click and drag by xkcd
IrReSponsible
17 April: I mail six income tax returns (federal and state for: me, her, and our LLC).29 June: My refund arrives.
11 July: Her refund arrives.
2 August: We receive a letter from the IRS explaining that our LLC return was not mailed on time and, consequently, we owe $195.00 per person/per late month/plus interest (which, the letter alleges, equals $1,695.00).
3 August: I surmise our LLC's tax return got delayed in the mail and try to do the math but nomatterwhat I fail to reverse-compute the numbers. Our LLC's total income for 2011 was $3,950.00. I can't figure out how we could owe more than half the money we made. No...the comma isn't in the wrong place; we grossed slightly less than four thousand dollars last year.
6 August: I learn that LLC late penalty fines are legally this exorbitant. Because of the intrinsic workings of partnership LLC's (normally they report no income because profits are divided by the partners who report the income on their individual tax returns) the IRS can't penalize LLC's like other companies and individuals (levy late penalties based on amount owed plus interest).
7 August: Long phone call with IRS.
"Our documentation shows your LLC did not file its tax return on time."
"The tax return was mailed at the same time as our personal ones, was the LLC tax return due prior to April 17th?"
"It was due on April 15th. Our records show it wasn't posted by that date."
"I was given to understand by the IRS website as well as most major news outlets that the due date was actually April 17th this year, bec..."
"All tax returns are due on April 15th. We show yours wasn't posted on that date."
"Because that was a Sunday. I mailed it on April 17th. Which I believe was the due date."
"Our records show it wasn't posted on time."
"OK. Wow. I guess I need to come at this from a different perspective. What's the postmarked date on the envelope?"
(pause)
"On my LLC's tax... er... which contained my LLC's tax return?"
(pause)
"Hello? Ma'am?"
"If you desire to refute the amount you owe, late fees, and/or interest due, the IRS has sixty days to locate any and all pertinent documents. However, interest and penalty months will continue to accrue during this period. If you pay the amount due, by credit card, at this time, and it's later determined any or all of the amount wasn't due, it'll be refunded."
"You don't have the envelope in front of you?"
(pause)
"At this time?"
(pause)
"the IRS has sixty days to.."
"I feel like I'm talking to a computer. Are you a computer?"
"No sir. I'm explaining how to stop the aforementioned penalties from continuing to accrue."
"If you're a computer and I ask if you are a computer, you're legally required to say yes."
"That's very funny, sir. You can mail a check. Upon receipt, the penalties would..."
"I don't believe I owe penalties, fines, or interest. I mailed the tax return on time."
"In that case, you are refuting the..."
"Yes. Please. I'm refuting."
"And you're not interested in paying the..."
"No. Thank you. Not interested in that."
"And you understand about the interest and penalties continuing during the..."
"Yup. Completely understand."
"Very good. Thank you, sir. You will hear from the IRS by US mail no later than sixty days from today's date after a full examina..."
"Which is what?"
"Excuse me, sir?"
"Today's date. What is it?"
(pause)
"You said From Today's Date and I was wondering what today's date was."
(pause)
"So I could compute when the sixty days would be up."
"The seventh of August is today's date."
"Thank you."
"Is there anything else I can help you with today?"
"Are those sixty days, calendar days or business days?"
"Ummm. Days. Calendar days."
"Thanks."
I'm still not sure if I spoke with a person or a computer at the IRS call center. She said ummm there at the end, which could have been programmed faux-humanity, but I think she was just a lackey reading from a script who was already mentally hanging up and forgot to hit the mute button when I asked one more parting question.
We got a letter in the US mail today from the Internal Revenue Service.
...After a review of your LLC's tax documents and related paperwork it was determined your tax return was posted on time. All previously levied fines, penalties, and interest amounts have been rescinded...
I should feel relieved. I don't. I am confused...about the whole thing. Was it a scam? A IRS-run old-school come-along? Hummm.
Rape Revenge
“A Spanish mother has taken revenge on the man who raped her 13-year-old daughter at knifepoint by dousing him in petrol and setting him alight. He died of his injuries in hospital on Friday.
