitars and a substantial amount of ebony fingerboard blanks from Madagascar. To date, 1 year and 9 months later, criminal charges have NOT been filed, yet the Government still holds Gibson’s property. Gibson has obtained sworn statements and documents from the Madagascar government and these materials, which have been filed in federal court, show that the wood seized in 2009 was legally exported under Madagascar law and that no law has been violated. Gibson is attempting to have its property returned in a civil proceeding that is pending in federal court.
So why has the DOJ gone crazy for wood? They believe they are complying with the Lacey Act, specifically, this provision:
Anyone who imports into the United States, or exports out of the United States, illegally harvested plants or products made from illegally harvested plants, including timber, as well as anyone who exports, transports, sells, receives, acquires or purchases such products in the United States, may be prosecuted. In any prosecution under the Lacey Act, the burden of proof of a violation rests on the government. (emphasis mine)
It doesn’t seem that the DOJ has lived up to the standard emphasized above according to Gibson. They are asserting that the Justice Department is actually trying to shut down indefinitely the civil court case that Gibson filed to have their property returned. Given that Gibson is the premier guitar manufacturer worldwide, you have to wonder where the music industry is on this issue.
Reuters is reporting that the guitar maker is being charged with illegally importing wood under a U.S. law barring importation of endangered plants and woods.
In an affidavit, agent John Rayfield of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said U.S. Customs agents in June detained a shipment of sawn ebony logs from India.
The paperwork accompanying the shipment identified it fraudulently as Indian ebony fingerboards for guitars and it did not say it was going to Gibson, the affidavit said.
Of course there will be some back and forth apparently on the legitimacy of the case and whether or not Gibson actually broke any laws, but one thing from the press release stood out to me:
The wood the Government seized on August 24 is from a Forest Stewardship Council certified supplier and is FSC Controlled, meaning that the wood complies with the standards of the Forest Stewardship Council, which is an industry-recognized and independent, not-for-profit organization established to promote responsible management of the world’s forests.FSC Controlled Wood standards require, among other things, that the wood not be illegally harvested and not be harvested in violation of traditional and civil rights. See www.fsc.org for more information. Gibson has a long history of supporting sustainable and responsible sources of wood and has worked diligently with entities such as the Rainforest Alliance and Greenpeace to secure FSC certified supplies. The wood seized on August 24 satisfied FSC standards. (emphasis mine)
I find it fascinating that Gibson had been in compliance with a self-regulatory agency like the FSC and has also been picked on bythe government for alleged non-compliance. I’ve always believed that self-regulation is a viable alternative for many industries that currently answer to the overreaching government.
It’s hard not to see this as the government getting territorial about who gets paid to oversee American industry.
Have to share this bunch of bs. Obama has signed an executive order creating a new office of diversity and inclusion. Aimed to put more minorities in federal government positions across the board. Last time i looked there are a lot of minorities on the fed. payroll - so wth? This is pandering to the blacks complaining of unemployment numbers or he's simply a clear cut racist. Nice that this hurricane is keeping the media focus off of this crap!
“We operate under the assumption that the President will be a net negative for us.”
An aide to a Democratic senator on the Power Play program while discussing their man’s election 2012 prospects.
Obama Hypocrisy Steps Up Front and Center
Go figure! After spending a month claiming that after he’d personally stopped a full-blown depression only to suffer plain old bad luck and snakebite which stymied virtually all the nation’s economic engines, President Obama is now highly optimistic about the ability of Hurricane Irene to create a huge bunch of new jobs** along its East Coast path of destruction. This message, delivered as the President and his family deserted Martha’s Vineyard, once again reminds even the semi-literate in economics that President Barack Obama just doesn’t get it even 1/10 as well as any college freshman in any old-fashioned classical economics class might have. Obama and the Keynesian economists who have dominated the college and world scene for the last 70 years actually believe that destruction is almost always a blessing in disguise . . . somehow they just can’t see the hypocrisy in their own words. What you curse as personal loss canNOT be considered great good fortune when it happens to the masses around you . . . .
How, Mr. President, can it be that “bad luck” turned your wonderful “Recovery Summer” into garbage and yet the oncoming Irene shows such great promise in your eyes? Among all the economic fallacies the progressive politicians don’t seem to have a clue about the three major ones are “The Broken Window Fallacy” and its larger context: “The Blessings of Destruction” (sometimes called “The Blessings of Tax Thievery”) and the nature of capitalism and creativity compared to socialism and destruction. Yes, Mr. President it is “an ill wind that blows no one good” and some individuals and some businesses REALLY DO prosper when destruction occurs. However, we have to look back only as far as Hurricane Katrina’s still lasting malaise upon the South Central Gulf region and Biloxi, MS and New Orleans, LA in particular to see just how asinine your thinking process is. You, Barack Obama, actually see Hurricane Irene as a God sent economic stimulus package.
