Hey yall! Today I’m blabbing about dreaming big, how Turbo Tax has been screwing us behind our backs, and how I disagree with people who say that shows like All In The Family could be made today! Before the rant, I try my best to lay out a lesson I got from a book I’m reading… An Empire Of Their Own: How Jews Invented Hollywood
Loved this episode (love pretty much all of them, but still.) I don't have any real ideas for new audio dramas, but I wanted to mention that I love it when Col Cornbread has conversations with you. You just have this rapport that I enjoy so much. Glad to hear you're taking steps to improve your health, too. Keep at it, friend!
I know with the Zyn and Juul things, my little conspiracy (sorta) is that they just find these little issues that are big at the moment but dont hurt their donors to make a fuss about. Like the perfect example is here in NC, people really hated the trend of putting a carolina squat on cars (raising the front, lowering the back, and straight piping it) since they're loud and admittedly kinda ugly. I personally didnt care about them since its not my car or my money. But people would get really animated about them. Anywho they passed a state law regulating them and got all this positive press and everyone kissing their asses about it, but IMO it was some fluff that did nothing to improve our lives.
All that to say, the Juul and Zyn feel like the same thing. Its just some easy brownie points so they can be like "oh we actually did something"
Tax accountant/CPA here - I think one important point is that H&R Block is the lowest possible tier of service available. There may be CPAs who work at Block, but the front line preparers pumping out 1040s have like a weekend class worth of professional ed while a CPA has 150 hours of college credit and has passed the 4 parts of the CPA exam. CPA ≠ bookkeeper or tax preparer. In my professional experience while there are definitely strange situations where the most tax efficient solution sounds loony (like buying a new truck for bonus depreciation) most situations make pretty logical sense. Most people with a simple situation don’t really need a CPA the same way that most people wouldn’t get a lawyer for a parking ticket. A CPA makes more sense when you have multiple inflows or multi-jurisdictional issues. HR Block and the like suck, I’m not going to bat for them for rent seeking! I’m just trying to clear up the distinction between a CPA and what HR Block does.
I used to work in government affairs for about 7ish years (primarily representing non-profits and advocacy groups) and the amount of influence corporate lobbying has over things is very real and very depressing. I also had a job for a hot minute at a company that existed in part to quite literally help lobbyists lobby better ( didn’t really know that before taking the gig, and needed the $$).
It’s especially bad for a lot of the stuff you don’t see as much, like federal regulations, because corporations hire people from the fed by giving them 3x their govt salary so they can have an “in” for that agency (Purdue Pharma used to do this with DEA top brass).
re: Tax filing and TurboTax/H&R Block - part of the issue is having to give TurboTax $$ to download their software in order to file your taxes. The IRS is testing their own filing software, which will be free, and TurboTax has been fighting that.
As far as you appreciating your accountant knowing about deductions - that's a problem with our tax laws. Everything is a convoluted and confusing mess of 'deductions' so that rich people have lots of ways to reduce their tax liability. Other countries that use a method you described of the government just telling you how much you owe have a much more straightforward tax structure.
As usual, our capitalist overlords have created chaos that ultimately benefits them.
Thanks for making me laugh out loud this afternoon. I needed that! When I quit smoking (this was way before vape) I chewed a lot of gum, realize that probably isn't a good option for someone who talks for a living. I'm interested in more detective or crime stories, or whatever you come up with. And you were all over the place today and I loved it! Don't ever stop being you. Love ya buddy.
Chia seeds for fiber and omegas!! Add it into damn near anything and you can do upwards of two tablespoons a day, but you ain’t gotta do it all at once. It’s a good way to ummm. Promote digestion. Easy way to add in a little bit to chip away at the cholesterol levels.
Good on ya for trying to be more healthy, Corey. Not sure if dip pouches are more healthy than vaping, however. Tobacco has carcinogens that vaping does not. Granted vaping can injure the lungs, but it will not increase your cancer risk. Whole tobacco can increase your risk of tongue and oral cancer. Something to think about. I recommend nicotine gum, or the nicotine patch.
I sent an email after last week’s POA and I recommended taking psyllium fiber. Turns out it’s very good for lowering cholesterol! If you eat, something that might be high in fat or cholesterol, and you take a big glass of Metamucil afterwards, not only will you reduce the glycemic index and feel much more full for hours, and hours, reducing the likelihood of you binge eating, you will also reduce the cholesterol that that fat may stimulate your liver to make. So, not only does psyllium fiber supplementation help you move your bowels regularly as noted on my POA email, it also lowers cholesterol and is good for people who over eat because it makes you feel fuller for a longer period of time.
