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Morbidly rich are different — they don’t pay taxes

It’s one week until tax day. For most Americans it’s time to pay the piper for the income they’ve well-earned making a living for basic expenses like housing and food. Except for the ultrawealthy. Megabillionaires and their ilk pay...nothing. There are many ways to evade taxes, but last year ProPublica revealed the go-to tactic, which is so simple, you don’t have to be a certified public accountant to understand it. The first step for them is to buy an asset. Something big. Something worth enough in value to cover a rich family’s personal expenses for the year — $50 ...

Give Minnesotans some tax relief

The Republicans in the Minnesota Senate are pushing for a big tax cut for taxpayers, but members of DFL in the Legislature are not buying it. The Senate passed an $8.4 billion tax cut bill Thursday. Legislative leaders, however, realize that the tax plan could look very different when the final version emerges. But Republicans Sen. Gary Dahms of Redwood Falls are not giving up. He is a big supporter of the bill. “After years of over taxation, Minnesotans deserve permanent ongoing tax relief,” he said in a statement. “We eliminate the unfair double tax on Social Security and cut ...

Finger-pointing is not a solution to rising gas prices

On Wednesday, House Democrats grilled oil executives once more on Capitol Hill over rising gas prices. It was the typical finger-pointing circus that has been going on since the prices at the pumps have soared. One Democrat accused the oil execs of “ripping off the American people” and putting profits in front of increasing production. “We do not control the market price of crude oil or natural gas, nor of refined products like gasoline and diesel fuel, and we have no tolerance for gouging,” said Chevron CEO Michael Wirth. However, in the same hearing, the oil execs said ...

Action needed over soaring fertilizer prices

On Tuesday, Rep. Michelle Fischbach joined 96 of her U.S. House colleagues on signing a letter to President Joe Biden demanding action on fertilizer prices. Fertilizer prices have soared 300% since last year. Some of that increase is due to supply chain issues. But now the Russia-Ukraine war is boosting that increase. Of course, this is all bad news for farmers everywhere, including in southwest Minnesota. “Last month, fertilizer reached the highest price ever recorded, and with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, these prices are only going to get worse. I hear from farmers across ...

Answer the call for help

According to the U.S. Fire Administration, 70% of rural community fire departments in the nation are staffed by volunteers. In checking other sources, we found that about 53% of rural medical emergency services are staffed by volunteers. During the months of February and March, Independent reporters and editors traveled the region to visit fire halls from Lake Benton to Slayton, and Minneota to Cottonwood. It was a very revealing assignment. Sixteen volunteers —  fire chiefs, firefighters, ambulance drivers, EMTs and a deputy — told their stories. The end result was a 32-page ...

Inflation solution won’t come easy

President Joe Biden announced Thursday he is going to start releasing a million barrels of oil per day from the nation’s strategic petroleum preserve for the next six months to control spiking energy costs. The addition to the nation’s fuel supply should impact the price at the pump, which is contributing mightily to the nation’s inflation problem. This is a good first step on the way to taming inflation, but it isn’t a fix-it. Inflation is a complex problem with a multitude of factors and it is not going to be solved easily. Republicans have their own ideas about gas prices, ...