How thick are the heads of these Keynesian economics devotees and our muddle-headed president anyway? Keynes himself re-canted from Keynesian Economics during the last year of his life saying very specifically as the last month of his life approached, “I find myself more and more relying for a solution of our problems on the invisible hand which I tried to eject from economic thinking twenty years ago." That “invisible hand” was the combined effect of all the free choices exercised by free individuals in a free marketplace that Scotsman Adam Smith taught the world about in his monumental 1775 work The Wealth of Nations. It was, of course, Smith’s teachings which so influenced our founding fathers who not only established a government based upon laissez-faire religion, laissez-faire speech and laissez-faire economics but also based upon laissez-faire government (Amendment X of the Bill of Rights of the United States Constitution) to create a capitalistic federal system that has succeeded far beyond any government in the history of the world and served as a shining beacon to freedom lovers everywhere.
Keynesian (socialist) economic policies are based upon taxing, spending and UNsound money policies creating inflation which can become the cruelest UNseen tax of all. Keynes, at the end of his life was a born-again believer in Classical Adam Smith economics, but only one man in a thousand knows that . . . Keynesian economics is such a thinly-veiled and utter failure that every year a brand new Keynesian theory wins the Nobel Prize for Economics and none of these theories has ever worked either on the micro- or the macro-level. It is just this kind of thinking that had a Democratic Senator’s aide on Power Play telling us, “We operate under the assumption that the President will be a net negative for us.”
In a Nancy Pelosi-esque way, the President has been saying, “We have a plan, but we won’t reveal it until September” which the Rajjpuut book of Obamaese translates as “We have absolutely no plan except to recycle our previously failed initiatives and then blame the Republicans when they won’t go along.”
Let Rajjpuut in one paragraph destroy forever the nonsense expressed by President Obama implying that there are blessings in destruction. If you wanted to replace an ancient barely useful building and build a more modern and efficient structure on the site . . . it would indeed be the absolute greatest luck if a Hurricane Ezekiel came along and completely erased the old edifice from the landscape like it never existed . . . luck so great that we might label it a once in a billion situation. For the other 999,999,999 times when such a situation might occur you’ll just have to pay for the people with the cranes and wrecking ball to smash the old building to smithereens before you could expect to start work on the new structure. The same is true of a bomb being dropped upon the plant: imagine that the bombing happened just in the middle of a fire-drill when your old building was 100% vacant, thus forgetting for the sake of convenience all the loss of life and permanent and temporary injuries that would occur if the bombing occurred at some “unlucky time,” certainly that would speed up and reduce the price off beginning the new installation. Other than such true Godsends, destruction in the other 999,999,999 instances is always a net negative, kind of like Mr. Obama himself. The same is true obviously of wild-eyed nonsense like Cash-for-Clunkers ($4C). $4C was a net big negative for the economy of the whole country even while providing a temporary spike for the automobile industry. By destroying thousands of useful and even valuable used cars $4C has made the price of the typical used car rise $1,900 and hurt the lower middle and lower classes dramatically. So much for the notion of blessings found in destruction. So much for the myth of Barack Obama’s intellectual acuity. Ooops, saying that just made me a “racist,” “extremist” and “terrorist” now, didn’t it?
And what is the economic foundation for understanding that destruction brings no blessings? All economic good beyond mere survival is based upon surplus (a.k.a. “profit”) and the main effect of destruction (beyond death, dismemberment, severe injury and full-blown inconvenience) is always destruction of surplus. Even if no one gets hurt and insurance covers everything 100% we’re talking about destruction of the insurance companies’ surplus and in some cases destruction of the insurance companies themselves and all the jobs that they provided. And then again there’s always all those irreplaceable items like photos and keepsakes that are destroyed or lost as well . . . so talk about your “fundamental transformations,” Obama the grand critic of capitalism is criticizing all economic good.
And what is the economic foundation for understanding that destruction brings no blessings? All economic good beyond mere survival is based upon surplus (a.k.a. “profit”) and the main effect of destruction (beyond death, dismemberment, severe injury and full-blown inconvenience) is always destruction of surplus. Even if no one gets hurt and insurance covers everything 100% we’re talking about destruction of the insurance companies’ surplus and in some cases destruction of the insurance companies themselves and all the jobs that they provided. And then again there’s always all those irreplaceable items like photos and keepsakes that are destroyed or lost as well . . . so talk about your “fundamental transformations,” Obama the grand critic of capitalism is criticizing all economic good.
Ya’all live long, strong and ornery,
Rajjpuut
** Ex-Obama green jobs czar and Marxist, Van Jones obviously sees things far more clearly than the president. Jones says Hurricane Irene should be called "Hurricane David Duke" referring to an infamous Ku Klux Klan former politician from Louisiana. Jones is putting forth the proposition that everything was just getting great in Obamaland and now this "racist" hurricane is going to upset the apple cart.