I quit tobacco when my boy was born so he wouldn’t ever see me smoking. It’s been 10 years and I still want it every day, that will not go away. I made it a point to keep a pack in my pocket just to know that I could beat it. Keep up the great work. You can do it! Addiction is a real issue.
Loved this episode (love pretty much all of them, but still.) I don't have any real ideas for new audio dramas, but I wanted to mention that I love it when Col Cornbread has conversations with you. You just have this rapport that I enjoy so much. Glad to hear you're taking steps to improve your health, too. Keep at it, friend!
I know with the Zyn and Juul things, my little conspiracy (sorta) is that they just find these little issues that are big at the moment but dont hurt their donors to make a fuss about. Like the perfect example is here in NC, people really hated the trend of putting a carolina squat on cars (raising the front, lowering the back, and straight piping it) since they're loud and admittedly kinda ugly. I personally didnt care about them since its not my car or my money. But people would get really animated about them. Anywho they passed a state law regulating them and got all this positive press and everyone kissing their asses about it, but IMO it was some fluff that did nothing to improve our lives.
All that to say, the Juul and Zyn feel like the same thing. Its just some easy brownie points so they can be like "oh we actually did something"
Tax accountant/CPA here - I think one important point is that H&R Block is the lowest possible tier of service available. There may be CPAs who work at Block, but the front line preparers pumping out 1040s have like a weekend class worth of professional ed while a CPA has 150 hours of college credit and has passed the 4 parts of the CPA exam. CPA ≠ bookkeeper or tax preparer. In my professional experience while there are definitely strange situations where the most tax efficient solution sounds loony (like buying a new truck for bonus depreciation) most situations make pretty logical sense. Most people with a simple situation don’t really need a CPA the same way that most people wouldn’t get a lawyer for a parking ticket. A CPA makes more sense when you have multiple inflows or multi-jurisdictional issues. HR Block and the like suck, I’m not going to bat for them for rent seeking! I’m just trying to clear up the distinction between a CPA and what HR Block does.
I used to work in government affairs for about 7ish years (primarily representing non-profits and advocacy groups) and the amount of influence corporate lobbying has over things is very real and very depressing. I also had a job for a hot minute at a company that existed in part to quite literally help lobbyists lobby better ( didn’t really know that before taking the gig, and needed the $$).
It’s especially bad for a lot of the stuff you don’t see as much, like federal regulations, because corporations hire people from the fed by giving them 3x their govt salary so they can have an “in” for that agency (Purdue Pharma used to do this with DEA top brass).
re: Tax filing and TurboTax/H&R Block - part of the issue is having to give TurboTax $$ to download their software in order to file your taxes. The IRS is testing their own filing software, which will be free, and TurboTax has been fighting that.
As far as you appreciating your accountant knowing about deductions - that's a problem with our tax laws. Everything is a convoluted and confusing mess of 'deductions' so that rich people have lots of ways to reduce their tax liability. Other countries that use a method you described of the government just telling you how much you owe have a much more straightforward tax structure.
As usual, our capitalist overlords have created chaos that ultimately benefits them.
Thanks for making me laugh out loud this afternoon. I needed that! When I quit smoking (this was way before vape) I chewed a lot of gum, realize that probably isn't a good option for someone who talks for a living. I'm interested in more detective or crime stories, or whatever you come up with. And you were all over the place today and I loved it! Don't ever stop being you. Love ya buddy.
Chia seeds for fiber and omegas!! Add it into damn near anything and you can do upwards of two tablespoons a day, but you ain’t gotta do it all at once. It’s a good way to ummm. Promote digestion. Easy way to add in a little bit to chip away at the cholesterol levels.
Good on ya for trying to be more healthy, Corey. Not sure if dip pouches are more healthy than vaping, however. Tobacco has carcinogens that vaping does not. Granted vaping can injure the lungs, but it will not increase your cancer risk. Whole tobacco can increase your risk of tongue and oral cancer. Something to think about. I recommend nicotine gum, or the nicotine patch.
I sent an email after last week’s POA and I recommended taking psyllium fiber. Turns out it’s very good for lowering cholesterol! If you eat, something that might be high in fat or cholesterol, and you take a big glass of Metamucil afterwards, not only will you reduce the glycemic index and feel much more full for hours, and hours, reducing the likelihood of you binge eating, you will also reduce the cholesterol that that fat may stimulate your liver to make. So, not only does psyllium fiber supplementation help you move your bowels regularly as noted on my POA email, it also lowers cholesterol and is good for people who over eat because it makes you feel fuller for a longer period of time.
I quit tobacco when my boy was born so he wouldn’t ever see me smoking. It’s been 10 years and I still want it every day, that will not go away. I made it a point to keep a pack in my pocket just to know that I could beat it. Keep up the great work. You can do it! Addiction is a real issue.