Stop referring to Trump as a billionaire

Dear New York Times and every other media outlet,

Please stop referring to Donald J. Trump as a billionaire or "billionaire Donald J. Trump." You, and we, the public, have no idea if Trump is a billionaire. And considering the amount of debt he has, and the hundreds of millions of dollars he has lost over the years, it is highly likely he is not a billionaire. 

Sure, Trump would like us to believe he is a billionaire.

And I would like people to believe I am really 5'6". 

But we have no way of knowing if Trump is a billionaire as he refuses to release his tax returns. 

So please, news organizations, cable channels, and bloggers, stop referring to Trump as a billionaire. Refer to him as just a businessman or a real estate developer (or President, if you must). And if he complains, say you'd be happy to re-apply the descriptor "billionaire" -- as soon as he provides the last 8 years worth of his Federal tax returns. 

When the obvious, easy, or simple solution isn't

I like to think of myself as a rational, logical being. Someone who values facts over fiction or emotion. Who goes looking for the truth -- and the most obvious or straightforward or simplest solution to a problem.

I'd like to think that I am not alone. But increasingly, I feel like I am alone. A Vulcan among... Earthlings. And I simply don't understand (well, I do, but I don't) the following.

Guns. They are a problem. A big problem. Personally, I think ownership should be highly restricted, as gun ownership is in the UK. That isn't going to happen here in the good ole U.S. of A. But why can't we at least mandate background checks, 24-hour waiting periods, strict (low) limits on ammunition, and severely restrict the ownership of weapons that inflict mass destruction? The only arguments against doing these highly logical things, which, long ago even the NRA supported, is purely political -- and irrational (or emotional).

Healthcare. Everyone should have it. And it should be simple to get and to keep and to administrate. This is not a fantasy. It is totally doable. Except for politics and an irrational fear of government or governance.

Taxes. You like having drivable roads, safe bridges and tunnels, good schools, your mail delivered to your door (or mailbox or post box)? You want to feel protected in case of attack, be it by man, things man-made, or nature's fury? You need to pay taxes. As my late father, a registered Republican, used to say, "If everyone paid their taxes, we'd pay less in taxes." So true.

But the tax code is so frickin' complicated, and changes every year, and there are so many loopholes, it's no wonder people don't like taxes -- and think they are unfair. Is it so hard to come up with a simplified system where everyone pays his or her fair share? (Apparently the answer is "yes." Not because it isn't possible to create such a system but because it is politically impossible to implement such a system.)

Decent-paying part-time work. It's been over 40 years now since Women's Liberation movement and women began entering the workforce in large numbers. And yet the government and business have done very little to accommodate, aid, promote or recognize the changing nature of families or the reality that many (most?) women now work, or want or need to work.

What happened to flexible hours? Telecommuting? Job sharing? Why haven't more (most) businesses created part-time tracks for women and men, or made it easy(ier) for employees to telecommute or work flexible hours?

Btw, I'm talking for men and women here. It's been 40 years, people. We are losing too many good, smart women -- mainly moms (and daughters of aging parents) -- who want to work but don't want to or can't work 50 hours a week at a job an hour or more away. And too often those jobs barely pay for childcare. It shouldn't, and needn't, be this way.

Childcare. Good help shouldn't be so hard, or expensive, to find. Governments, schools, and businesses need to do more to help working families by providing safe, affordable places for children to go after school and during school holidays when or if their parents are working. I know good, or decent, affordable childcare exists in some places, but it needs to be universal.

Climate Change (the condition previously known as Global Warming). The climate has been changing. And not for the better. Things have been heating up (though it often doesn't feel like that here in the Northeast). And we are losing land and lives.

And we humans are not helping. Indeed, we are the problem. Or a big part of it. But we could be the solution. Except most of us are too selfish or self-centered to give up our SUVs and gas-guzzling/emissions spewing vehicles, or to drive less, or to live in smaller houses closer to one another, or reduce our consumption of products that pollute the environment.

Sadly, if everyone just did a little bit -- drove more fuel-efficient cars, turned down the AC just a bit, used energy-saving light bulbs and remembered to turn off the lights and their TVs and other things when not in use, re-used and recycled -- we could slow down climate change.

I could go on, but I won't. I need to conserve my energy.

