$5 For 1 LB Of Butter

This article is going to irritate all those small business men around our great state of Michigan who are lobbing for the Michigan Fair Tax as well as the Federal Fair Tax proposal. But then again, I've never been in favor of either of these proposals because they do not address the real problems that we face. The only thing either of these tax proposal's do is shift from one abusive tax system to another.

Here's the reality that none of these promoters want to admit. In the Michigan Fair Tax Proposal, it states in Article IX, Section 3. "NO TAX SHALL BE LEVIED BY THIS STATE ON REAL PROPERTY THAT IS BUSINESS PROPERTY, AS DEFINED BY LAW; HOWEVER, A LOCAL TAXING UNIT MAY LEVY A TAX ON REAL PROPERTY THAT IS BUSINESS PROPERTY, AS DEFINED BY LAW.

That's right, there will not be any property tax collected by the State on Business Property, and it will be up to the County to decide if they want to tax or not tax a business. While this may create competition between counties to attract business and jobs to the community, SOMEONE is going to have to make up that lost revenue. That would be us, the home owners. So while our property tax goes up, business pay nothing. Do you think that the Pre-Bate they offer will cover this increase? Has your pay increases keep up with the cost of inflation that you can afford to cover another property tax increase? I guess that depends of if your lucky enough to still have a job or are you among the many underemployed in this state.

Ok, lets move on to the title of this article, $5 for 1 lb. of Butter! Two years ago, I was buying butter for $1.99 a pound. Then last year, it was $2.99 on sale. The other night my husband ask me if I needed anything from the store and I asked him to get me a pound of butter. He's so sweet, he knows how much I hate shopping. That 1 Pound of Butter was $5.00. Well over the last couple of years we have had QE1, QE2, and I guess we will also see QE3. Our Private Federal Reserve Bank just loves printing money and giving it away to their special friends. Every time they do, it reduces the value of the dollar, and we loose our purchasing power down here in the real world.

Right now, we here in Michigan do not pay a sales tax on things like food, medicine, or our medical. But if the Michigan Fair Tax gets passed here we will. Here's how it will work. If you have insurance, you will pay the sales tax on your co-pay. Insurance Co. will not pay tax on the portion they cover. If you go to the doctor, you will be taxed on the portion you pay. If you have a prescription, you will pay a tax on your portion. If you don't have insurance, you will pay a tax on the full amount. Do you think that the Pre-Bate they offer will cover this increase? What happens if Insurance Co. increases your Co-Payment. Oh don't worry, our state legislators just passed the bill to implement Obama Care here in Michigan.

And how about that news that came out this morning?

Oil Jumps on Iran Supply Threat

LONDON—Brent crude rose to a six-month high on an Iranian report that the country will cut oil exports to six European countries in retaliation for sanctions imposed by the European Union and U.S.

"They are playing hard ball," said Olivier Jakob, managing director of Swiss consultancy Petromatrix. "Especially they cut exports to Greece, and Greece is importing about 50% of its crude from Iran."

Last night our local news team announced that we will be paying $4 a gallon because we threatened Iran with sanctions to take effect July 1. Iran said why wait, we'll just stop selling you our oil because China and Russia will buy form us.

So what is that going to do to the cost of 1 Pound of Butter? Or Bread? Or anything else you buy? As the price of oil goes up, so does the cost to ship and that gets passed on to the consumer. Still think that eliminating the amount of state income tax you pay in exchange for a higher sales tax, and making the necessities of life taxable, is a fair exchange?

Here's what it's going to do. Those people like me who have been watching this trend are already forming community gardens to grow our own food. We are spending our summers not at our lovely beaches, but in the garden and the kitchen canning what we grow. More and more of us are taking to the woods in the fall and hunting, and yes, canning what we shoot.

So Mr. Small Business man, if you own and operate a restaurant, you aren't going to see us because you taxed us right out the door. We simply can't afford you anymore.

But wait, there will not be a tax on used items. So GM, Ford, I guess we won't be buying new cars anymore either. But after Cash for Clunkers, the price of a used car has gone up and there are fewer of them around. Good move for Obama, he was looking out for the Auto makers wasn't he. So we will have to pay more for the used, but still, it's not like we have to buy a new car and pay the tax is it. Now how long before the car companies lobby to include a tax on used as well as new? How many times has the IRS amended the tax code? Like I said before, we are only trading one PROGRESSIVE Tax for another PROGRESSIVE Tax.

If the small business people in this state ever sit down and really examine this so called Fair Tax, and look at the whole picture, they might not want it. But as usual, they are only looking at the fact that their business will save and they like that. But if they lose consumers because we can no longer afford to buy what they offer, are they really gaining?

Michigan legislators could bring down the cost of gas and oil if they would just Un-Cap the wells here in Michigan. That I guess is way to simple a solution to jump start the Michigan economy.

This article is from a simple housewife's perspective. We're the ones who have to make ends meet and decide what is a priority and what we will now have to do without. We're the ones who get the sewing machine out during tough times. We're the ones who dig up the flower garden to plant vegetables. We're the ones who dust of our fishing polls. We're the ones who revert back to grandma's home remedy when we can't afford the doctor. We're the ones who make the hard decisions while the legislators screw off.