South Jersey speaks up: Letters to the editor for the week of Apr. 19, 2024
- Updated
Our weekly round-up of letters published in the Press of Atlantic City.
IRS already has tax-filing processes
I read with interest the two essays (pro and con) on IRS’ possibility of aiding taxpayers in electronically and automatically filing tax returns.
Unfortunately, the authors failed to describe the existing aspects of the various current IRS Free-Filing and Free-Fillable form processes.
While e-filing for taxpayers with annual incomes below $75,000 is rather easy, and the “Free-Fillable Form” process (for higher incomes) is a little more sophisticated, both allow free e-filing, using existing IRS online systems. I do acknowledge that the Id.Me is an abomination and other E-filing contractors (that aid IRS) can be costly.
It’s costly enough to have to pay federal income tax, so I resist paying Turbo Tax, E-File or others to submit the darn forms.
Having used the Free-Fillable form process for several years, it may not be “easy as pie,” but it’s FREE and returns, refunds, payments, etc., are accepted and processed within days — especially if you also use EFT connection to your bank account.
And, if a later 1040-X (amended return) is necessary, the original return has surely been processed, so the timing of an amended return will probably not create confusion.
However, you do need a current pin, last tax year’s AGI (adjusted gross income) and perhaps last year’s pin, but it’s FREE and electronically submitted.
Furthermore, if you do use “Free-Fillable” to complete and submit your 2023 tax forms, you might better understand the convoluted nature of the IRS tax revenue code, which is regularly amended by our elected congressmen and senators, and the Washington bureaucrats of the “Deep State.”
Obviously, my point is, Ms. Ross & Mr. McGarry, if you’re intent on clarifying the IRS’ tax return filing options, please explain some of the existing filing options.
Ron Smith
Brigantine
Mother’s Day made for Trump trip to NJ
Mother’s Day weekend and Donald Trump ... perfect together! Who could possibly represent the sanctity of motherhood better than Donald Trump? What mother would not want to spend a weekend in Wildwood seeing and listening to a man who obviously cherishes, adores and respects women and motherhood? Wildwood timed this event perfectly. What a marketing home run!
Women have always been first and foremost to Donald Trump. We hear him talk about them all the time, on TV, on buses, everywhere. He loves women! His concern for mothers is also well documented, especially the devotion he showed to his current wife after their son was born. Trump clearly wanted to be by her side in those difficult postpartum days and nights, but “business” interfered. How that must have hurt.
So to all the men out there who are not sure how best to honor the mothers in your life, I say, “Go to Wildwood” for Mother’s Day! Have that special woman listen to an uplifting, positive speech about women and mothers from a man who has lived a life devoted to both.
Michael J. Makara
Mays Landing
Biden ignores the law
We have three equal branches of government: legislative, executive and judicial. Our founders wanted to avoid a monarchy.
Many Democrats are campaigning that Trump and the Republicans are a threat to democracy. The real threat to democracy is an administration that refuses to accept the Supreme Court decisions and ignores the rule of law.
In June 2023, the Supreme Court ruled that the Biden administration overstepped its authority to cancel up to $400 billion in student loans. President Biden promised he would find a way around that decision. Why should any president have the power to forgive valid loans and require the U.S. taxpayers to pay them? He’s buying votes at our expense.
The Trump haters are elated that he is being sued. The suit brought by the attorney general of New York is particularly egregious. There were no injured parties, there was no jury, the left-leaning judge decided that Trump had to pay $347 million in damages. Do you think Trump was the only New York developer to overvalue assets? Don’t you think the financial institutions had their own experts? This AG ran on the platform that she would find a way get Trump! If they can do this to him, what do you think they can do to us? Where’s equal justice under the law?
Annamarie Donley
Egg Harbor Township
Wrong to hit a child
Regarding the rally held last week for Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr. et al, Wrap your mind around the priceless irony of a supporter of the Smalls sharing their own version of parenting skills at the rally. Pastor Amir Khan, of Camden, told the story of how his one daughter disrespected her mother.
“When I got home, you best believe I took off my belt,” Khan told those gathered. “I put my belt on that girl.” He continued, “She wound up calling the police, who questioned the family,” and here’s the best part of the story, “Khan said the officer came to the conclusion that he would have done the same thing.”
FYI, under no circumstances is it OK to hit a minor with a hand, a belt, a stick, a wooden spoon or anything. What would happen if you hit someone in the street who did something you disapproved of? You’d be arrested.
I know what you’re going to say: It’s discipline! It’s how I was raised and my parents were raised and so on and so forth. What better way to instill respect and manners into a child than with fear of physical punishment? After all, it worked on you, and you turned out just fine.
