Rant.

Several notable things happened this past week: Roger Clemens was cleared of perjury charges, and I got paid, finally.

Why should I write about Roger Clemens? Exactly. What the hell should I give a damn about him lying to Congress? Hell, why should he or anyone have to testify in front of Congress about steroid use in baseball?
The United States Congress is the lawmaking body of the country. What business they have in investigating steroid use in the MLB is beyond me. They might argue that because the MLB is related to interstate commerce, and thus under the purview of the Congress, but, I can't stress this enough, it has no bearing whatsoever on the functioning of this country. None. Too much time and money has been wasted on the circus-like hearings of former MLB players while there are so many other national issues to be dealt with. That being said, how long have these investigations been going on? I remember this going back to 2006 or so, though I'm sure it may have come up before then. How come the damn bankers who traded in derivatives haven't been arrested and tried? How come Dick Cheney never had to face major scrutiny because of his private security force or his unwillingness to cooperate with multiple investigations of the executive branch because he claimed "legislative exemption?"
Pitiful. Pardon my French, but fucking pitiful. A country that spends so much focus on a non-issue is disheartening and deserves scorn.

Now, onto a lighter issue, my recent paycheck: A quarter of my money was taken for taxes. A quarter. Out of a minimum wage salary. This is absurd. Minimum wage is not a survivable wage, especially when it is taxed. If Republicans are so big on tax cuts, then cut taxes for those who actually need the damn money rather than people who make over $500K.

There, rant is done.

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Regressive Taxation

I'm all for taxation. No, seriously, if a portion of my money goes towards social services that are both necessary and that I can use later in life, why not support taxation? Sure, there are those people who demand all their money, "they earned it," but without taxation, I'd hesitate to think about what would happen if your house were on fire.

That being said, some taxation is ridiculous, namely a tax on people who earn only minimum wage. Minimum wage, on average, nets a person only ~$15,000 per year. That is, for someone who only goes through the minimal amount of shopping, barely enough to survive. What I find appalling, however, is that some people make that in a month and don't pay taxes at all.

I make minimum wage at my part-time job. Unfortunately, it's not a great job that gives me many hours (even though I would love some more), so I've applied to a second job that will probably also pay me minimum wage if I am hired. I need all the money I can get, seeing as I will be in London this October, studying for my Master's degree. Sadly, I am not on track to make much at all.

What is the point of taking money out of the hands of people who need it the most? I realize that many taxes for lower income-earners are mandated at the state level, but still, it is quite unreasonable to tax those who rely on every single cent. I'd call it class warfare, but it seems that it's only class warfare if people with too much money are taxed.

That's my two cents, now give it back to me since I need to save my money for later.

That's all for now,
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