There has got to be an easier way (a taxpayer's lament)

I don't know about the rest of you, but I have never found tax time a time to party -- with or without my accountants. Drink, yes; party, no. Even when I've gotten a refund (which would not be this year). That said, I have no doubt that thousands of accountants will be partying come tomorrow -- and hopefully not posting those videos to YouTube.



Don't get me wrong, I am all for paying taxes (love me good schools, good roads, safe bridges and tunnels -- unnecessary wars and weapons? not so much). But there has got to be an easier, less expensive way to do it. (Flat tax? Consumption tax?)

Btw, I think the New York Times's Eduardo Porter spoke for many of us when he wrote that the United States had "what must be the most inefficient, mind-bogglingly complex tax system known to man."

And Heaven -- or an accountant -- help you if you are a U.S. citizen living abroad: "Alone among the citizens of the developed world, Americans have the same tax-filing and tax-payment responsibilities whether or not they reside in the United States. American expatriates still have to file the annual Form 1040, and all the documentation that goes with it — even though most already pay taxes in their countries of residence." So much for the spouse and I spending a year or three abroad!

Anyway, here's to another tax day come and gone. Hope you (unlike us) got a big refund!

David Letterman, Roman Polanski, health care reform, taxes

I've got a lot on my mind, but since brevity is the soul of wit (to quote Shakespeare's Polonius, who also said "neither a borrower nor a lender be," though I prefer the Skipper's version), I shall be brief.

David Letterman. The head of the company -- the boss -- likes to sleep with interns, personal assistants, and production assistants. Shocking. Not. Did we learn NOTHING from Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky, people?! I'm not condoning Letterman having sex with people who report to him -- co-workers, fine, but direct reports? Not such a bright idea, for either party. Granted, screwing staff members isn't a crime (unless it was sexual harassment, which is doubtful -- the ladies love Dave) and supposedly all of Letterman's canoodling took place before he was married (uh huh). And what company hasn't had its share of office romances? But Letterman's inability to keep his hands off the merchandise (even when the merchandise, no doubt, like Monica Lewinsky, did its best to get into Dave's World Wide Pants on a regular basis) is a problem, albeit mostly for the employees who did not reap the benefits of sleeping with Dave, which apparently carried all sort of perks, including higher pay. Bottom line: Letterman thought with this dick. Like millions (billions) of other guys. And he got caught. This is not news. Except that it's David Letterman, darling of the media. Next.

Roman Polanski. The guy drugged and raped a 13-year-old girl, thought he was going to get a soft sentence (probation -- though I would have opted for castration), then fled the country when he felt the judge was going to renege and send him to prison. Instead of paying for his crime -- and make no mistake, it was a crime -- he's been free and living it up in Europe for over 30 years. Now he's been arrested, awaiting extradition to the U.S. in Switzerland, and a lot of people think he should be set free. WTF?! If this guy was Roman Plumberski, his ass would have been incarcerated YEARS ago. Disgusting. Polanski should be sent back to the United States, in economy (if not the cargo hold), and tried before a judge. NO ONE is above the law. Next. [UPDATED: Just read that Polanski lost his bid to be released -- via the Associated Press/NYT. Progress.]

Health care. What the heck is wrong with providing or ensuring that all Americans have decent health care? I don't get it. I don't know about you but my private health insurance is mediocre at best, i.e., costs my family a small fortune, doesn't cover much, and doesn't give me access to a lot of doctors. (Also, someone please explain to me why my healthy little family of three pays the same as a family of six.) And this is not an HMO but a much more expensive, more "open" option. Also, it is disgusting that our current system does not pay for or encourage or reward prevention (i.e., being healthy), which is much less expensive than the alternative. Btw, I am not necessarily advocating a single-payer public option, though wouldn't it be a lot simpler/more cost effective? Anyway, instead of me rambling on (brevity, brevity), please to be reading Roger Cohen's short Op-Ed on the topic, which I found to be quite thought provoking. [UPDATED: And now a word from Canada, via the Denver Post.]

Taxes. And while we are fixing things that are broken, can someone please fix our tax system? I just received our tax return, and it was, like, 150 pages. WTF?! We like our accountants, but seriously, there has got to be a better, less expensive, less arduous way to pay taxes.

That is all.

Got a gripe, about any of the above or something else? Leave me a comment. (NOTE: Inappropriate comments will be deleted.)