Well, I have some news for you. If you think using a belt, hitting or otherwise physically harming your child is a-OK, you did not, in fact, turn out just fine. But it isn’t your fault; it’s how the cycle of abuse creates a cycle of trauma that turns back into abuse. Generations upon generations of this normalizes it, and then people cannot tell the difference between disciplining their child to teach them, and hurting them to make them afraid to disrespect them.
And whether or not you let that sink in, the cop in the story was dead wrong to let Khan slide for whooping his child, and there should have been consequences for both their actions. As to the theme of the rally, and the alleged abused child in this three-ring circus, they have succeeded, even if it wasn’t by the use of a belt, in traumatizing them and taught a lesson that they cannot trust their own parents not to hurt them, or the law to protect them.
Steven Cupani
Elmer
Fund border before Ukraine
It’s time for Senator McConnell to retire from politics. His time in office has turned him into a RHINO (Republican in name only). He keeps chastising Speaker Johnson for not allowing a vote on the aid package to Ukraine. Thanks to his credit, Speaker Johnson is holding up this bill because McConnell and his fellow Democrats are more concerned about protecting the Ukraine border than our own. We have to curtail those crossing the southern border, and this can only be done by securing the border. We need to control the volume of those crossing and verify the background of those that are crossing. The economics of taking care of these migrants is a burden for the financially strapped American taxpayer. All along the Republicans have made this an issue, that when our southern border is secure, then assistance to Ukraine can be voted upon.
Ted Hesser
Mays Landing
Christians need day of visibility
What was President Biden thinking when he declared Easter Sunday to be “Trans Visibility Day”? This showed his total disrespect for Christians.
Well, in response, Nov. 5 is going to be called something else. “Do you know what it’s going to be called?” Trump asked the crowd at his convention. “Christian Visibility Day, when Christians will turn out in numbers that nobody has seen before.”
(Editor’s note: International Transgender Day of Visibility is an annual event occurring every March 31 since 2009.)
Ettore Cattaneo
North Cape May
No need for name calling
The April 11 Letter to the Editor, “Not a Fan of Polistina” contained language which was offensive. Writers can express their opinions without using derogatory words.
Allyson Kaiser
Egg Harbor Township
LOL
Crime has gotten so bad in The Big Apple, it was rumored that a caravan of an estimated 5,000 New Yorkers was spotted sneaking across the border INTO Mexico.
Thomas Barrett
Brigantine
More like this...
IRS already has tax-filing processes
I read with interest the two essays (pro and con) on IRS’ possibility of aiding taxpayers in electronically and automatically filing tax returns.
Unfortunately, the authors failed to describe the existing aspects of the various current IRS Free-Filing and Free-Fillable form processes.
While e-filing for taxpayers with annual incomes below $75,000 is rather easy, and the “Free-Fillable Form” process (for higher incomes) is a little more sophisticated, both allow free e-filing, using existing IRS online systems. I do acknowledge that the Id.Me is an abomination and other E-filing contractors (that aid IRS) can be costly.
It’s costly enough to have to pay federal income tax, so I resist paying Turbo Tax, E-File or others to submit the darn forms.
Having used the Free-Fillable form process for several years, it may not be “easy as pie,” but it’s FREE and returns, refunds, payments, etc., are accepted and processed within days — especially if you also use EFT connection to your bank account.
And, if a later 1040-X (amended return) is necessary, the original return has surely been processed, so the timing of an amended return will probably not create confusion.
However, you do need a current pin, last tax year’s AGI (adjusted gross income) and perhaps last year’s pin, but it’s FREE and electronically submitted.
Furthermore, if you do use “Free-Fillable” to complete and submit your 2023 tax forms, you might better understand the convoluted nature of the IRS tax revenue code, which is regularly amended by our elected congressmen and senators, and the Washington bureaucrats of the “Deep State.”
Obviously, my point is, Ms. Ross & Mr. McGarry, if you’re intent on clarifying the IRS’ tax return filing options, please explain some of the existing filing options.
Ron Smith
Brigantine
Mother’s Day made for Trump trip to NJ
Mother’s Day weekend and Donald Trump ... perfect together! Who could possibly represent the sanctity of motherhood better than Donald Trump? What mother would not want to spend a weekend in Wildwood seeing and listening to a man who obviously cherishes, adores and respects women and motherhood? Wildwood timed this event perfectly. What a marketing home run!
Women have always been first and foremost to Donald Trump. We hear him talk about them all the time, on TV, on buses, everywhere. He loves women! His concern for mothers is also well documented, especially the devotion he showed to his current wife after their son was born. Trump clearly wanted to be by her side in those difficult postpartum days and nights, but “business” interfered. How that must have hurt.
