24 January 2017
I bought a new gizmo the other day and I was hoping to find a manual in the box. I'm old school. I like a book when I can get it. The kind with pages and such. Unfortunately, those are quite rare these days and my new gizmo was no exception. There was a Quickstart Guide - that 1 or 2 page graphically intensive sheet with basic instructions on how to not break your new gizmo before you get online to find the actual documentation you need to learn how to work it.
It occurred to me taxes have become the same thing. We used to go down to the library or post office to pick up tax forms and instructions. No longer. Now all of the instruction manuals are online. The only thing missing is the Quickstart Guide. There isn't a Quickstart Guide for taxes. I started to contemplate what one might look like. Then I decide, what the heck - I'll make one. And just for fun I'll throw in my analogy about taxes being membership dues owed to Club America.
Behold, my friends - the completely unofficial federal tax Quickstart Guide. I hope you find it useful.