“…he passed his victim’s mother in the street and allegedly taunted her about the attack. He is said to have called out 'How’s your daughter?' before heading into a crowded bar.
“Shortly after, the woman walked into the bar, poured a bottle of petrol over him and lit a match. She watched as the flames engulfed him, before walking out.
“The woman fled to Alicante, where she was arrested the same evening. When she appeared in court the next day in the town of Orihuela, she was cheered and clapped by a crowd who shouted 'Bravo!' and 'Well done!'”
I dunno man, I’m not a doctor, but from what I understand if it’s a legitimate fire the body has ways of shutting that whole thing down.
Re-blogged from too many people to backtrack (and I refuse to paste those ridiculous multiple-vertical-leftside-line-attribution things). If you happen to be the originator of this twist on Paul Akin's quote, tell me, I'll give you credit (like that'll happen).
Among Others by Jo Walton (☆☆☆+)
I enjoyed this book about a child of the 1970's who loves to read SF and chronicles in her diary all she does and says for about a year, which includes all the books she reads (the novel contains hundreds of book titles). Anyone who has read any SF in the last four decades will probably agree with most of the titles which the main character author loves/dislikes, and may even expand their 'find and read' list.
The biggest reason this book won the 2012 Nebula and Hugo awards was because it was constructed to speak directly to the judges (SF and Fantasy writers and avid fan-readers) all of whom connect with the main character because she "thinks like they did/do" when it comes to books in general and, specifically, Speculative Fiction.
Among Others is not an epic tale; it's a nice story. It's not amazingly-wonderfully crafted; but it has no flaws. It does not grasp the pit of your stomach and spin it with gusto...or even without gusto; while it does encourage the reader to suspend his belief and enjoy the ride. It—most importantly—is not a I-can't-put-it-down book. What it has is an interesting spin on the magic-is-real plot line.
It gets my 3-star-forgettable rating for trying so miserably hard to depict late-70's England/Wales that it loses every bit of suspense and tension when every action a character might take, or sentence a character might utter, was run through a would-that-really-happen filter before it hit the page. I'm willing to bump it to 3-star-plus because it lists titles which I'll put on my 'to read' list.
It didn't deserve the Nebula. Or the Hugo.
Patrick Rothfuss's The Wise Man's Fear deserved that honor (but wasn't nominated). I suspect there are huge machinations going on behind the SFWA and WSFS scenes that continually prevent the best of the best from ever being nominated. For all I know, Rothfuss didn't even want to be nominated.
It is probably just like presidential nominations. Was John Kerry the best Democrat of all the Democrats who could have beat G.W. Bush in 2004? Is Mitt Romney really the best Republican of all the Republicans to challenge Obama this year? Obviously there's more going on behind the curtain than we know about.
The biggest reason this book won the 2012 Nebula and Hugo awards was because it was constructed to speak directly to the judges (SF and Fantasy writers and avid fan-readers) all of whom connect with the main character because she "thinks like they did/do" when it comes to books in general and, specifically, Speculative Fiction.
It gets my 3-star-forgettable rating for trying so miserably hard to depict late-70's England/Wales that it loses every bit of suspense and tension when every action a character might take, or sentence a character might utter, was run through a would-that-really-happen filter before it hit the page. I'm willing to bump it to 3-star-plus because it lists titles which I'll put on my 'to read' list.
It didn't deserve the Nebula. Or the Hugo.
Patrick Rothfuss's The Wise Man's Fear deserved that honor (but wasn't nominated). I suspect there are huge machinations going on behind the SFWA and WSFS scenes that continually prevent the best of the best from ever being nominated. For all I know, Rothfuss didn't even want to be nominated.
It is probably just like presidential nominations. Was John Kerry the best Democrat of all the Democrats who could have beat G.W. Bush in 2004? Is Mitt Romney really the best Republican of all the Republicans to challenge Obama this year? Obviously there's more going on behind the curtain than we know about.
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