Obama's Christmas Tree Tax

[OnePimpTiger]

Obama's Christmas Tree Tax

President Obama’s Agriculture Department today announced that it will impose a new 15-cent charge on all fresh Christmas trees—the Christmas Tree Tax—to support a new Federal program to improve the image and marketing of Christmas trees.

In the Federal Register of November 8, 2011, Acting Administrator of Agricultural Marketing David R. Shipman announced that the Secretary of Agriculture will appoint a Christmas Tree Promotion Board. The purpose of the Board is to run a “program of promotion, research, evaluation, and information designed to strengthen the Christmas tree industry’s position in the marketplace; maintain and expend existing markets for Christmas trees; and to carry out programs, plans, and projects designed to provide maximum benefits to the Christmas tree industry” (7 CFR 1214.46(n)). And the program of “information” is to include efforts to “enhance the image of Christmas trees and the Christmas tree industry in the United States” (7 CFR 1214.10).

First off, really? Seriously? I thought this was a mock story at first...

Secondly, I had just read this story earlier:

Atheists Angry After Wis. Gov. Changes ‘Holiday’ Tree Back to ‘Christmas’ Tree

On Monday, Walker decided that he wanted to shake things up a bit. Rather than following recent tradition and referring to the (Christmas) tree that is placed in the Wisconsin’s Capitol Rotunda as a “holiday tree,” he’s changing course. For the past 25 years, lawmakers have referred to the evergreen that is decorated with ornaments and a star with this benign, uncategorized reference. Now, Walker plans to, once again, call the tree what it is — a Christmas tree...

...Not everyone agrees, though. The infamous Freedom From Religion Foundation, a group of atheists and “freethinkers,” doesn’t plan to let the change go unnoticed. Annie Laurie Gaylor, the group’s president, called the decision both rude and insensitive to non-Christians. Gaylor said:

“The reason that it was turned into a holiday tree was to avoid this connotation that the governor chooses one religion over another. It’s essentially a discourtesy by the governor to announce that. He intends that to be a slight and a snub to non-Christians, otherwise he would not do it.”

So Gov. Walker simply refers to it as a Christmas tree and people get upset...but the Obamastration is putting a tax in place to “enhance the image of Christmas trees and the Christmas tree industry in the United States." Are we going to hear even more and louder cries about this, as you would expect?

[mrveggieman]

This is really a non issue. The gov't finding new ways to tax people. Regardles of who's in office where is the surprise in that? Also getting bent out of shape over someone calling a holiday tree a christmas tree? Really? C'mon everyone and their mama knows why the tree is being put up in the first place regardless if it is called a christmas tree or not. That's like crying over not putting down the toilet seat. People should worry about religious bigotry, hatred and intollerance and not silly things like trees. SMH.

[tutall]

This is really a non issue. The gov't finding new ways to tax people. Regardles of who's in office where is the surprise in that? Also getting bent out of shape over someone calling a holiday tree a christmas tree? Really? C'mon everyone and their mama knows why the tree is being put up in the first place regardless if it is called a christmas tree or not. That's like crying over not putting down the toilet seat. People should worry about religious bigotry, hatred and intollerance and not silly things like trees. SMH.

Didnt Obama promise lower or no raises in taxes to the middle class? Or is the economy really bad enough only the uber wealthy can afford christmas... AHEM... Holiday trees this year

[texansrangerfan73]

TAX em & put that money back into growing more Christmas trees & trees in general afterall we ALL use the oxygen they produce right?

[sanfran22]

Didnt Obama promise lower or no raises in taxes to the middle class? Or is the economy really bad enough only the uber wealthy can afford christmas... AHEM... Holiday trees this year

lol, for sure...

[mrveggieman]

Didnt Obama promise lower or no raises in taxes to the middle class? Or is the economy really bad enough only the uber wealthy can afford christmas... AHEM... Holiday trees this year

I'm sure that he did but every politician including the beloved bushes have promised not to raise taxes then go back and raise taxes after getting elected. Regardless of who the politician is as soon as he/she promises not to raise or possibly even lower taxes I tune them out because we all know that is one thing that no politician can guarantee.

[sanfran22]

I'm sure that he did but every politician including the beloved bushes have promised not to raise taxes then go back and raise taxes after getting elected. Regardless of who the politician is as soon as he/she promises not to raise or possibly even lower taxes I tune them out because we all know that is one thing that no politician can guarantee.

I guess that makes it ok.....

[duane1969]

Didnt Obama promise lower or no raises in taxes to the middle class? Or is the economy really bad enough only the uber wealthy can afford christmas... AHEM... Holiday trees this year

Yes he did promise that (along with alot of other lies and double-talk), and he will do his best to stick to not directly raising taxes on the middle class, but he and his cronies are smart enough to realize that their constituents have drank so much of the Kool-Aid that everything but their income can be taxed and they will not complain.

The reality of the matter is that a liberal controlled government will tax everything that they can before one red cent is cut from the budget and their pet entitlement programs. History proves that liberals often talk about cutting taxes, but rarely do they do anything but raise them or create new ones.

[Star_Cards]

this does sound like an onion story. I'll say that I wasn't aware that the christmas tree industry needed any help in promotion. Christmas seems to be doing just fine from what I can tell and that tends to sell trees. This won't effect me as I don't put up a christmas tree and if I did it wouldn't be a real tree more than likely.

This tax seems pretty absurd to me. Christmas is the dominant religious holiday or the year by far. People either set one up or not. I guess it could maybe sway people to buy real as opposed to fake, but then what about the fake tree industry? Is the thinking that fresh trees are all american grown and the fake trees are probably produced on foreign soil and that in return would help american jobs if more fresh trees where sold?

[Star_Cards]

on the other article, as an atheist, I'm not offended if they call a tree christmas or holiday. I'm also not offended that they would put one up with everyone knowing that the tree, whatever it is called, is rooted in the celebration of a christian holiday. That said I wouldn't have an issue if anyone else would want any other sort of religious symbol for a major holiday placed in the same area. I see that differently than how I mostly see religion in politics because it's more of an observance of a culture rather than trying to legislate with religion laws or codes.