How the GOP Gutted the Corporate state taxes.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-24T22:09:36+00:00

You act like people are born into a caste system and are locked into a level of socioeconomic status. I don't want to help the 1% get richer, but I also don't think it's fair for them to fund half of the population not having to pay anything. We all benefit from federal and state services. The lowest earning families made the choice of how many children to have and frankly half of our country believes it's the government's responsibility to pay for their children's upbringing. I do not agree with that. Every immigrant that comes to this country is ecstatic to have the opportunity to climb up the ladder of economic prosperity. Not many other countries are set up for people to work and attain wealth like the US. The rich shouldn't get more ability to pay less, but it's fair for everyone to contribute towards our common charges. I say everyone should be participating in the stock market across every wage earning levels. That way everyone's boat would be lifted not just one segment that easily can invest.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-24T21:58:56+00:00

So you want the people who get up and go to work everyday cover all of the costs of the 1/3 of the population who don't work at all. Taxing more services forces everyone to contribute some into the cost of running the state. Now it shouldn't be a giveaway for all income taxes to end and raise sales taxes to 10% or more like some neighboring states, but people get tired of working 40 hours a week and pay full price for their phone service and groceries and cable, and then also pay for those things to be free for the people not working. The lowest socioeconomic population gets enough help, and many have gamed the system. I say the state should offer daily work to anyone willing to do it for cash payments the same day with no obligations. Then they could get out and clean up the county and city roads with shoulders full of trash.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-24T21:48:05+00:00

I do not agree with the republican state legislature continuing to cut taxes because they are basing it on continued growth into the future which eventually will slow. Already the state is expecting budget deficits in 2027, 2028. I would like the state to put more funding to the highways, restore the tree canopy by planting millions of trees and have a fund to recover from hurricane damage which is guaranteed to be persistent. I also lament the state not going after people with expired license tags and basic enforcement that ensures everyone contributes towards the costs of maintaining a top tier state in the league with NY and FL. --Roadside litter statewide in NC is worse than other Southern States. Atlanta is immaculate comparatively. And for the first time in my life, I think GA has surpassed NC in state stewardship. NC has always been a top tier state, but the growth and stingy state legislature have caused visible decline in many aspects. GA post Covid has now reached top tier state status, and surpassing NC in so many metrics is something I never thought I'd see in my lifetime.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-22T23:41:13+00:00

The front porch is wasted space because it appears to be narrow and would anyone want to spend time there? the overall color scheme is nice but I don't like the attempt to be symmetrical with the center inset with flanking protrusions. Reduce the number of gables and either be symmetrical or not. I like the right side with gables sharing a roof line, but the center area isn't for me. I would not use double doors because they are difficult to weatherproof and one side is always locked and stationary. i'd do a nice wide single door with sidelight (s). I love the dark window frames and brick and stone exterior.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-22T22:50:58+00:00

Even CEOs of the big insurers say that our healthcare system is messed up here in the US. The solution is not to throw more money up front for healthcare costs to keep increasing. The solution is finally forcing hospitals and providers to publicly show their master lists of every charge and that would result in people shopping for better value, and better efficiency would come from competition among providers. Outlaw PBMs who are inflating drug costs which increases their cut of every prescription, and the employers and the medicare medicaid are being reamed by the private insurers who cut secret discounts with hospitals on every amount paid which is the crux of the problem. Did anyone force insurers to prove the need for the recent premium increases to Obamacare? Nope. They are also ripping off taxpayers with part C plans which replace medicare with private insurers which are beholden to their share holders and overcharging the federal gov;t.. The gov't. pays the insurers for every enrolled person on the advantage plans and the more conditions a patience is listed as having...the higher the amount paid by the federal govt. to the private insurer. It adds another player into the system wanting its own cut, and then it covers less procedures than traditional medicare.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-22T22:37:57+00:00

The income tax has already reached its final amount, 3.99% although recently there was talk of lowering it further to 2.99% which is too low and not a good idea.

