Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Business is not EZ

As a part-owner of a business, I find it distressing that so many people think that business owners are greedy and "rich." We employ people in several states, Ohio included. Of each and every dollar of company revenue, 42.4 cents go to direct salaries, 16 cents to employee benefits, our overhead (taxes and cost of doing business) averages about 37.9 cents on every dollar (higher in Ohio, lower in Texas.) On average, that leaves about 3.7 cents of every dollar in "profit." From that 3.7 cents we have to maintain and reinvest to grow and meet any contingencies. We are barely able to be price competitive now, despite making all the economies we can find. Any increase in taxes or costs MUST be passed along to our customers or we must close and eliminate the jobs we have slaved to create. If the increases cause us to become non-competitive, we may have the choice of moving to a lower cost environment. Here's a secret for you to share: No business has ever paid a penny in taxes. Businesses simply collect the taxes from their customers and pass them along to the government. Businesses aren't taxed -- people are taxed. George Soros is rich. Bill Gates and Warren Buffet are rich. Very few businessmen ever reach those pinnacles -- and if they do, it is because they have offered something of value to millions of working people. I personally don't agree with George Soros' politics, but I love his Progressive Insurance Company because they offer good service and value for the cost. That's good business, and good business is good for the economy and good for the Republic.

Food for thought

I wish I could never again see or hear of violence in public discourse. The posting at the link, below, is certainly interesting.