It's Good Tl
Taxes Are
I'd like i.o meei the person who was
responsible for this year's federal income
tax forms?not the legislators
who hatched up the new tax laws in
the first place, but the little dickens
whose job it was to make sure we
spend the first 3M> months of the year
in utter confusion.
As the old saying goes, nothing is
certain but death and taxes. But I'll
also bet my bottom tax dollar that
lax torms will keep getting more and
more complicated, no matter what
Senators Gramm, Rudman and Hollings
say.
If I weren't such a penny pincher,
I'd turn my taxes over to a professional
to prepare. But besides the
fact that I'm a tightwad, I'm of the
opinion that you haven't lived until
you sweat out the April 15 tax
deadline at least once.
Rushing hither and yon to find
those elusive forms and receipts really
gets my blood pumping. I just wish
I could claim a deduction for all of
the gasoline I've burned driving to
every library, post office and tax office
in the county. And it's a shame
my blood pressure medication isn't
tax deductible either.
I suspect that the individual who
makes up our tax forms each year is
a bedraCtflnri littln unnmo lnrlrnH in
? ?DO ? ----- iw??wu
side a dark, cluttered cubbyhole in
the basement of the Internal
Revenue Service building in
Washington, D.C. From the looks of
some of the instructions, the IRS
needs to let him out for some fresh
air every now and then.
Despite all of the hoopla this year
about "simplified" tax laws, I found
out right off the bat that it was the
same old ballgame. On the cover of
the instruction booklet, Commissioner
of Internal Revenue Lawrence
B. Gibbs writes, "Our goal is to make
taxes less taxing ..Real funny,
Larry.
Even before I finished filling out
Step I of my 1040 form, it was obvious
that whoever wrote the instructions
either has a screw loose or a perverse
sense of humor, finding pleasure in
making simple things difficult.
For example, the line for listing
your address reads, "Present home
address (number and street). (If you
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Get
If it seems like y<
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Transfer your cui
high yieiii, you can
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From unlimited che
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right now transferr
visit any UCBoffic
So if your IRA d<
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have a P.O. Box, see page 9 of the instructions.)"
Turn to the instruction booklet, and
it says, "If your post office does not
deliver mail to your street address
and you have a P.O. box, write your
P.O. box number on the line for your
present heme address instead of your
street address."
Now wouldn't it have been a whole
lot simpler just to say, "Present
mailing address," on the form?
Three little words instead of 54, and
you wouldn't have to open the instruction
booklet?in Step 1 anyway.
The IRS won't even let a taxpayer
die in peace. Whoever said, "You
can't take it with you," forgot to mention
that the taxman doesn't care if
you croak or not?you stiii have to
pay.
Under the heading, "Death of Taxpayer,"
the instruction booklet
reads, "If the taxpayer died before
filing a return for 1987, the
taxpayer's spouse or personal
representative may have to file a
return and sign for the person who
died."
I hope my wife is listening, because
it isn't April 15 yet. And if the taxes I
have to pay don't kill me, filling out
the forms may.
Forum Slated
Brunswick County Concerned
Citizens, a non-partisan local
political action committee, will hold
a forum April 12 at 6:30 p.m. at the
Brunswick County Government
Center in Bolivia.
President Clayton Vaught said the
event would be the group's first
political action forum.
Details were unavailable.
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irOid I RATo United Carol
The Extras You Can Use 1
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IRA can help you enjoy 16 great b<
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also get Passpoi tsM Banking with i
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put your retirement money to work
ing your IRA to UCB is as easy as j
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You get more from United Carolii
Brierwood i
To the editor:
Enclosed is a letter I mailed to the
mayor of Shallotte in response to an
article in your March 24 paper in
which your report on the town board
meeting stated that two residents of
Brierwood Estates opposed the house
numbering system.
I believe my letter to the mayor
states my position clearly.
I believe a correction would be in
order.
John J. Eugene
Shallotte
Dear Mayor Jones:
Board Shot
To the editor:
Dec. 7, 1987. Remember? The
Brunswick County Board of Educa
tion approves of the high school curriculum
being taught. I don't. Does
that cause a shrug of the collective
shoulders?
My concern is not with teachers.
Many of them, especially at the middle
school, call on ouisiuc resources.
They are going out of their way to exCaring
People i
To the editor:
My wife and I have been spending
the month of March at Ocean Isle
Beach. We arrived on the first and
entertained my wife's brother and
his wife upon their arrival March 7.
The next evening, the 8th, the wife,
our sister-in-law, died quite suddenly.
Not only did we suffer a shock in
her passing, but we knew nothing
about the services and requirements
that were available and needed.
First we called the rescue squad
and met a wonaeriui crew of caring
persons. Even before they arrived,
the officer on duty at Ocean Isle
Beach arrived to assist. He was
great. Through him we obtained the
coroner, who was both caring and
helpful.
The ambulance crew took the body
f .