THE MUSLIMS STARTED A HOLY WAR KILLED
13,200 PEOPLE SO FAR. ALL OF
CHRISTENDOM AND THE HOUSE OF DAVID
UNITE !!! WE ARE NOT CATTLE TO BE
SLAUGHTERED !!! IF THEY DO NOT STOP,
WE WILL START ON THE HERETICS !!!
UNITE AND STAND ~ WASHINGTON IS
OUT OF IT ~ WITH THERE POLICY
CORRECT DOCTRINE ~ WE ARE AT WAR.
Liberals are mentally disturbed. They do not understand what a Republic is or how it works. They do not and will not understand what it means to be a 'Non-Dependent Citizen'. They cannot conceptualize the ability of an individual to make a profit so vast as to pay their bills, provide for their family while paying their taxes. These concepts and several others are foreign to them and beyond their comprehension.
Dr. Savage is right, Liberalism Is a Mental Disorder.
Or am I mad to even think such an obtrusive thought?
By John W. Lillpop
Why not?
Think of the sheer genius with which Obama has handled the Libyan kerfuffel: Without engaging in hostilities and while leading from behind, our Commander-in-Chief managed to accomplish in five months what should have taken no more than five days!
To be sure, there were setbacks, albeit minor ones.
To begin with, 165 Tomahawk Missiles were wasted in pursuit of Gaddafi. However that may be spun into a positive “peace gesture,” given the fact that there are now 165 fewer weapons available to the next trigger-happy Republican from Texas who somehow manages to steal the presidency!
Does the name Rick Perry ring a bell?
In addition, some would argue that Obama emasculated the War Powers Act (WPA), thereby establishing precedent for some future Republican war monger to completely bypass Congress in order to unilaterally make war somewhere.
In truth, however, the WPA has always been a foolish bit of legislative vengeance created by Democrats to harass and taunt Richard M. Nixon. In fairness, WPA deserved to die, ‘tis just a damn pity that the death came at the hands of an out-of-touch Marxist who hates America and the U.S. military!
Finally, by leading from behind and without an appropriate level of male aggressiveness, Obama allowed the image of the Commander-in-Chief to be downgraded from macho he-man to “girly man,” or worse.
Those who support revocation of DADT will no doubt find comfort in that change.
All things considered, Barack has pretty much kowtowed to orders issued by the UN and taken the notion of American Exceptionalism down a notch or two.
For that alone, Barack deserves another meaningless emblem of weakness and manly impotence from that gaggle of eunuchs in Oslo who waste time attending to such trite every year!
Why not?
Think of the sheer genius with which Obama has handled the Libyan kerfuffel: Without engaging in hostilities and while leading from behind, our Commander-in-Chief managed to accomplish in five months what should have taken no more than five days!
To be sure, there were setbacks, albeit minor ones.
To begin with, 165 Tomahawk Missiles were wasted in pursuit of Gaddafi. However that may be spun into a positive “peace gesture,” given the fact that there are now 165 fewer weapons available to the next trigger-happy Republican from Texas who somehow manages to steal the presidency!
Does the name Rick Perry ring a bell?
In addition, some would argue that Obama emasculated the War Powers Act (WPA), thereby establishing precedent for some future Republican war monger to completely bypass Congress in order to unilaterally make war somewhere.
In truth, however, the WPA has always been a foolish bit of legislative vengeance created by Democrats to harass and taunt Richard M. Nixon. In fairness, WPA deserved to die, ‘tis just a damn pity that the death came at the hands of an out-of-touch Marxist who hates America and the U.S. military!
Finally, by leading from behind and without an appropriate level of male aggressiveness, Obama allowed the image of the Commander-in-Chief to be downgraded from macho he-man to “girly man,” or worse.
Those who support revocation of DADT will no doubt find comfort in that change.
All things considered, Barack has pretty much kowtowed to orders issued by the UN and taken the notion of American Exceptionalism down a notch or two.
For that alone, Barack deserves another meaningless emblem of weakness and manly impotence from that gaggle of eunuchs in Oslo who waste time attending to such trite every year!
BEST KEPT SECRET OF THE CENTURY: Laws our Government Agency Leaders don’t know, or are purposely keeping from the Taxpayers!
By Alexis Stuart, the Credit Whisperer®
Question: can an individual donate to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and/or The Department of Defense and write it off as a tax-deductible charitable gift on their taxes?
Can you guess which government agency still refuses to provide a written answer?
Can you guess which government agency provided the correct answer?
Can you guess why any government agency would not want taxpayers to know the Best Kept Secret I have discovered?
Can you guess why none of our government officials or any current presidential candidates are suggesting this idea?
