The lucky chap who caught Barry Bond's 756th home run ball may not be so lucky after all. What could be a great story for him to tell his kids and grandkids is a likely source of financial ruin unless he antes up to the imperial federal government.
An excerpt from a Boston Globe story explains:
"Selling the ball for [around $500,000] would instantly put Murphy in the highest tax bracket for individual income, where he would face a tax rate of about 35 percent.
"Even if he does not sell the ball, Murphy would owe the taxes based on a reasonable estimate of its value, according to John Barrie, a tax lawyer with Bryan Cave LLP in New York. Capital gains taxes also could be levied in the future as the ball gains value, he said."
And the article doesn't even mention state taxes. So, he has to sell the ball or face financial ruin as he tries to pay off the government. By what right can the government lay claim to a portion of another person's property?
Maybe I have some valuables around the house for the government to assess. They could be missing out on a great opportunity to get more of my money. Of course, if the ball were mine, I would sell it and pocket the money but grouse endlessly about the Treasury mafia.
The government is pretty creative in finding ways to get deeper into our pockets.
1 comment:
I heard about this the other day here:
http://boortz.com/nuze/200708/08092007.html#ball
it has a nice little chart showing what portion of the ball "belongs" to the government.
But we have to remember, this is all for the children.
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