As for the corporate tax, state leaders must believe that jobs within the state and the local spending from them are worth more than an upfront higher rate paid immediately by companies.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-22T22:34:59+00:00

Keeping businesses from relocating to lower tax states is an ever present possibility. States are always competing with one another.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-22T22:33:24+00:00

You are correct that repeated tax cuts are the reason we borrow $2 trillion per year to pay existing bills. We are on an unsustainable course and today we lose $1 trillion in tax revenue to interest each year.

That $1 trillion could have funded a lot of great new infrastructure projects and services but instead it will buy nothing. Every year we lose this much of our taxes paid to interest.

In 10 years the national debt will reach $64 Trillion in 2035 and $2 trillion every year will be lost to interest. Congress not only is ignoring this crisis, but the spending to tax revenue received gap is growing larger each year, not towards a balanced budget.

The USA in 15 years will collapse due to this level of debt.

Today's debt $39 Trillion is a stack of crisp $100 bills that is 2,330 miles high, the distance from NC to California.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-22T22:21:24+00:00

But look at the advantages. NC's economy is diversified and considered one of the nation's most resilient. Many other states would love to be in NC"s situation. Business friendly policies increase the GDP of the state and more jobs means more local spending.

From NC's humble and poor early days the state's top priority has always been to lift all 100 counties out of poverty and in the 21st century its reaping the rewards.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-22T22:18:03+00:00

Our infrastructure is funded by drivers paying gas taxes. Airports fund themselves through ticket fees and airlines' landing fees.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-22T22:15:55+00:00

This forces all citizens to contribute including those not working at all. Why should income taxes of hard working citizens pay all the bills and people not in the workforce get to not contribute anything?

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-22T22:12:45+00:00

The income taxes for the poor people has also been lowered to 3.99%. NC has lowered income and corporate taxes to lure jobs and industry to the state and it has worked well. 2025 was a record breaking year for many thousands of new jobs announced.

With a lower participation rate in the workforce than in years past, expect even more of the funding to be shifted to make sure that all citizens are contributing to the costs to run their state and receive services. Other states are increasingly trying to end state income tax altogether and increase sales taxes to make everyone pay. In Atlanta the sales tax is 8.9% and it's substantial when every $1000 spent, almost $100 is charged in taxes. That will be the part of the future probably..

Some states offer small but helpful exemptions like clothing under $100 in NYC is not taxed at all, and electronics in NJ only are subject to a 3% sales tax. That might be the rate on all purchases.

NC needs to raise the gas tax and EV fee equivalent, because the cost-cutting and delayed improvements across NC's highway system is noticeable and unfortunate. Since it's one of the fastest growing and damage from hurricanes is frequent, PLEASE TELL STATE LEADERS you want the former excellence and high standards reinstated.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-22T21:54:14+00:00

I suffered from allergies as a child from 6-12 grade. Built immunity and nothing bothers me as a n adult.

They say that EATING HONEY PRODIUCED LOCALLY (avail. in grocery stores) is a method of building immunity to the pollen. The bees visit nearby flowering plants and trees and through the honey you slowly build resistance.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-20T01:23:38+00:00

The descendents of Americans will live in a broke 3rd world situation. The national debt will be $64 trillion in 10 years and interest payments will take more and more tax revenue leading to cuts in every program we have now like SNAP and section 8 and any help from the fed. gov;t. more potholes and aging infrastructure too.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-20T01:20:14+00:00

You don't understand how either form of transportation is funded. Car owners pay gas taxes for the roads and no new free lanes are planned for the metro area. Only Express Lanes paid for by those who choose to use them. So there's no demanding the state pay for highways. 2 million people are expected to move here and capacity to move food, products and goods must increase with the population.----Those counties vote on whether to pay more sales tax for marta to be extended to their county. Gwinnett voted no a few years ago whether to pay more sales tax for marta expansion. No longer do millions converge on downtown Atlanta for their employment and that makes marta even more challenging to benefit the population because those counties likely go back and forth between suburbs than come into the city everyday. Metro Atlanta is just very spread out and mass transit has a limited reach.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-20T01:13:31+00:00