Uncovering this “BEST KEPT SECRET OF THE CENTURY” all started in 2006, with an idea I had to help The Social Security Funds. I first thought, “Why not donate to Social Security?” Then, I thought, I could start a nonprofit and get people to donate to our mission to help Social Security. We could use the donations to help people buy or start businesses, create jobs and at the same time contribute to the economy and increase revenue to the Social Security Funds. In a few years our nonprofit could donate to Social Security Funds when it is scheduled to run out of money. As a Real Estate Broker and business owner, always looking for another good business to buy, I would follow the progress of small businesses for sale on the Multiple Listing Service. Many times, if the owners could not sell the business, they would end up closing. I wanted to help employees build their credit power so they could buy the business from their boss, keep it alive and keep all of the employees working.
This raised the question, “can a nonprofit donate to social security?” Better yet, “can an individual donate to social security and write it off as a tax-deductible charitable gift on their taxes?”
To find the answer I called The Social Security Administration Commissioner’s office on February 2, 2006 and was told by the secretary that she had never been asked that questions before. I was put on hold while she tried to find the answer. The secretary returned and told me she could not find anyone that knew the answer. Because no one in the office knew if donations were allowed, or if an individual could write them off on their taxes, she told me to write a letter to the Social Security Administration Commissioner and pose the question.
It took three months to get an answer, but I received a letter dated 5/3/06 from Annie White, Associate Commissioner of Social Security Administration stating “You may be interested to know that section 201(i)(1) of the Social Security Act currently provides for tax-deductible gifts to the Social Security trust funds”. The entire letter is available online at www.creditwhisperer.com/solution.htm
I did form a nonprofit organization; Credit Power Educational Foundation, Inc., and part of our mission is to “STRENGTHEN our national economy and Social Security Fund”.
After watching many news reports on how the Department of Defense is the main purpose of the Federal Government and how Medicare and Medicaid were also running out of funds, I decided to ask them the same question I asked the Social Security Administration.
On March 14, 2011, I first called the Medicare and Medicaid office and the female who answered the phone said she had never been asked that question before. She put me on hold and then told me she could not find anyone that knew the answer and they would need to have someone call me back. I did not get a return call.
Next on March 14, 2011, I called the Department of Defense, and just like my call to the Social Security Administration, Medicare and Medicaid, was told by the Public Communication Responder for the Department of Defense that he did not know the answer so he put me on hold while he asked someone else. He returned and said they did not know if donations were allowed or if you could write them off on your taxes, so he put in a written request for an answer.
I did receive an email confirming my question and the following is a portion of the answer:
“Unfortunately the Department of Defense does not accept monetary donations but we thank you for your interest and support. We encourage you to visit our Community Relations website which lists a variety of pre-screened charitable organizations focused on supporting the military community. http://www.ourmilitary.mil/help.shtml”
Question Reference #110314-000075
---------------------------------------------------------------
Topic Level 1: Department of Defense
Topic Level 2: Policy and Programs
Date Created: 03/14/2011 02:06 PM
Last Updated: 03/15/2011 04:14 PM
Status: Solved
[---001:001561:14959---]
Because of other business activities I did not get back to my quest for an answer with Medicare and Medicaid until May 19, 2011. I again called trying to get an answer to my questions. I was told to send a letter. I called back and asked for the Director of Medicare and Medicaid and was transferred to Danette Greenwood, the personal secretary of Dr. Donald M. Berwick. I asked Danette “Can an individual donate to the Medicare or Medicaid Trust Fund and write it off as a tax-deductible charitable gift on their taxes? Danette was very quick to answer “NO!”
I asked Danette if I could speak to Dr. Donald M. Berwick and she said “I handle all of his calls”. I asked if they do not accept donations could Dr. Berwick suggest that Congress, the Senate and President Barack Obama change the law. Danette suggested I contact my congressman to suggest a change in the law. I told Danette that I had already written to many congressmen and Senators and only received a few automated responses. I suggested that Dr. Berwick has connections it would make more sense for him to bring it to the attention of the IRS, Congress, the Senate and President Barack Obama that we need to change the law so individuals can donate to the Medicare and Medicaid funds and write it off as a tax-deductible charitable gift on their taxes.
Danette finally agreed and told me to email my idea in and she would forward it to Dr. Berwick. I sent an email on May 19, 2011. I did not get an answer, so I called Danette on June 3, 2011 and asked if she forwarded the email to Dr. Berwick. Danette said she forwarded my email to a group of people who would be responding to my email. Danette said she would check to see if any progress had been made in getting me an answer. I asked Danette if she would please put the answer in writing. Danette said she could not put her verbal “no” answer to my “can you donate question” in writing, but she would send me an email confirming that she received my email.
I called Danette again on June 6, 2011 at 1:14pm
A man answered phone: “OFFICE OF THE ADMINISTRATOR”. He asked what it was concerning and put me on hold, came back and told me Danette had just gone into a meeting and he said he left a message at her desk.