So to all the men out there who are not sure how best to honor the mothers in your life, I say, “Go to Wildwood” for Mother’s Day! Have that special woman listen to an uplifting, positive speech about women and mothers from a man who has lived a life devoted to both.
Michael J. Makara
Mays Landing
Biden ignores the law
We have three equal branches of government: legislative, executive and judicial. Our founders wanted to avoid a monarchy.
Many Democrats are campaigning that Trump and the Republicans are a threat to democracy. The real threat to democracy is an administration that refuses to accept the Supreme Court decisions and ignores the rule of law.
In June 2023, the Supreme Court ruled that the Biden administration overstepped its authority to cancel up to $400 billion in student loans. President Biden promised he would find a way around that decision. Why should any president have the power to forgive valid loans and require the U.S. taxpayers to pay them? He’s buying votes at our expense.
The Trump haters are elated that he is being sued. The suit brought by the attorney general of New York is particularly egregious. There were no injured parties, there was no jury, the left-leaning judge decided that Trump had to pay $347 million in damages. Do you think Trump was the only New York developer to overvalue assets? Don’t you think the financial institutions had their own experts? This AG ran on the platform that she would find a way get Trump! If they can do this to him, what do you think they can do to us? Where’s equal justice under the law?
Annamarie Donley
Egg Harbor Township
Wrong to hit a child
Regarding the rally held last week for Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr. et al, Wrap your mind around the priceless irony of a supporter of the Smalls sharing their own version of parenting skills at the rally. Pastor Amir Khan, of Camden, told the story of how his one daughter disrespected her mother.
“When I got home, you best believe I took off my belt,” Khan told those gathered. “I put my belt on that girl.” He continued, “She wound up calling the police, who questioned the family,” and here’s the best part of the story, “Khan said the officer came to the conclusion that he would have done the same thing.”
FYI, under no circumstances is it OK to hit a minor with a hand, a belt, a stick, a wooden spoon or anything. What would happen if you hit someone in the street who did something you disapproved of? You’d be arrested.
I know what you’re going to say: It’s discipline! It’s how I was raised and my parents were raised and so on and so forth. What better way to instill respect and manners into a child than with fear of physical punishment? After all, it worked on you, and you turned out just fine.
Well, I have some news for you. If you think using a belt, hitting or otherwise physically harming your child is a-OK, you did not, in fact, turn out just fine. But it isn’t your fault; it’s how the cycle of abuse creates a cycle of trauma that turns back into abuse. Generations upon generations of this normalizes it, and then people cannot tell the difference between disciplining their child to teach them, and hurting them to make them afraid to disrespect them.
And whether or not you let that sink in, the cop in the story was dead wrong to let Khan slide for whooping his child, and there should have been consequences for both their actions. As to the theme of the rally, and the alleged abused child in this three-ring circus, they have succeeded, even if it wasn’t by the use of a belt, in traumatizing them and taught a lesson that they cannot trust their own parents not to hurt them, or the law to protect them.
Steven Cupani
Elmer
Fund border before Ukraine
It’s time for Senator McConnell to retire from politics. His time in office has turned him into a RHINO (Republican in name only). He keeps chastising Speaker Johnson for not allowing a vote on the aid package to Ukraine. Thanks to his credit, Speaker Johnson is holding up this bill because McConnell and his fellow Democrats are more concerned about protecting the Ukraine border than our own. We have to curtail those crossing the southern border, and this can only be done by securing the border. We need to control the volume of those crossing and verify the background of those that are crossing. The economics of taking care of these migrants is a burden for the financially strapped American taxpayer. All along the Republicans have made this an issue, that when our southern border is secure, then assistance to Ukraine can be voted upon.
Ted Hesser
Mays Landing
Christians need day of visibility
What was President Biden thinking when he declared Easter Sunday to be “Trans Visibility Day”? This showed his total disrespect for Christians.
Well, in response, Nov. 5 is going to be called something else. “Do you know what it’s going to be called?” Trump asked the crowd at his convention. “Christian Visibility Day, when Christians will turn out in numbers that nobody has seen before.”
(Editor’s note: International Transgender Day of Visibility is an annual event occurring every March 31 since 2009.)
Ettore Cattaneo
North Cape May
No need for name calling
The April 11 Letter to the Editor, “Not a Fan of Polistina” contained language which was offensive. Writers can express their opinions without using derogatory words.
Allyson Kaiser
Egg Harbor Township
LOL
Crime has gotten so bad in The Big Apple, it was rumored that a caravan of an estimated 5,000 New Yorkers was spotted sneaking across the border INTO Mexico.
Thomas Barrett
Brigantine
More like this...
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