Jim doesn’t make much money. He’s a good man, has a nice family with three kids. Jim is a manager at a fast food restaurant, and while he really likes his work, it barely pays enough for his family to scrape by.
But this year, the franchise gave out a special bonus to some of the managers in their company, and Jim was blessed to be the recipient of an unexpected $1,500. Jim was thrilled because, for years, he had wanted to take his family to Disney World. He had many fond memories of a childhood visit and wanted his kids to “experience the magic.” They started making plans, and the whole family began counting down the days!
While the vacation would cost a little more than the bonus, they decided that family time was so important that they were going to make it work. But then, with less than three weeks before the big trip, disaster struck. Jim was coming home from work and let his car drift off the shoulder. He recovered, but not before he had damaged his car so much that it had to be towed to the local garage. There was some damage to the wheel, tire, and something called a tie rod. The estimate, including the tow, was over $1,200. It looked like Disney was off the table.
When he told his wife, she was as devastated as he was. Neither of them wanted to tell the kids. Then she had an idea.
A friend of hers, she explained, had unexpected medical bills and set up an online fundraiser. People were happy to donate, and most of their bills were covered. Jim argued that repair of the car was a necessary expense, and the bonus would cover the cost. His wife, however, soon convinced him that they shouldn’t have to take the bonus and spend it on normal expenses. They could have their cake and eat it too!
Jim went along. With help from his wife, they posted a hard-luck story about how they really needed the car so Jim could get to work, and so they could buy groceries for their three small children. It was very touching, actually, and soon friends and neighbors began to chip in. In just a few days, Jim had the exact amount needed for the repair. As promised, all the money raised went to repair the car, leaving the bonus money untouched. The family then packed up the repaired car and headed to Disney World. And everyone lived happily ever after. Except for the neighbors, who soon discovered what had happened.
– The End –
The Moral of the Story
Gwinnett County collects tax revenue which they are required to spend to keep the County running. Paying for roads and infrastructure, EMS, and a host of other necessary services. But sometimes the County decides they would rather take some of that money and go to Disney World pay for homeless people to live in extended stay motels, or enjoy catered dinners or a nice retreat instead of repairing a road.
County politicians know that if they vote to raise our taxes, you could vote them out of office. So they came up with a scheme to get THE TAXPAYERS to vote for our own tax increase. And we have been falling for it ever since.
Money they collect from a tax that WE voted for is money that they don’t have to take from their general fund and use for roads, so they get to spend the ‘regular’ tax money somewhere else. Like employee bonuses, social programs, and busses that nobody rides.
Speaking of busses – why not have a SPLOST for a bus service that loses millions of dollars a year? Because they know it wouldn’t pass. If they say it is for roads, they know we will fall for it, and people who are barely getting by will have to pay more for everything – even groceries. And the County can continue to throw money under the bus.
The county says that as much as 40% of the SPLOST money comes from outside the County, but when all the surrounding Counties also have a SPLOST it doesn’t matter – we pay the higher tax no matter where we shop. Why not have Gwinnett as a tax haven and let our citizens keep their money?
We almost never get the chance to vote to LOWER our taxes, but that is exactly what the county is giving us on the 2022 ballot. I hope we all take advantage of the opportunity and vote ‘NO’ on SPLOST.
NOTE: If you search for Gwinnett SPLOST 2022, all you will find are pro-SPLOST sites. It is almost like those in power in the County, including the Chamber, are colluding with big tech to ensure they have their Disney World vacation.