I asked for his name and he refused to give it. He said it was none of my business and he did not want to be involved in the middle when my business is with Danette.
I then asked for Dr. Berwick and the man who refused to give me his name said he would never forward me directly to him, that Danette takes care of his schedule.
I called back on June 7, 2011 at 12:14 p.m.
I was able to speak to Danette; she said they would be getting back to me next Monday on June 13th.
Danette still would not send me an email with the verbal “no” answer to my “can you donate question”. She said the other group of people will get back to me.
Danette agreed to send me a confirmation with a time line to get an answer to my question. She also agreed to send me an email after she called the other people to push them for an answer and let me know when I might expect an answer.
I called Danette again on June 8, 2011 at 11:55 a.m. I think I spoke to the same man with no name. He said Danette was in a meeting and she already had my message from before. I asked his name and he refused, saying, “I do not give out my name to anyone outside CMS”.
On June 8, 2011 at 1:21 p.m., I called Danette again and spoke to the man with no name. He said “Danette is busy, it is ongoing”. He refused to let me hold for Danette. I asked if Danette was avoiding me. He claimed Danette was not avoiding me and suggested that I email her. I told him I was a taxpayer and wanted to hold. He said “That is not going to happen”, and hung up on me.
I sent Danette another email and received a response.
Wed, Jun 8, 2011 at 1:47 PM
RE: Response requested
Hi Alexis,
I will follow up with the component today to see exactly how long they will be in getting you an answer and get back to you as soon as possible.
Regards,
Danette
To see the email go to www.creditwhisperer.com/solution.htm
I still do not have an answer as of July 12, 2011 from Danette, Dr. Berwick, or the “component”.
On June 30, 2011 Danette finally told me to contact Dianne Heffron, the staffer working on an answer. It took six days for me to finally connect with Dianne Heffron who is the Director of Financial Management Group of the CMSO
Dianne told me she had not received my email. She was able to find my email while I was on the phone. I refreshed her memory as to the fact Danette Greenwood had forwarded my letter and emails to her. Dianne said she was still working on an answer for me. So far she believed that I could donate to Medicaid on the state level, but not to their department. She suggested I contact Toby Douglass, the Secretary of the California Department of Health. She said they only match the state payments. (Another wrong answer)
Dianne said she was still doing research on the Medicare side. She did not know who would even be able to take the donation. She was sure that her department not able to take any donations. I asked if she could put her answer in writing. Dianne said since the letter was addressed to the Director, Dr. Donald M. Berwick, she could not answer my letter or questions in writing. Dianne said Dr. Donald M. Berwick would need to down-grade the response to her. She said that could take two weeks to get the down-grade.
I suggested that I send another letter addressed to her so she could answer it. Dianne said that would work, so I re-sent the letter, and another email, addressed to her on July 6, 2011.
I phoned Dianne Heffron on July 12, 2011, but she did not answer, so I left a message. I still do not have an answer.
I sent a letter to Dr. Berwick on June 15, 2011 informing him of the additional information I had uncovered concerning donating to the Medicare and Medicaid Trust. A copy of the letter is available at www.creditwhisperer.com/solution.htm
Most people are unaware of this option, including Ms Greenwood.
I continued my research after I was told by Danette Greenwood that an individual cannot donate to the Medicare or Medicaid Trust Fund and write it off as a tax-deductible charitable gift on their taxes.
It seems that contrary to the information I was given by Danette, an individual actually can donate to Medicare and Medicaid and write it off as a tax-deductible charitable gift on their taxes.
I contacted the IRS and spoke to Jacob, i.d. #1054973526.
Jacob put me on hold while he searched for the answer to my question, which was:
“Can an individual donate to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and/or The Department of Defense and write it off as a tax-deductible charitable gift on their taxes?”
Jacob told me to look in Pub 78 to find organizations that are currently tax exempt. He said Pub 78 lists most organizations but does not include all organizations and it does not list Federal, State and Local government organizations as they are not required to file for tax exempt status.
I asked Jacob for more details of how donations to a government agency can be written off on your taxes. Jacob had to put me on hold again to search for additional information. Jacob instructed me to search for Pub 526 on their website and to look at Table 1, page 2. Table 1 defines “Deductible as Charitable Contributions” for “Federal, state, and local governments, if your contribution is solely for public purposes (for example, a gift to reduce the public debt)”.
Here is the link for pub 526: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p526.pdf
I asked for additional information to clarify the terminology “public purpose”.
Jacob was unable to answer my question and transferred me to the Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division of the IRS. I spoke to Miss Lee, i.d. # 1001181273.
Miss Lee was also unable to answer my question and needed to put me on hold to find the answer: She did not find anything to further clarify the terminology “public purpose”.
Miss Lee said, Federal, State and Local government organizations are not required to apply for formal recognition. She also said any government organization could request an Affirmation Letter to show that donors could donate to their organization and write it off on the donor’s taxes.
