We all hate taxes - But as we all know, if there is two things we can be sure about life is death and TAXES. Here are 11 facts about taxes to make your day:
1. In 1913 the U.S. federal tax code was four hundred pages long. In 2010 it was 70,000 pages.
2. 2. Roman Emperor Vespasian's taxed urine in the 1st century AD. It was used as a source of ammonia for washing clothes.
3. 3. In 1691 England taxed the number of windows you could have on your house. That 1691 window tax led to people closing up their windows and eventually led to health problems. Thus, the tax was repealed in 1851 over a century and a half later.
4. 4. Russian Emperor Peter the grey taxed beards to encourage men to sport a clean-shaven look as this was popular in Western Europe at the time. Peter the Great introduced a beard tax after embarking upon what he called a grand embassy across Europe to observe more about Western cultures and processes. Peter came back with a number of reforms designed to bring Russia up to speed and one of those reforms impacted facial hair. The Tsar noted that modern Western Europeans eschewed beards and he wanted to emulate the trend within his own borders.
5. Americans spend nearly $30 billion dollars every year on their taxes.
6. Who had the bright idea for taxes? Apparently, it was thanks to Horace. We can trace documented records of taxation all the way back to ancient Egypt. Sometime around 3000 to 2,800 BCE apparently, there was a biennial event called the following of Horus when the Pharaoh went around collecting taxes in his dual roles as head of state and living incarnation of the god Horus. Taxation has even described in the Bible when Joseph tells the people of Egypt to give a fifth of their crops to Pharaoh.
7. People rioted because Whiskey was taxed. Fans of the Broadway musical Hamilton probably remembers the line “imagine what going to happen when you try to tax our whiskey”. So, what happened was the Whiskey Rebellion which was primarily due to attacks at ADM imposed on you guessed it -whiskey. As you might imagine people were extremely unhappy about it especially small producers of whiskey who because of the way the tax was structured had to pay 9 cents per gallon in taxes. While larger producers were able to get as low as six cents, some things never change. Violence quickly broke out tax officers were assaulted and tarred and feathered for trying to do their jobs and several people were killed during riots. The rebellion was eventually quashed in 1794 and the whiskey tax remained in effect until 1802 when Thomas Jefferson repealed it.
8. In1836 a year when the U.S. federal government had a tax surplus in the name hood of 30 million dollars. Congress gave most money back to the states and each state was able to decide how to handle it. Maine chose to give back to the people which meant that every single resident received a whopping $2. A woman named Salome sellers used her money to buy a pair of fancy candlesticks. As she told the New York Tribune in 1902 when she was about to turn 101 years old “many people put their share of the surplus into flimsy finery but I bought something that would keep to remember those good times by today those surplus sticks are in a museum it's a tax history fun.”
9. How about a special hat tax? From 1784 to 1811, British citizens had to pay a tax on their hats. To prove they paid the tax a stamp was pasted inside of the Hat. If the Hat police caught you wearing a stamp 'less hat he'd be hit with a hefty fine. Seems extreme, but it gets worse. In 1798 a man named John Collins was caught using a printing press to forge the stamps which would allow people to skirt the tax - he was sentenced to death.
10. The Tax Court - a court of law dedicated to tax related disputes and issues does occasionally find in favor of some pretty unusual claims. For example, a story is told of a professional bodybuilder who successfully claimed his supply of body oils as a professional necessity. However, the court wasn't a total pushover. He also tried to claim buffalo meat and vitamin supplements.
11. The IRS is a notorious stickler for on-time filing, which no one knows better than Jack Swigert, the command module pilot for Apollo 13, who joined the crew at the last minute. He was mid-mission when he realized he would miss the April 15th deadline. Therefore, he radioed Houston to request an extension. Although the ground crew laughed at what they presumed was a joke, Swaggart was dead serious. According to NASA transcripts, he said, " Hey, listen, it isn't too funny. Things happened fast down there, and I do need an extension. I didn't get mine filed, and this is serious. This sort of thing happens more often than you might expect. In 2005, NASA astronaut Leroy Chiao commanded the tenth expedition to the International Space Station when Tax Day reared its ugly head. He prevailed upon his sister and accountant to file an extension on his behalf, and he got right on it when he returned to Earth on April 24th.
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