Life in "Progress City" or out of it.

One reason I against government is that government's appetite for money is voracious.

It's as strong as any capitalist, only they use the law to squeeze money out of people; capitalist can't.

Need evidence?

Just look at the efforts cities and state's are using to tax business activity outside of the jurisdiction....

How would you like to rent a car in Waukegan or St. Charles, only to be slapped with the 8 percent "transaction tax" that applies to Chicago car rentals?

Brace yourself. With a burgeoning $50.5 million budget gap, Chicago is reaching into suburban pockets. And Enterprise Rent-a-Car has filed a lawsuit challenging the Daley administration's effort to collect the tax from drivers who rent cars in the suburbs.

The suit was filed last week in Kane County after an administrative ruling by the city's Department of Revenue that City Hall will "presume" that all car rentals in the six-county area are subject to Chicago's 8 percent transaction tax.

To be excused from the tax, the city is requiring rental companies to photocopy customers' driver's licenses and obtain a sworn statement from customers that they won't be spending more than 50 percent of their time driving in Chicago during the rental period. Without that, the city is demanding the companies collect the tax and turn the money over to the city. Audits will be conducted. At least one is already under way.

Enterprise is asking a judge to declare the city's action unconstitutional.

"Can you imagine if all municipalities did that?" said Stan Kaminski, an attorney for Enterprise. "We feel it's an intrusion of privacy to ask for a copy of the driver's license and a sworn affidavit signed under penalty of perjury on where they might hypothetically use the vehicle."

So it's not enough that a tourist will go into the city and pay their 10% sales tax, the highest in the nation. It's not enough that a tourist will pay one of the highest hotel occupancy taxes in the country. It's not even enough that they'll have to pay a garage parking tax for simply parking the car within city limits. Now you're going to pay a tax simply for renting a car..... not in the city!!!!!

I used to go to Chicago in the day but it's pretty clear that the hand in my pocket isn't interested in a happy ending for me.

So when the Gekko's go up to visit relatives this year. We'll stay in the 'burbs.

What's so "progressive" about screwing tourists?

More....