Miss Lee also suggested that I look at Pub 557, page 30, which defines what a “government unit” includes.
Here is the link for pub 557: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p557.pdf
I asked Miss Lee if I could get an Affirmation Letter to prove I could donate to a government organization. She said if I could give her an address, she would search to verify if the government organization was in their system. If she found them in the system she could then send me an Affirmation Letter.
Because I had already spent 1 hour and 45 minutes to get to this point with the IRS, I asked if she could hold while I gathered the addresses for Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and the Department of Defense.
As I found each address, Miss Lee was able to first confirm the Social Security
Administration, then Medicare and Medicaid, but was not able to confirm the Department of Defense.
Miss Lee said she would send me separate Affirmation Letters for the Social Security Administration, Medicare and Medicaid, that confirms that I can make a charitable donation. I have received the two Affirmation Letters and a copy is available at www.creditwhisperer.com/solution.htm
I asked if I could speak to a supervisor as Miss Lee could not explain why she could not find the Department of Defense in their system.
Two days later a supervisor, Mr. Cordell, i.d. # 1000196899, returned my call. Mr. Cordell said, “The Taxability of Donations account for the Department of Defense was not active”. He said if I could contact someone at the Department of Defense and ask them to call (877) 829-5500 they would be able to verify and reactivate their account by phone.
Mr. Cordell said because government organizations are not required to file a 990, their account can go inactive. Once the Department of Defense calls the IRS, they will be able to verify the account and have it placed back into an active status. After that, I will be able to request an Affirmation Letter for the Department of Defense.
You would think if the head of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid and the Department of Defense and any other governmental unit could raise extra money via a tax deductable donation they would be talking about it and encouraging as many people as possible. Isn’t this solution better than relying on taxes being raised.
It does raise the question, how to control the spending? We need to get control of the spending and we need reform. If our government officials were more responsible in how they spend our tax dollars, then the public might be more willing to donate.
It is understood that we need to reform Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid and the Department of Defense. We need to eliminate the fraud and keep our officials from using the funds for unauthorized purposes. The wealthy would be more willing to donate if they had more confidence that the government would protect the funds, and if a firm plan was in place for reforming the systems. The reform is needed no matter if we voluntarily donate or the money is taken from us as a tax.
I have been told by The Social Security Administration, The Medicare Office and The Department of Defense that no one has ever asked if an individual can donate to their organizations and write it off as a tax-deductible charitable gift on the donor’s taxes.
Once I discovered government employees didn’t have a clue, to prove my point this is the “BEST KEPT SECRET OF THE CENTURY”, I decided to call a few CPA’s in several states and posed the same question. Surely, they will know. I found that most CPA’s did not have a clue. The CPA’s also did not have any clients that had ever donated to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid or the Department of Defense or had ever asked if they could. The nicest and most knowledgeable CPA I spoke to was George Williams in Allen, Texas. Thank you George, for your kind words and interest in my quest.
So why do we have laws to allow us to make a charitable donation, yet our government officials, employees and CPA’s don’t know about it?
Why has no one educated the public about this solution to help the entire country?
I feel our country is more important than any embarrassment any government official may fear. Our government officials need to start making the public aware.
Recap as to knowledge of the tax law:
The Social Security Administration has been aware that an individual can donate and write it off as a tax deductible contribution since May 3, 2006 and has not notified the public.
Danette Greenwood gave me an incorrect verbal answer. Danette is the personal secretary to Dr. Donald M. Berwick, the director of Medicare and Medicaid and is still unaware of the law unless Dr. Berwick has read my letter dated June 15, 2011. Dianne Heffron the Director of Financial Management Group of the CMSO
is working on a written answer, but the verbal answer I have received from her is incorrect. I finally received an email response from Danette Greenwood on July 26, 2011 citing IRS Publication 526 after I pointed out this publication in my letter to Dr. Berwick on June 15, 2011.
I sent a letter to Dr. Berwick on July 27, 2011 asking the following:
Now that Peter M. Kelchner, CPA, at CMS, has researched Publication 526 and recognized that the Federal government is considered as a qualified organization for charitable purposes, I again ask the following questions:
- Will you please set up a donation page on the website for both Medicare and Medicaid?
- Can you bring this matter to the attention of the public, and the employees of the Department of Health and Human Services? You can even go further and ask the public to voluntarily donate to Medicare and Medicaid instead of relying on their taxes being raised.
- Can you start an ongoing educational campaign to bring Publication 526 and Section 170(c)(1) to the forefront, so people will realize there is the possibility to donate to Medicare and Medicaid?
On August 20, 2011, I received a letter dated August 15, 2011, from Joseph Dion, Lead Ethics Administrator with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Obviously he did not understand the questions I posed to Dr. Berwick in my letter dated July 27, 2011.
As of August 22, 2011, I have not received an answer from Dr. Berwick to my letter dated July 27, 2011.
