New York's Downloaded Music Tax - A Sign of Things to Come

According to this statement from NY Governor Patterson, the state will be looking to recoup taxes from downloaded music and entertainment services to help his state close a $15.4 billion budget deficit. He has blamed the decrease in revenues from Wall Street given the recent financial meltdown.

This is just one state and a harbinger of things to come. Politicians will be scrambling in the coming months to bridge shortfalls and you'll be trading one giveaway or tax cut for another. While Obama promises tax cuts to everyone but those rich folks making $250K per year, the rest of us will be paying higher taxes on things we weren't taxed on in the past.

While the Fed continues to slash rates, print money and promise money from helicopters, and our dollar continues its recent downward trend, our debtor nation status will continue to weaken the leverage we have abroad (recall when China threatened to sell all the Treasuries it was holding if we didn't back off on our agenda for allowing their currency to float?).

The point is that for each step forward, we're taking at least one back.

Nothing's free, not even a tax cut. You may see more taxes on internet transactions, more taxes, "surcharges" and whatever other moniker companies and municipalities can come up with to milk you of more money to cover their shortfalls of which they were ill prepared.

Comments

[k45:]

Politicians and spending are like an alcoholic at a free bar. Tax, tax, tax, tax, tax...

2008 Dec 18 11:21 AM

[NanO49:]

Taxes have always been the government's answer. We end up paying for their giveaways, their mistakes and in this case, the mistakes (and pocketed profits) of the financial wizards from Wall Street. Oh boy -- just what I wanted for Christmas, no job, no house and more taxes. Yippee.

2008 Dec 18 11:41 AM

[a. palmer jr.:]

If it keeps going like this they will be unable to tax in a few years; we won't have anything left for them to get. People have said that for years but now I see how that could happen!

2008 Dec 18 12:51 PM

[Firat Ünlü:]

Stealth tax anyone?

2008 Dec 19 09:34 AM