+
upworthy
Democracy

The IRS requires criminals to report and pay taxes on their illegal income. Yes, seriously.

IRS, taxes, criminals
@litcapital/Twitter

The IRS requires criminals to report their illegal income.

You know how sometimes you see something come through your social media feed and you think, "There's no way that's real," only to then have your mind blown when you find out it actually is real?

This is one of those times.

Twitter user @litcapital shared a post that appeared to be a screenshot from the IRS website with two entries on it:


"Illegal activities. Income from illegal activities, such as money from dealing illegal drugs, must be included in your income on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 8z, or on Schedule C (Form 1040) if from your self-employment activity.

Stolen property. If you steal property, you must report its fair market value in your income in the year you steal it unless you return it to its rightful owner in the same year."

Yes, you read that right. Dealing illegal drugs? Gotta pay taxes on that income. Stealing property? Gotta report that as income.

Surely this is made up, right?

Nope. Go here: https://www.irs.gov/publications/p17. Do a "Find" search with your browser and enter the word "illegal." Then put in "stolen." You'll find the entries listed under "Other Income," worded just like this.

We can all agree that taxes are overly complicated, and few of us have the time to read through every single IRS publication to figure them out. But requiring criminals to report illegal activity and stolen goods on their taxes? Really?

Someone had to actually come up with this policy. Someone had to say, "Hey, I think we should tell criminals that they have to report their criminal profits on their taxes," and someone else had to say, "Yeah, that's a good idea." Someone had to approve it. Someone had to type it up and publish it, too.

Did they all do this with a straight face? Was it a serious conversation? Did any brave soul say, "Um, that's stupid. No one is going to do that," because it's obviously stupid and clearly no one is going to do that?

That was my first thought upon seeing these tax requirements.

However, as it turns out, there actually is a good reason these policies exist. Illegal income does get reported sometimes, namely when someone has been caught (or thinks they're about to be caught) in some illegal activity and they don't want to get hit with a tax evasion charge in addition to whatever financial or property theft crime they've committed.

According to CNN Money, New England accountant Tom Hughes paid taxes on money he stole from his clients in 1999, 2001 and 2004. "I knew the money was taxable, there was no doubt about that," Hughes told the outlet. "I had already been caught, and I didn't want to face federal tax charges."

He now gives speeches on financial crime and professional responsibility. Go figure.

However, Hughes is the exception, as tax experts told CNN that most criminals don't report their illegal incomes. Duh. According to San Francisco tax attorney Stephen Moskowitz, most of those who do are facing embezzlement charges and are trying to avoid Al Capone-ing themselves. He has helped some of those clients document their illegal gains to avoid doubling their legal trouble due to illegal tax activity.

So basically, we have to have official tax requirements for illegal income in order for criminals to not be able to get away with tax evasion for that income. Still seems like a bizarre policy to actually write out in words, though, even if it makes sense from a legal perspective.

Humans are weird and money is weird and both things just seem to keep getting weirder. Yay us.

Education

A school assignment asked for 3 benefits of slavery. This kid gave the only good answer.

The school assignment was intended to spark debate and discussion — but isn't that part of the problem?

A school assignment asked for 3 "good" reasons for slavery.



It's not uncommon for parents to puzzle over their kids' homework.

Sometimes, it's just been too long since they've done long division for them to be of any help. Or teaching methods have just changed too dramatically since they were in school.

And other times, kids bring home something truly inexplicable.
Keep ReadingShow less
Health

Belgian Olympic marathoner breaks down in tears of disbelief upon hearing she finished 28th

38-year-old Mieke Gorissen had only been training for three years and the Olympics was just her third marathon.

Imagine deciding to take up a hobby that usually requires many years to perfect at age 35, and three years later ending up in the top 30 in the world at the highest international competition for it.