Department of Defense sent me a response which was incorrect and may still be unaware unless they read my email dated June 13, 2011. The DOD still needs to contact the IRS at (877) 829-5500 to reactivate their account. I have made multiple calls to the Department of Defense. Commander Kathleen Kessler told me to send a letter to the Secretary of Defense. She told me no one has the authority to connect me to someone that can call the IRS to reactivate their account. I sent a letter on 7/8/11 to Leon Panetta, the Secretary of Defense. As of August 17, 2011, I have not received an answer from Leon Panetta to my letter dated July 8, 2011. I phoned the IRS to ask for an Affirmation Letter on August 16, 2011 and spoke with Miss Lee, i.d. # 1001181273 again. Miss Lee told me the Department of Defense is still not showing as an active government unit. Miss Lee submitted a referral asking for a letter referencing the Department of Defense as a government unit as tax deductable. She said it may take 30 days to get a response.
All documents can be viewed at www.creditwhisperer.com/solution.htm
I am just one of the little people. I need the help of government officials, media, teachers and the public to spread the word. You can all make a difference.
Alexis Stuart, the Credit Whisperer®,
is the author of “CAPITALIZE on CREDIT POWER”
This book will build a better country!
You can purchase the book at www.capitalizeoncreditpower.com
© 2011
WITH ALL THE VITRIOLIC, HYPERBOLIC, RHETORIC BEING PUT OUT ABOUT THE TEA PARTY AND ITS MEMBERS, ONE CANNOT BUT WONDER HOW ANY RATIONAL PATRIOTIC AMERICAN COULD HATE PEOPLE THAT VALUE FREEDOM, LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL . COULD IT BE BECAUSE THAT THE DE-EVOLUTION OF OUR SOCIETY HAS GOTTEN SO BAD THAT ANY GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO REFUSE TO ACCEPT THE IDEAS OF A FEW ORATICALY TALENTED PEOPLE AS GOSPEL WITH OUT QUESTION??
EVERY ORGINIZATION WILL ATTRACT A FEW VIOLANTLY INCLINED MAL CONTENTS, AND A FEW RACISTS, ETC, AND I DON'T DOUBT THAT SOME OF THOSE HAVE JOINED THE TEA PARTY FOR THE SOLE PURPOSE OF FURTHERING THEIR OWN PERSONAL VENDETTAS. MY EXPERIENCE SINCE I JOINED THIS MOVEMENT HAS BEEN THAT THE VAST MAJORITY OF YOU TRUE PATRIOTS REFUSE TO ACCEPT THAT TYPE OF BEHAVIOUR.
WE DON'T USE GUNS, BOMBS, PIPES, BASEBALL BATS, KNIVES OR ANTHRAX TO GET OUR POINTS ACROSS, WE HAVE AND USE SOMETHING MORE POWERFUL AND IRRSESISTABLE, OUR VOTE.
THOSE PEOPLE WHO WOULD MAKE US PUPPETS FOR THEM TO CONTROL ARE SO FRIGHTENED OF OUR VOTES THAT THEY WILL RESORT TO ANY MEANS OF HYPERBOLE AND INNUENDO TO TRY TO DISCREDIT US. THEY UNDERSTIMATE THE STRENGTH OF CHARACTER THAT THE PRINCIPLES UPON WHICH THIS COUNTRY HAS BEEN FORMED HAS INSTILLED IN ITS CITIZENS.
THE PIONEER SPIRIT IS NOT DEAD EVEN IF THERE ARE NO MORE PHYSICAL FRONTIERS TO CONQUER, SARAH PALIN HAS AWAKENED THIS SPIRIT IN A GREAT MANY PEOPLE. LETS NOT LET IT GO TO WASTE OR BE DISCARDED AS UNAMERICAN OR UNPATRIOTIC.
THE POWER OF OUR VOTE CANNOT BE OVERCOME AS LONG AS WE USE IT WISELY
AFTER YEARS OF PLEADING FOR SOME ACTION FOR THE SENIORS AS STATED IN MY BLOG "SOCIAL SECURITY TAX RIPOFFS OF SENIORS", I RECIEVED A POSITIVE REPLY THIS MORNING FROM REPRESENTATIVE CHRIS GIBSON, ONE OF THE MOST RECENTLY ELECTED MEMBERS OF CONGRESS. I HAD ALSO RECAPPED MY BLOGS "TAX POLICY WHICH FAVOR THE RICH ETC", "CORPORATE TAX LOOPHOLES", AND "WHO DESERVES TAX CREDITS". CONGRESSMAN GIBSON FEELS MY SUGGESTIONS "ARE WORTHY OF ALL DUE CONSIDERATION IN THE 112 CONGRESS". HE WILL BE SETTING UP 3 MEETINGS WITH ME TO DISCUSS THESE ISSUES. HE HAS ALSO TAKEN THE LIBERTY OF REFFERING MY LETTERS TO CONGRESSMAN PAUL TONKO AND WILL ATTEMPT TO HAVE ME MEET WITH THE 2 OF THEM IN THE NEAR FUTURE. THIS IS A BIT IRONICAL AS CONGRESSMAN TONKO NEVER EVEN SENT ME A FORM LETTER IN RESPONSE TO MY CORRESPONDANCE WITH HIM..