IRA.
eeml
ng\ui
L1C1C,
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ina Bank And \ ~ T\iTii
roday. i
>thing, UCB has a j ''e
jnefits right now. I at?.
You'll not only get a I (^a
10 monthly service
?. or ot great discounts. Si"
and free traveler's I j^a|
before you retire. And I
signing your name. Just I
e of the rest! j Cit'
lere, ours will. 16 l pu,
la Hank.' l_i_
I
LETTERS TO 1
Resident Wants
According to The Brunswick
Beacon, you informed the town board
and apparently the whole community
that I opposed the house numbering
system.
Neither did I oppose or argue in my
letter against the house numbering
system, my only concern in my letter
to the town clerk was the Brierwood
Estate area.
In 1985 when locating in Brierwood,
there was no mail delivery. I personally
went to the postmaster to request
delivery. The postmaster took
out a map of the subdivision of Brierwood
Estates and assigned our home
i/d Consult With
pose students to information and
ideas not covered in classroom
material Mn?;t ctnrinntc ontorino
V.HV. >llg
high school are fairly well prepared.
Isn't it too bad that the high school
curriculum does not offer the latitude
to continue this preparation? Every
June hundreds of students in the local
area and millions across the country
are dumped on the street with little
ability to continue their life.
laved Vocation
to the hospital where the Brunswick
Funeral Service, which we had requested,
handled the necessary' arrangements.
Now that we have returned to
Ocean Isle Beach for the rest of the
month, we had to express our appreciation
to all in Brunswick County
who have helped us in this emergency.
What could have been a disastrous
vacation has proven to be a verywonderful
time among a fine collection
of friendiy and kind persons.
We shall hold great thoughts and
feelings for Eastern Carolinians who
welcomed and assisted us at this difficult
period.
JohnH. Ness
Retired Clergyman
Mont Alto, Pa.
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itAVlltRS CHICKS
id. ( iiiU'ii Ltih'iiii.i Ski ilk AltiV IRA Coon
Monroe. North Carolina 28110-0529
ase transfer all of the funds in my 1
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THE BRUNSWICK BEACON, *
rHE EDITOR
To Set The Recor
a house number, and gave me petitions
for the residents of the area to <
sign to have mail delivery. '
In the event the town decides to 1
change this number, I was concerned i
about my personal expenses of '
stamped envelopes, mailing labels,
change of addresses, subscriptions, '
legal documents, pension and social 1
security payments, etc.?all personal
expenses. 1
My letter states further that the '
numbering system in Brienvood, and 1
I underscore Brienvood, has worked 1
efficiently and I didn't feel it required
changes.
Teachers About (
Whether they like it or will accept
it, the boards of education across this I
land are responsible for the failure in '
our education system. An old maxim
should apply?"You can only expect 1
what you are willing to inspect." I
As with their peers, the Brunswick
County board is caught up in testing.
There are tests for everything except
educating students.
When the kids kill the CAT
(California Aptitude Test), they and
their teachers are blamed. The
scores only measure the ability to
regurgitate material taught. Most of
the national tests are based above
curriculum levels; therefore
teachers are required to waste time
teaching and administering "the
test." Time which should be used for
history, economics, reading, writing,
math, English, science, etc.
it must and should insult the
teachers to have their students tested
by an outside agency. That insult
should be directed to the administration
and board of education with a demand
for upgraded material. A
teacher knows if the students are being
taught at test levels.
The bonrd of oHnratinn shnnlrl talk
to teachers, not to bureaucrats at
local, state or national levels.
Without direct knowledge, I would
guess that less than one quarter of
the teachers have been consulted or
approve of the present high school
curriculum.
A*ail
HB|
B^~ "5 C.irrf
r^_vv?^E^
^^EESBESS^^
!in;itur I'll !<<?\. ">(>! ?!
KA account tt
to I 'nited Carolina Hani
I)ate
Zip
Subs
i
rhursday, March 31, 1988?Page 5-A
a Straight
I further stated while some areas
snprificallv taiklnH ahont Hrier
vood Estates) may not require
lumber changing, I thought it ad,-isable
to recommend that all houses
je properly numbered.
Apparently you haven't read my
etter, were misinformed, or
misunderstood its contents.
Since the paper printed a statement
made by you to the town board
which was inaccurate concerning my
position, I am likewise sending them
copies for proper corrections.
John J. Eugene
Shallotte
Curriculum
If our schools are so tied to testing,
:he boards should note the level of
student success and ask?Why?
That is one of my questions to the
Brunswick County Board?Why? Anther
is?Don't you care?
Jess Parker
Supply
Squads
I Continued From Page 4-A)
patients I had referred to and left it
standing as "the majority of patients,"
which seemed to make people
feel that I had stated we were not
doing a very good job.
The squads in this area do a fantastic
job, and for no pay, being away
from their families and giving up
their spare time to give to others in
trouble.
Rebekah McDonald
Emergency Medical Technician
Shallotte
WE wANflnsri
TRACTS OF TIMBER
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