Archive for October 2019
Rarely have US tax courts ever determined that a tax is unconstitutional. It’s not in their best interest. RE: 280E
Posted on: October 26, 2019
Recently a US tax court determined that legal businesses in states were marijuana is legal for medical or recreational consumption are not eligible for the standard tax deductions that any other legal business should receive and that the law governing the excessive levels of taxation, Section 280E of The US Tax Code, is constitutional. That section of code refers to taxation of a business that may be legal at the state level yet that is still viewed as illegal by the federal government.
So when politicians at the federal level such as Trump and others say they believe states should be able to determine their own laws regarding marijuana legalization, though they may sound like they are open to legalization, what they are in fact saying is that they don’t mind charging excessive taxes upon legal businesses, a position contrary to true conservative ideology.
Now in Trump’s defense I will say that I think he is probably misinformed on the matter or he is getting information that is not complete from one of his advisers.
When I did a search about the history of tax courts and what their general trend in such determinations is I discovered that US tax courts rarely determine that any tax or related law is unconstitutional. Why would that be? Probably because it is not in their best interest. How do they get paid in the first place? Taxes. Finding a tax unconstitutional would be like saying, “Hey guys, let’s take a cut in pay, what do you say?”
So when a number of companies attempted to approach changes to the law through the courts in order to deduct normal business expenses just like any other legal business, the court said Section 280E of the US Tax Code was constitutional and the businesses cannot deduct normal business expenses. The only way to change that is to write to your legislators and ask them to change the law.
The best way to contact your legislators on this particular matter is by using the form at The CANNABIS TRADE FEDERATION’S Take Action page designed specifically for you to contact your elected officials on this particular matter. You simply enter your contact information and hit send: Small Business Tax Equity Act
With the burgeoning cannabis industry becoming the largest growing job sector in The US, you would think politicians would be falling over themselves to change the law to enhance such job growth. But when it involves mitigating the tax burden for regular Americans, sometimes they need a bit of a reminder, even those who claim to be conservative.
Copyright © William Thien 2019
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It doesn’t have to be a joint. Why can’t it be a chocolate,a gummie, or some tea? Just goes to show you the stereotypical ignorance of the mainstream media about an industry that is rapidly evolving and full of healthy alternatives if someone doesn’t like to smoke.
One of the most ironic stories I have ever heard, second hand from someone else, regarding a drug bust for marijuana possession which should by now be legal at the national level if it weren’t for The Republican Party and many Democrats receiving large donations from drug cartels.
Guy says he was pulled over for what he thought was a traffic violation at first. When the law enforcement officer approached, he was asked to step out of the car. He was asked if he had marijuana in the car because the officer said he smelled marijuana.
No need to explain what happens next as I’m sure you all know.
When the guy was asked what the police cruiser looked like he responded that the car was a black Dodge Charger with no markings on it.
All I could think of after hearing the story was of the irony. The Dodge Charger is a car made in Canada, where marijuana is legal at the national level.
So the guy arrested for marijuana possession here in The United States was pulled over by a police officer just doing his job in a car made in Canada where marijuana is in fact legal. Get it? Do you get the irony? Of course you do.
The big three automakers have been making cars north and south of the border for some time now and police departments here in The US outfit the cars for police cruisers and then arrest Americans for crimes that are not illegal in the country where the cars are made.
Now if that isn’t truly a slap in the face of the American tax paying citizen, I don’t know what is. It’s time to legalize marijuana in America.
Copyright © William Thien 2019
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William Thien 
Does a strong two-party system result in the erasure of independent political thought on the part of our elected officials?
Posted by: William Thien on: October 24, 2019
One of the most glaring deficiencies with a strong two-party system is that in asking your elected officials for a response to a particular issue will often result in either silence on the part of the elected official as they await their canned consensus/party response, or nothing at all, ever, as if your request was somehow lost in the ether.
In other words, we elect individuals that once elected are often transformed into political party puppets and we are then governed by them. Maybe we need to see who is behind the party curtains for this upcoming presidential election and focus on them before we step into the ballot box, instead of spending so much time watching the candidates debate.
Copyright © William Thien 2019
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