TO THE EDITOR:
I really had trouble with the [Catholic News Service syndicated] cartoon in the Feb. 21 issue of the RI Catholic. First of all, it was essentially a cartoon of a political issue that did not concern a morality issue. I would think that a Catholic publication such as the R.I. Catholic would stay away from political issues such as a tax cut. What message were you trying to convey? It seems like it was a dig at the present administration who initiated the tax cut. The second reason I had trouble with it was that it associated a tax refund with the tax cut which, for the most part, is completely wrong. Let me explain.
The tax refund is not the indicator of benefit of the tax cut and is dependent on several factors. It involves how much you have earned, had withdrawn, your deductions, etc. The real indicator of a tax cut is how much in taxes you paid in the course of the year. For example, I received a smaller tax refund this year. I then compared the taxes I paid this year to last year and, lo and behold, I paid much less overall taxes than last year for about the same income. I ended up with much more money in my pocket because of the tax cut. Certainly, having more money available is the bottom line and that is what the tax cut is all about.
Deacon Dominic DiOrio (ret.), Bristol