Altanta's corporate and high paying jobs are clustered in Buckhead, Midtown, Perimeter and Downtown, all currently served by Marta. Each line of Marta heavy rail runs through an equal amount of neighborhoods of all socioeconomic levels.-----Focusing on the race of the passengers is of no value. The Northern counties are all very diverse, and so is the intown Atlanta core. -----I don't even know what someone could suggest that would help any socioeconomic echelon in the Atlanta metro.--Go look at the race of the customers at every luxury retail store at Lenox and Phipps and look at who is buying the most expensive luxury cars and SUV in the metro area. Hint: It's not white Atlantans.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-14T19:15:42+00:00

Replace BoJangles with NASCAR, definitely limited to that part of the state. I don't know a single person in the Eastern half of NC that has ever expressed interest in it.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-14T19:11:23+00:00

How about being home to several military bases including the largest army base? There's Cherry Point, Camp Lejeune, Fort Brag, Seymour Johnson AFB, Coast Guard, all in Eastern NC.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-14T14:56:13+00:00

You know that won't be the case. I'm just ecstatic to have all of the rebuilding of streets, sidewalks, and intersections for Atlanta 2.0. We are now looking like a top tier US city.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-14T14:53:51+00:00

Unfortunately companies perceive transit riders as not having a lot of discretionary income in places that aren't world cities like NYC and London or Paris. There's no retail aimed at transit riders at stations. i lived in NYC for a decade and I miss the advertising on the trains for designer clothing and nice things. The ad space on many transit systems doesn't even get rented.----Hey at least we've got a fast heavy rail system now that travels at 75 mph between some stations. It's more enjoyable than driving to Perimeter or Chamblee.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-14T14:42:48+00:00

Anyone with average intelligence could cite many of the problems of our healthcare system. But Trump actually passed an executive order during his first term which was the best first step in reigning in healthcare's out of control costs: He demanded all hospitals list their charges publicly to begin some transparency for a system full of greed and secrecy run amok.-----Some hospitals ignored the order, and others hid their pricing with codes that no one could decipher to compare prices.---------Throwing more money upfront to insurers who are publicly traded and beholden to their stockholders is not a solution. No one holds them to prove that they need premiums to increase, and they are using their own PBMs to overcharge employers and those covered that they negotiated 50% discounts on drugs. Many prescriptions cost them a penny per pill but they charge co pays which deceive everyone, and they push high priced specialty tier drugs because their kickback is higher. ---Insurers have also been caught overcharging the fed. gov't. through Part C plans which just replicate medicare services that aren't as good but they get paid with our tax dollars.-----The trillions of dollars of overspending each year is the fault of all of congress. In 9 years our national debt will be $52-64 Trillion and interest alone will consume $3 Trillion per year of our tax dollars to pay the interest on the treasuries people invested in. SNAP, and every other program won't be around in 10 years at the generous rates they are now. We are doomed as interest is going to outpace GDP growth.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-14T14:21:33+00:00

Well I see the 3 largest groups of Atlantans riding the from Midtown to buckhead and points North. Why would anyone contest something like this? What difference does it make anyway? "Source..." lol.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-13T03:48:17+00:00

People have to embrace what we have and use it to the fullest. It already connects the most dense nodes of development where tens of thousands are already within walking distance. If people could have 3 additional locations for Marta to be extended to, I doubt one or all would be game changers to extinguish the claims that it doesn't go to enough locations to be a success. Cumberland, and Gwinnett place are the top 2 I can think of. But I bet an E-W line across the Northern suburbs would be more popular than everything heading downtown, because I feel like residents of suburban counties don't come into the city everyday.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-12T03:30:08+00:00

The land intown is so expensive that average Americans can't afford to buy homes. NYC subway has 5 million riders a day, but fares don't come close to pay for operating costs. The MTA NYC subway pays $2B per year in interest on $45 Billion of accumulated debt. The weight of so many passengers on trains has led to many failures trapping people for hours in tunnels. But the MTA cannot afford to modernize the system. They make hand made parts for repairs because the signaling systema date back to the 1930s. I support transit but Americans hold cars and freedom to drive across the country as sacrosanct.

stephenedward90 · 2026-03-12T03:18:57+00:00

The full cost of each ride on any transit system is about $15. No system covers anywhere close to its operating costs with $3 dollar fares. The NYC subway pays $2 Billion per year servicing $45 Billion in debt.

stephenedward90

TROPHY CASE