The “Water Cooler” is a feature on Claycord.com where we ask you a question or provide a topic, and you talk about it.
The “Water Cooler” will be up Monday-Friday at noon.
Today’s question:
QUESTION: What’s one thing that you pay for that you think you shouldn’t have to pay for? Example: Bridge tolls, express lane tolls, metered parking in cities, etc.
Talk about it.
32 comments
Bridge tolls and meters lanes are great examples, as our tax dollars already paid for those.
Property taxes for our retired seniors.
Any benefit that an illegal receives from my tax dollar.
Service fees in restaurants in addition the posted price of the food and the ‘expected’ tip.
I will start with those ….
I agree 100%! The Benicia bridge was around $.45 per crossing in the late 80s. It’s gone up about 20 fold since then, likely rapidly outpacing inflation for the time. I think the overlords see toll revenues as a private slush fund to cover costs for ornaments like dinners at the French Laundry and private trips to the wine country… in France.
You think the commissars would have some compassion on the working poor who, along with very long commutes from the Sacramento Valley on very poor roads, have the added insult of a high toll. Using an $8.00 daily crossing fee, the cost is $160 over only four weeks. Fifty weeks is $2000 PER YEAR! That’s enough to kickstart a Roth IRA!
You can’t tell me these penalties don’t ruin a lot of aspirations for the working poor, and I can’t believe bridge tolls aren’t a big issue for Northern California politicians. Pass the foie gras. I’ll wash it down with a bottle of Domaine Romanee-Conti while I wait for the kleptocrats to act.
@ Parent ~ You covered all the bases!
Taxes. A lot of people don’t know this, but there wasn’t any federal income tax before the Civil War. Before taxes, the federal government made its money from tariffs on foreign and domestic goods. In 1861 Lincoln signed into law an income and land tax to help pay for the war, which was temporary and ended in 1872. The federal income tax was made permanent in 1913 by the 16th Amendment. The best way to cut down on high government spending would be to end the federal income tax, and abolish most of our over bloated bureaucracies, starting with the IRS, and the corrupt FBI. With a smaller government, we wouldn’t be involved in so many foreign wars that’s costing us trillions and driving up the national debt and interest rates, resulting in higher inflation.
Parking at an event. Paying $40-$50 for your car to sit for a few hours is absurd. Parking should be free.
Parking fees at county fairs are a money grab.
The folly of my youth
Property taxes (way too high)
Fishing License ( after 65 they should be free – I’ve already paid my share)
Bridge tolls – what a racket!
CA bottle redemption fee (CRV) another racket
Anything for illegal Aliens – I didn’t invite them, they don’t belong here and they broke the law by coming here & now the government makes me pay for them being here!
Agree, and… isn’t giving illegal aliens money considered aiding and abetting a crime? Some responsible DA should prosecute a few public officials for this.
Oh….. it said “One thing”
Sorry.
I don’t fish but my brother lived on the Au Sable in MI because he was a trout fisherman. I had to look up what your fishing license fees support. Looks as if they go for good things from which you benefit. This is what I found on the gov’t website: One hundred percent of license fees go directly toward conservation and restoration, but licenses aren’t the only source of conservation funds. Each year, our Sport Fish Restoration Program distributes millions of dollars to state fish and wildlife resource agencies dedicated to restoration and enhancement projects across the country.
http://www.fws.gov › initiative › fishing
Purchase a Fishing License | U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Welfare benefits for people too lazy to work.
As long as California schools are in the lower half of all states, we should not pay to send our kids to a private school.
Problem with that is once you don’t pay for private schools they become public schools.
The only way California is going to get better schools is the get rid of the marxist teachers unions. Pay them for performance with individual yearly contracts. Good teachers get rewarded, bad ones work at McDonalds. You pay based on tenure and collective bargaining, you get lazy teachers that don’t do their jobs, like the ones that I had that showed movies during class instead of teach the subject.
Welfare benefits to those too lazy to work & undocumented aliens, bridge tolls, freeway tolls, permit fees, funding of AQMD, fees to enter parks & beaches, parking fees for events (prices are outrageous already – the rest is just gouging, the excise taxes on phone, water, electric, etc. bills … I’m sure I’ll think of more
Free energy. Water. Land.
The roads. We have paid for them many times over, and they never get fixed. Now the California democrat government is charging us for them to be repaired and maintained multiple ways, and still nothing gets done.
Gas tax as our roads are some of the worst in the nation https://www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/us-road-conditions.html. And could someone cut the weeds along side the highway??? (24, 242,680,80,4) “don’t we pay for that?” and why only a street sweeper every other year? crap is piled up on the sides everywhere. Guess all the money is spent on DEI, cocaine and hair gel.
Fishing and hunting licenses!
Metered parking in Cities, make it senior friendly two ways. One, alternate meters or a group of meters for 65 and older, at no cost, as many don’t feel safe parking in garages and don’t need handicap parking and two, using DL to tap on Meters to verify DOB for no cost at all. It’s also a safety issue, for example. I park and parallel park, done. Then, get out and have to watch around me, get my card or change out and all the while someone can come up and rob or assult me. Just a way to protect that over 65 group. Plus it would bring a feeling of safety to any downtown area for that age group that drive. Out taxes our paid via shopping and contributing to the cities in many ways.
AND GASOLINE TAXES!
Color me impressed! This subject has been up nearly 10 hours and not one of our resident socialist/communists has offered up college and/or healthcare
I believe that commuting costs should be deductible from our taxes. I’m not going to San Francisco for entertainment, for dinner or for other personal reasons. I’m going there 6 days a week to earn money. Therefore, the cost of the commute (and parking) should be deducted from the money I earn, as a business cost. But it’s not, and I resent that – it’s unjust.
CCW “permits”. If I don’t need to pay in order to vote or express my opinion, why do I have to pay to carry a firearm?
I agree with all. I’ll add grocery bags and any other bag. If I’m spending money why do I need to pay for a bag to put my food or other items in? They should at least be free for seniors.
The reason they started charging for grocery bags is to discourage the use of disposables. I have lots of reusable bags in my car trunk and one nice one in my purse for when I’m in SF and just purchasing something small like a sweater, not a load of groceries. I remember being on a bus tour in Morocco years ago and, as we approached the city, seeing gobs of pink disposable shopping bags that had blown about and stuck to fences on farms. It was a reminder that we wisely dispensed with disposables years before. I’m 76.5. I don’t need disposable bags more than anyone younger. Why should I get a discount because of my age?
Bags at the supermarket/stores!
Guns and ammo. They are protected by the US constitution. The government should furnish all the same hardware the police get to honest citizens. Free of charge. Just like the taxes we pay should cover car registration, road tolls and free healthcare.
I would be happy if they would take DROS away(guns and ammo), should be automatic. It is simply a sin tax
Driving on the ‘freeway’.
Yes, they’ve become semi-paved tollways.
Sex