That's what happened to a 38-year-old math and physics teacher from Diepenbeek, Belgium. According to Netherlands News Live, Mieke Gorissen has jogged 10km (a little over six miles) a few times a week for exercise for many years. But in 2018, she decided to hire a running trainer to improve her technique. As it turned out, she was a bit of a natural at distance running.

Three years later, Gorissen found herself running her third marathon. But not just any old marathon (as if there were such a thing)—the marathon at the Tokyo Olympics. And not only did she compete with the world's most elite group of runners, she came in 28th out of the 88 competing in the race.

Keep ReadingShow less

People list their most 'boomer complaints' and its pure gold

Listen, everyone complains. Sure, we like to pretend it's just boomers that reach a certain age and start daydreaming about telling kids to get off their lawns. But the truth of the matter is, maybe some of the seemingly nonsensical complaints are valid because it appears that convenience has become inconvenient in the most obnoxious way possible.

Kevin Fredricks, a comedian and TikTok creator uploaded a video answering a tweet that asked, "what is the most boomer complaint you have." Fredricks must've been waiting for someone to ask this question because he had an entire list of complaints but honestly, if you're over 30 you'll probably be nodding along.

He comes in strong with a particular disdain for QR code menus. Save the trees and all that jazz but there's something about holding a menu in your hand that helps you choose the same thing you always order so much better. Flipping the menu over is key in making food choices while dining out. Seriously, not everything has to be digital.

Keep ReadingShow less
via PixaBay

Being an adult is tough.

Nothing can ever fully prepare you for being an adult. Once you leave childhood behind, the responsibilities, let-downs and setbacks come at you fast. It’s tiring and expensive, and there's no easy-to-follow roadmap for happiness and success.

A Reddit user named u/Frequent-Pilot5243 asked the online forum, “What’s an adult problem nobody prepared you for?” and there were a lot of profound answers that get to the heart of the disappointing side of being an adult.

One theme that ran through many responses is the feeling of being set adrift. When you’re a kid, the world is laid out as a series of accomplishments. You learn to walk, you figure out how to use the bathroom, you start school, you finish school, maybe you go to college, and so on.

Keep ReadingShow less
Education

A mom was frustrated that there weren't shows for kids with developmental delays. So, she made one herself.

Ms. Rachel has taken the internet by storm with her show geared toward educating parents and toddlers.

Mom couldn't find a show for children with developmental delays.

If there's one thing a determined parent will do, it's make sure their kid is getting their needs met. Even if that means they have to reinvent the wheel to do it. Rachel Griffin Accurso, or as parents across TikTok and YouTube know her, Ms. Rachel, found herself without any real options for additional resources to help her toddler who was diagnosed with a speech delay.

Accurso was looking for a developmentally appropriate show for her son but she wasn't having any luck. That's when she decided to take her teaching degree and get to work on creating her own show. It became a family business when she teamed up with her husband, Broadway composer Aron Accurso, who has been there every step of the way. He's even in the episodes singing along.

"Songs for Littles" has infiltrated homes across America. If you have a toddler and internet access, you've likely heard of it. The show has more than a billion views on YouTube. Yes, that's billion, with a "B." Ms. Rachel also has more than 19 million likes on TikTok and has speech pathologists everywhere singing her praises.

Keep ReadingShow less

A ship crusing beautiful blue waters

Living permanently on a cruise ship seems like a dream of the uber-wealthy. You spend your days lounging on the deck by the pool or touring an exotic location. Nights are spent dancing in the nightclub or enjoying live entertainment.

You no longer have to worry about traffic, cooking or laundry. Your life has become all-inclusive as long as you’re on board.

At Upworthy, we’ve shared the stories of a handful of people who’ve been able to spend their lives on a permanent cruise because they’ve figured out how to do so affordably. Or, at least, at about the same cost of living on land.

Insider recently featured the fantastic story of Ryan Gutridge, who spends about 300 nights a year living on Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas. He only leaves the ship for a few weeks a year during the holidays.

Keep ReadingShow less