Reply #8: Please, riddle me this someone...

[Isome]

Why the complaints about Reuben Studdard endorsing the effort? His celebrity, or lack of it, notwithstanding, he's entitled to offer his name recognition to any political cause he chooses. Not being an Alabamian, but subjected to much of Alabama's television programming, I understand Riley's belief in raising taxes as a part of the solution to the problem. In my view, he's gone out of his way to target entities with the best ability to pay them.

His plan, as I understand it, consists of tax hikes that would go towards education, healthcare and social programs. It would raise the taxes on corporations (that we already know don't pay their fair share), the property taxes for many companies, and farmerland owners (79% of the farms in Alabama would be exempt).

Critics of the plan say things like:

• SouthTrust Corp. CEO Wallace Malone, said "Riley’s tax package is too large"...
  
  
• Bob Riley’s tax plan shows Alfa Companies alone will pay $9 million in increased taxes annually, convincing evidence that revenue paid by Alabama’s insurance industry will increase
  
  
• Max W. Runge calculated that 497 of the state's 41,384 farms have more than 2,000 acres, and would be affected by the changes in current-use assessments. His final analysis was, "The bigger farms are going to pay more, and the ones that are over 2,000 acres -- it's really going to hit them hard because they don't get that current use."

I hear the loudest criticisms coming from the upper echelons of business. When they start squealing, it usually comes out in the end that there's nothing unfair going on, they just didn't want to do what the little guy does all the time: tighten his belt and pay the damn taxes due!