Make tax avoidance illegal

If you had the power to change one law, what would it be and why?

Many people use loopholes in the law to avoid paying taxes. By moving their funds offshore for instance or using accountants to hide their money, and filing tax returns with lots of expenses included so their tax charge is reduced. In this way poorer people on income tax, paying as they earn, can pay a higher proportion of their income in taxes than those who are richer than them.

Avoidance is legal, evasion is not. Quote:

Tax avoidance is the legitimate exploitation of tax loopholes to reduce the individual or business’ tax liability whereas tax evasion is the illegal evasion of taxes properly due.

So why do we allow this? Especially the most egregious examples of avoidance? Yes, there should be legitimate reasons to cover normal expenses, but surely we could cut down on loopholes. Maybe every country could have the same tax rates, so no one can get away with it. I understand some countries offer lower taxes to increase their income, but there might be other ways of doing this. I think it would be difficult but not impossible?

It can’t be right that about 80 men have more wealth when its added up than half the world’s population. In other words 80 people have about the same as 4,000,000,000 people! Once you look at it that way it’s not really fair is it?

A house with a studio attached

Write about your dream home.

I need more space. I could build a small studio on the side of my house if I had the money and planning permission. It would be somewhere that didn’t affect the fruit trees in the garden. I would move all my art equipment and works in. That would make more room for all the other things we collected over the years.

I’d also insulate it and add better windows and doors. Maybe underfloor heating.

My income is too low so this is all a pipe dream. Unless of course a Millionaire or Billionaire reads this and feels like making a generous donation? (or I might win the lottery). I would take over the empty house next door to offer accommodation for friends and family and make a gallery downstairs. Then I’d also add a lift to save my knees and hips that are starting to ache more and more x.

Hidden Coots

Blue footed, grey blue bodies, black heads with white blazes above their beaks. Not a good photo but my arm shakes too much so this was the best shot of the bunch!

The other birds which are similar have red blazes above their beaks, darker bodies, those are Moorhens. The photo was taken at Westport lake last weekend. I did think about going back today but I didn’t feel well enough on this grey, foggy, cold and drab day.

Photo from WordPress library.

Frodo portrait

Another digital portrait I did on the Sketchfu site. I’m quite pleased that I could use simple tools and create images like this it’s sketchy round the edges because you could only use set sizes of pens, there was no sliding scale of thickness. But there was a good pallette, opacity and transparency tools so I could blend colours to some extent. This is based on a photo of Frodo from the Lord of the Rings film. He is holding his sword Sting.

Tell everyone!

You get some great, amazingly fantastic news. What’s the first thing you do?

I want the world!

Another of my digital drawings

My background is that I come from a very talkative town, always willing to share our stories and jokes. I came to my current city over 40 years ago and found the residents were warm and friendly but had a different take on life.

That doesn’t stop me sharing news with everyone. Recently that’s been a lot of bad news but I’d love for it to be great news instead. I live in hope that I will be able to say one day that this is my news, it’s great, and I want everyone to know. After all if a trouble shared is a trouble halved, then maybe good news shared is amazing news doubled?

A Dragon for Chinese New Year

Just a sketch of a dragon using Artrage app. I tried to use metallic paints to give it a sheen. I have to say it didn’t turn out as neat as I would have liked but I’m using a stylus instead of my finger. It’s controllable but in fact I’m not used to using it that often. Anyway enjoy Chinese new year. X

Digital rose drawing

I used to draw at a website called Sketchfu before it closed. It had simple tools to draw with, no complicated applets, and consequently it was open to a large number of people.

Eventually it became a massive site and the owners lost interest in it. I was a moderator and had to deal with a lot of problems over the years I was there. I won’t go into details but it included bullying and inappropriate language and messages. There were a few of us that were allowed to remove inappropriate content but it was hard work. (I also moderated another site but did not disclose my role). When someone draws the same rude or racist image over, and over again for hours, but you are there deleting them as they appear, they eventually get fed up and stop. But if you admit you are a moderator you get a lot of stick, so I kept quiet. At one stage I was working in a full time job and coming home and doing four or five hours moderating!

Anyway I loved creating digital drawings, including portraits. I loved doing challenges. Someone would post a photo and we had to try and copy it. I’ve just found some of my old pieces so I might post a few of them over the next few days.

I don’t know where this came from?

It’s the sort of photo I’d take, but I don’t remember it? It might be something that’s on my phone from a WhatsApp post, so if it is apologies to the owner. I’ve posted this here because I’m a member of a group called the peeling paint appreciation society on Facebook. Some of their images are amazing. I do wonder if some have had the saturation and sharpness enhanced. I feel like I should look out for more interesting images.