I am a die hard BeeGees fan and with the tragedies the family has suffered, I have been thinking more about them lately. In fact, it was learning that Barry Gibb has dual citizenship (the US and England) that prompted this post. I have been thinking about dual citizenship. Dual citizenship is being the citizen of two countries at one time. Many countries allow this. The US has no laws specifically prohibiting dual citizenship. But I think it should have. Yes, I think Barry should have to give up his British citizenship if he wants to keep his US citizenship. He should choose one or the other, but should not be allowed both.
A person may be a citizen of the US and another country if his parents are US citizens and he is born in a foreign country. And if two foreign nationals have a kid in the US, that kid automatically gets US citizenship. (This should not be allowed if the parents are illegally in this country when the child is born!) Also a US citizen can obtain dual citizenship by marrying a foreign national. Only if a US citizen actually applies for citizenship somewhere else does he risk losing his US citizenship.
I see some real problems with dual citizenship. How can a person pledge allegiance to two countries and maintain such allegiance in the event the interests of those two countries should be in conflict? This is no place for fence straddling. You are either an American or you are not.
Monday, December 3, 2012
Play Ball
I just found out I have to pay a Spring Training and Cactus League baseball tax to rent a car in Arizona. This is about $8 bucks on a small car for five days. This merely adds to the already outrageous taxes on car rentals in AZ. Who does this ball tax benefit? The cost of a seat at a spring training or Cactus League game is pretty high for the average working schmuck. (I think I read it is now up to about thirty bucks to sit on the grass in some stadiums!) So he probably cannot afford to go anyway.
Okay, baseball brings in lots of money to the state and private businesses in AZ. Lots of tourists visit there to see games. But my guess is very little of that actually benefits most Arizonians. If a restaurant gets more business due to increased tourism, will it pay its waiter or other worker better? Are the tips he gets going to make a huge increase in his take home pay? Perhaps in some venues but certainly not in most, although I am sure the waiter can use anything extra he gets. Is the guy cleaning the stadiums going to make more money? I doubt it, although you might argue he would not have a job at all if there were no tourists to come to the games. That would not hold water, though because the tourists come to see the games and do not come because they benefit by the tax. In other words, the tourists would be there regardless of the tax and so the tax does not provide the person cleaning the stadium with a job. He would be needed anyway.
So tourists are picking up the tab for a private enterprise--Major League Baseball in AZ. How is this tax levied? Is it just on certain items like car rentals, or is it included on most things? Is everyone paying it or mostly just tourists and people visiting AZ on business? I don't know. I like baseball but think it should pay for itself like most businesses have to do. The Cactus League clubs, like most other major league clubs, seem intent on pricing themselves out of reach of the average person. Who, besides players, owners and investors benefit from that extra money? I have a feeling it is not anyone I know. But of course, this is private enterprise so whatever people are willing to pay determines price. But for the state to add a tax to an already too high cost of a game charged by the clubs, seems like gouging. Just where does the income earned by the state via this tax go? It may be that it is put to really good use, say, education or securing the border. That would certainly make the tax seem less odious. If anyone can tell me, I would like to know. It seems to me there could be other ways to encourage baseball in AZ besides this tax. I realize you have to spend money to make money and I have no problem with that as long as everyone who spends it is also making it.
Here is a article on another aspect of baseball and taxes: http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/the-jock-tax/
Okay, baseball brings in lots of money to the state and private businesses in AZ. Lots of tourists visit there to see games. But my guess is very little of that actually benefits most Arizonians. If a restaurant gets more business due to increased tourism, will it pay its waiter or other worker better? Are the tips he gets going to make a huge increase in his take home pay? Perhaps in some venues but certainly not in most, although I am sure the waiter can use anything extra he gets. Is the guy cleaning the stadiums going to make more money? I doubt it, although you might argue he would not have a job at all if there were no tourists to come to the games. That would not hold water, though because the tourists come to see the games and do not come because they benefit by the tax. In other words, the tourists would be there regardless of the tax and so the tax does not provide the person cleaning the stadium with a job. He would be needed anyway.
So tourists are picking up the tab for a private enterprise--Major League Baseball in AZ. How is this tax levied? Is it just on certain items like car rentals, or is it included on most things? Is everyone paying it or mostly just tourists and people visiting AZ on business? I don't know. I like baseball but think it should pay for itself like most businesses have to do. The Cactus League clubs, like most other major league clubs, seem intent on pricing themselves out of reach of the average person. Who, besides players, owners and investors benefit from that extra money? I have a feeling it is not anyone I know. But of course, this is private enterprise so whatever people are willing to pay determines price. But for the state to add a tax to an already too high cost of a game charged by the clubs, seems like gouging. Just where does the income earned by the state via this tax go? It may be that it is put to really good use, say, education or securing the border. That would certainly make the tax seem less odious. If anyone can tell me, I would like to know. It seems to me there could be other ways to encourage baseball in AZ besides this tax. I realize you have to spend money to make money and I have no problem with that as long as everyone who spends it is also making it.
Here is a article on another aspect of baseball and taxes: http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/the-jock-tax/
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