Iowa Surgeon Goes Galt

I love stories like this:

As a solo general surgeon in private practice, in 2004, with a gross business income before taxes of roughly $500K, I figured that the 39.6% Federal + 9.98% Iowa state top income tax rates + 6% [state] sales + Medicare which no longer peaked out, + property taxes, medical license fees, malpractice fees which were already at $100K for me and headed higher, and no scholarship help for the 4 out of 10 kids in college at the time, my marginal rate was somewhere north of 70%. Once I 'retired' from surgery and became a biology professor, making around $50K, my gross income was one tenth as much, but now one of my kids got a full-ride scholarship at [University], another got a half-ride scholarship, and another got a couple thousand that would not have been given under my earlier circumstances. By my 'going Galt', I figure that the .gov took at least a $200K hit (I remember previously paying $161K in fed. income taxes alone), whereas my disposable income was only about half of what it had been before.

Read the rest here

Future of Capitalism

Judy Morris,
Blogger, THL
Articles | Website

Barack Obama Tattoos

With Barack Obama's approval ratings still at a solid 62%, I became suddenly curious to know how popular the 44th U.S. President really is. Are people so enamoured with President Obama that I could do a quick Google search and turn up some photos of people with permanent tattoos of Obama inked into their very skin? Oh yeah. It's that bad. Below are ten examples of Barack Obama tattoos (some decent, some pretty awful). PS: As a control, I decided to Google "bush tattoos." I found only two examples in the first couple pages, and they were decidedly anti-Bush. I also learned to never, ever Google "bush tattoos" again. Seriously. Don't. There are some gross tattoos out there. In the interests of full disclosure, I must admit that I am not a fan of President Obama . But I've got to say that the tattoos above aren't nearly as bad as this: Editor's note: The pictures are linked to their respective sources. To view the source pages, simply click ...

Legal Marijuana On The Michigan Ballot for 2018

A Michigan ballot initiative to legalize recreational marijuana received enough valid signatures to qualify for a vote in November. When the required number of ballot signatures was certified by the State Board of Canvassers, the 4-0 decision of the board was met by cheers from supporters of the initiative who were present, the Detroit Free Press reports . Rick Thompson, a board member of the Michigan National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), put this ballot initiative in perspective as a matter of the State of Michigan safeguarding its own sovereignty and protecting its own citizens from an intrusive federal policy: "The people of Michigan deserve this. They earned it. We've faced many trials and tribulations. We've had so many stop and go signs from the federal government. That's why states have to take the reins on the issue and really be the crucibles of democracy that they've always been intended to be." Indeed the last time ...

What I did on the ten year anniversary of 9-11

During my brief trip to Korea, on the ten year anniversary of 9-11, I did exactly what the terrorists didn't want me to do: I lived without anxiety. I lived without regrets. I lived without fear. I let nothing intimidate me. I let my soul be still. I laughed with my friends. I tried something new. I marveled at nature. I sang at the top of my lungs... badly. My heart was at ease, because I spent all day knowing that for me, this day and every one that preceded it for the last decade was not about the terrorists, but about loving my life, the world I live it in, and the people with whom I am so lucky to share this world. The best memorial I could offer for so many thousands murdered ten years ago, was to ignore their murderers, live without terror in my heart, and in its place let blossom joy. This post is dedicated to you, chingu . Wes Messamore , Editor in Chief, T H L Articles | Author's Page

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