I finished my taxes. Since I’m not in a rush, I read through the long list of non-profits to which I can donate; I picked a few. (One was for libraries.)
And I also spent some time reading through an odd variety of possible New York State deductions I could take, depending. Here are the ones I found most peculiar:
- The expense of donating an organ for transplant.
Sounds reasonable, as well as encouraging. “Get a NYS tax break when you donate an organ!” But aren’t such donations paid for by someone other than the organ-bearer? More questions come to mind but they’d verge into medical thriller territory and I don’t feel like going there, in part because I am about to stream (on the terrific European subscription service, MhZ) a weirdly delightful Swiss series about an ex-cop turned undertaker. A few seasons ago, a plot line concerned (sometimes unwitting) organ removals, mostly of poor people whose organs went into rich people. So at this moment, I’m, you know.
- New York pre-1960 income reported on my federal 2022 taxes.
I had to blink a few times when I read this. Is there anyone out there who has pre-1960 income on which no taxes have been paid? What would prompt someone to delve into their pre-1960 financial status to learn whether they (a) had an income and (b) hadn’t filed or paid taxes? Or is this a sign that the State is thinking about audits? If so, they are somewhat dilatory.
- Member of an organized New York militia.
Other than the New York National Guard, is there such a thing as an “organized New York militia” which isn’t a crew of gun-nut domestic terrorists? If so (or not), why are they getting tax breaks?
Immediately following the New York militia item was this one:
- Received Nazi persecution-related income.
Flawless juxtaposition!