Excuse me…can you pay my taxes please?

I was listening to the news on the way to work this week and heard a story about Google, yes that Google. They have decided to assure that it keeps its name in the news with a little more silliness. Here's what they're doing. They're grossing up the salary of gay employees who have domestic partners to cover the taxes they have to pay because they aren't married. Basically, married folks get an added tax break because they're not taxed on the income they pay for benefits for their spouse and family (or something like that). So Google decided to increase the salary of their gay employees to cover this. What? This is foolish at best and blatant discrimination at worst. I understand they're trying to compete in a very volatile market and keep their best employees, but this is crazy. Why, you ask? Let me elucidate. This move puts them in a position where half of their employees can come in and ask for their salaries to be grossed up to cover taxes for one reason or another ant they will either do it or be sued for discrimination.

Seriously, this is reckless behavior. Let's say for instance, I work at Google and have a male roommate? I can now go into human resources and say, "Excuse me…can you pay my taxes please?" You laugh, but look at it from this perspective. Can you prove that he's not my partner? No? According to law you're not allowed to ask. So, I'd like my salary grossed up as well. Oh, that one doesn't work for you, how about the heterosexual couples who live together and for whatever reason they decided not to get married? They can walk into HR and say, "Excuse me…can you pay my taxes please?" Try and deny grossing up their salaries and wait for the discrimination lawsuit there. If you're giving this benefit to other unmarried couples then you'll have to give it to all unmarried couples? What? We can get married? Yes, but we're committed to one another and don't see a need for marriage. Yea, that's the same thing (on paper) as the homosexual couples have. Deny it and wait for the lawyers. As a matter of fact, if you're gonna do that then you may as well get ready for the couples with no kids? They don't get tax breaks because they don't have kids. They can walk into HR and say, "Excuse me…can you pay my taxes please?" Why not gross up their salary too? They didn't choose not to have kids, maybe he's sterile, or she's got medical issues. I want the tax break too!!! Try denying them and see how long it is before you go to court, or arbitration. While you're at it go ahead and gross up the single guy with no kids? Why doesn't he go in and say, "Excuse me…can you pay my taxes please?" He's not getting tax breaks for being married; gay; having kids; or cohabitating. So let's just gross his salary up to compensate for the marriage he has yet to experience, the kids he doesn't have and the gay/straight lover that hasn't moved in yet?

When does this foolishness end? The laws are on the books, deal with them and move on. If you don't like the laws that are in place, then elect legislators who will change them to what you do like, it's the backbone of democracy. I'm sick of seeing story after story where folks don't like the rules so they do what they want to do and cry foul when the bet pinched. Rules are made for you and you and you too. If you don't like them, then work to change them, stop trying to get around them. Google, and every other employer who skirts tax law like this ought to be fined heavily. Subverting federal tax laws for recruiting purposes is thumbing their noses at the establishment and should not be tolerated. If this is allowed to stand, it's only a matter of time before I walk into my HR office and say, "Excuse me…can you pay my taxes please?"

It's Just My Opinion, but I'm Not Wrong!!!

My Prom Date…NOT!

I just read an article about a high school in Mississippi that cancelled their prom rather than allow an openly gay couple attend and have one of them wear a tux and play the role of a man. This 18 year old young lady had a girlfriend who was a sophomore at the same high school where she attended and they have an openly gay relationship inclusive kissing, making out, etc and have no reason to hide their affection for one another. After reading the article and watching the story on one of the news channels I found it very strange that no one was addressing several glaring issues that I saw as I learned of it.

As one of my coworkers and I discussed this situation when she brought it to my attention, we both said the same thing. "There's more to this than meets the eye." The news story said that she'd asked the school if she could bring her girlfriend to the prom as her date. What school has students clearing their dates through the administration prior to bringing them to the prom? The mere fact that she asked says that both she feels that what she wanted to do was wrong and she needed to get permission to do so. Or she had a desire to cause a stir and controversy by presenting this issue for consideration. As soon as I found that the ACLU was involved I made the statement that they'd probably put her up to this just to grab some headlines.

Then I read people making statements like, "…what's next; outlawing interracial dating at the prom?" I'm so sick of folks comparing ethnicity to sexual PREFERENCE. I don't care if you're gay, straight, bisexual or trisexual; do what you do. But stop trying to drag me into your battles because of my skin color. Let's clarify something here. If you're homosexual (LGBT or whatever you want to be called this week) and you walk into a room no one knows, or needs to know, your sexual preference. They won't know unless you CHOOSE to make it known. When I walk into a room, everyone with the sense of sight knows I'm a black man whether I say it or not, whether I want them to know or not. My point is this, heterosexuals don't run around throwing up in other folks faces that they're heterosexual, I'd venture to say that a lot of homosexuals don't either. However, should you choose to, deal with what comes with the revelation you share.

I wouldn't have cancelled the prom if I were an administrator at this school or in this district. Nor would I have entertained the notion of changing the rules that were in place at the school. The young lady had a choice, she made it and she would have had to deal with it. Everyone reading this had at least a couple of groups of girls who went to prom together as a group. They didn't ask anyone for permission to do what they did, this girl was trying to cause a commotion and she should have been left to deal with the quandary she put herself and her girlfriend in. The prom would have and should have gone on without her and her date. I won't even get into the fact that she was 18 and her girlfriend was either 15 or 16. Hmmm…in most states that's illegal. Guess there are some things that are allowed in Mississippi that this girl doesn't have issue with and she's happy to take advantage of.

It's Just My Opinion, But I'm Not Wrong.