THE WEIRS TIMES, Thursday, April 22, 2010
A
brendan@weirs.com
inNEW HAMP SHI R E
FOOL
*
Live Free
*A FLATLANDER’S OBSERVATIONS ON LIFE
ONE HUNDRED PERCENT HONEST
by Brendan Smith
Weirs Times Editor
I’ve always considered
myself to be an honest guy; A law-abiding citizen. I may not always agree
with all the laws but I’ve always gone along with them. I bought a scratch ticket
at the local convenience store the other day. The ticket cost a dollar. It was called “Lotta Cash” and it promised just that. All I had to do was scratch off the silver dust under each of the nine squares on the ticket. If three of them matched -only three - I could win as much as $2,000. Not a bad payday if you can get it. I scratched that ticket
with wild anticipation; each movement up and down with my dime eras- ing the dust like I was unearthing an ancient Egyptian sarcophagus. First one, then two and
soon enough, all nine of the squares. Well, I couldn’t believe
my eyes. I had matched three squares.
What are the odds? I held my breath, my
heart beating at a frantic rate, and scratched that last square to see what my prizes might be. I won $2.00. I checked it again to be
sure.
Yep……$2.00. With my quick grasp of
math I figured that out to mean that I had actually, after my initial investment, won $1.00. Not bad for ten seconds
work.
That’s $360 an hour. Actually it would only be
$324 an hour. After I pay my ten percent to the State of New Hampshire. If you didn’t know, in
New Hampshire you must now pay a ten percent tax on all the money you win. All of it!! If you go to the track and
bet $2 on a horse that’s 2-1, you’ll walk away with six dollars, a four-dollar profit. Forty cents to the state please. Go to Bingo and win a game that pays $80. The Governor wants $8 from you. Still, it’s hard for them
to keep a handle on how much you actually win. If you win enough where you have to pay a Federal Tax, then the state will be notified and you’ll have to cough up another ten percent. If you don’t win enough to be taxed by the Feds, there really won’t be any record of you winning anything. Still, the state is expecting you to be an honorable person and give them ten percent. That’s the New Hamp- shire way. That’s the law. I’m sure that there are
a few out there who will try to get away without paying that ten percent gambling tax and a few might even get away with
it. But no one will ever be able to accuse me of being dishonorable. Like I said, I’ve always been a law- abiding citizen and I follow all the laws, even if I might not like some of them. So, in the sense of fair play, I have written a check to the State of New Hampshire in the amount of ten cents to cover my scratch ticket winnings. I must admit it feels good
in a way. I know it’s only ten cents but I won’t have to be carrying that aw- ful burden around on my shoulders of being a law- breaker. There’ll be those out there who might win a dollar, or five or even ten who will dismiss with the wave of their hands the
fifty cents or dollar they are obligated to pay to the state by law. They may smile as if it means noth- ing, as if it is inconsequen- tial. Yet, deep down inside they’ll know. So, as I sign this check
and get ready to put it in the mail, I know that I’ll be able to sleep soundly at night. I wonder if I can write-off the forty-four cent stamp?
or Die.
5
SCOTT BUTTON
HORSESHOEING
SKILLED, DEPENDABLE, PUNCTUAL
CERTIFIED FARRIER
BY THE AMERICAN FARRIERS’ ASSOCIATION
NHFARRIER.COM
603-520-4095
Alton, NH
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