IS IT POSSABLE THAT WE ARE MAKING SOME PROGRESS??
Commentary on national and local issues.
I remember the moment I was convinced that Richard Nixon was a desperate, evil man. It was his pre-reelection promise to end the Vietnam War that stuck in my craw. I thought, “If the creep can end the war next January, why not right now… and save even more lives?”
Now another desperate, evil man is making a similar pre-reelection promise for the same reason: equally cold, calculating, and unfeeling… but infinitely more hypocritical. Obama 2.0 is once again dangling “Hope” before the American people, blackmailing voters with the lives of their sons and daughters as ransom by promising to bring home 350,000 troops just before Election Day. I challenge the reader to list how many promises this President has kept.
First home should be the National Guard and Reserves: backup troops who should never be deployed unless Congress (God forbid!) declares an all-out war that our regular troops can’t handle... assuming we are up to full defensive strength by then.
Prior to 9/11, the Guard's general policy was "one weekend a month, two weeks a year"; no more than one year active duty; no more than six months overseas. Due to strains placed on the dramatically Clinton-reduced, regular troop strength, overseas mobilization time grew to 18, then 24 months.
How many recent vets are jobless now? How many families have been broken because presidents, to this day, tried to make war in theMiddle East without enough regular armed force?
Thanks to theClinton" peace dividend", a socialist funding dodge that dramatically cut our nation's “evil” military and spent more on entitlement programs that pull in votes from recipients of our money, we’re vulnerable even on our own turf. China, now building an aircraft carrier fleet, North Korea, and Russia, still holding nuclear weapons, are well aware of this.
How great a concern it is when our regular troops are of insufficient strength to conduct an overwhelming engagement with the forces of one small nation:Iraq. And how arrogant of our Islamist Mole-in-Chief to continue that “war” on Afghan turf with troops uprooted from our communities. There are waiting lists for Regular Army recruits because there is no money to hire them… and now, $350 billion less!
If this puppet, Barak Hussein Obama, can “end the war” next November, why not right now and save the lives of our troops? Instead of dying in the stinking swamps of Vietnam, now they're sinking in desert sand and splayed on mountain crags… with about the same results in Afghanistan as from the same half-hearted effort inVietnam which left 58,000 brave American troops dead for nothing.
Better, let the tin god with feet of clay — who just “won” himself a $350 billion defense budget cut — declare that the established democratic government in Iraq must keep its own peace… and bring our non-regular troops home. We will leave regular Army and air support in our existing bases in
Iraq.
Iraq.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has said his nation's youth will stand up and defend Afghanistan from the Taliban as theU.S. pulls its troops out. Already, the Afghan government is supporting education for girls and women, health care training, and developing a nationalist army that wants its country free from the Islamofascist Taliban.
The Taliban invaded Afghanistan fromPakistan, which is doing little to fight them from their end. Once freed from duty in Iraq, our entire regular military forces and the Afghan Army should fully engage the Taliban, rout them once-and-for-all, and get out. Who flee to Pakistan are that country’s problem.
I believe our strategy should be to provide our own Mid-East bases, and our allies’, with full-time massive professional retaliatory power: the Cold War in a hot place. It’ll send the same message to foes of emerging democracy in the Mid-East as it did to theUSSR: I’m not gonna hit ya? I’m not gonna hit ya?? The hell I’m not gonna hit ya!
That’ll provide fragile democracies major leverage. Leaving a "big stick" Regular Army military presence at bases in Iraq, among others, will assure immediate, emphatic response to incursions and terrorism there, and to stand ready to meetIran’s burgeoning nuclear threat unilaterally, if necessary. “Iran is capable of producing even longer range missiles than the ones it has but won't make them because Israel and U.S. bases are already within its reach,” says Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the Iranian Guard's Aerospace Force. Are they lookin’ for a fight? Ya better believe it, Pilgrim!
So how about we demand from the Mole-in-Chief a Military Hiring Stimulus Package, increasing our national security and creating real jobs by hiring and training members of our regular armed forces. We must bring our troops to full combat-ready strength to preempt attacks against our population in the War on Terrorism and to give instant, overwhelming support to our allies if needed.
Thus, when we fight future politically motivated pocket wars, at least the current president can pretend to care for the lives of American troops, while rationalizing to himself that they signed up to be at risk 24/7 if necessary… and console grieving families with his usual TelePrompTer sincerity.
