Another Universal Truth

[Lee H. Mann]

I have had many memorable Christmas stories in my life like getting fired on Christmas Eve to missing the Bank by 5 minutes to do Christmas Shopping because I was replacing a starter on somebody’s truck.

A very unfunny thing happened when I opened my company mail on Saturday. There was a notice from the West Virginia Department of Sales and Use Tax claiming I was in default for $6,009.00 in unpaid sales tax and, that according to law, they were in the process of filing a lien that then, according to law, could be collected by the US Treasury Department, a Federal Agency. I was ill and think I will be sick all next week.

I couldn’t sleep all weekend thinking about it.
Did I in fact owe that amount ?
Could I have made that big of a mistake ?
Where was I going to get that kind of money ? Especially since I tallied up my sales receipts for November 2014 to be $1,497.00.

So, first thing Monday morning with a calm demeanor, I gathered up my Sales Tax information and went to the West Virginia Commission on Taxation and asked WHY I had received this notice.
“You were unaware of this before ?” she asked.
“No.” I responded.
After checking my account, and spending 15 minutes looking over whatever she was looking at, she printed a new form. She never said a word while shuffling the papers on the desk. She presented the new form and said “Your tax bill is $21.20.”
“What happened ?” I asked.
“There was a clear ENTRY ERROR overstating your sales by $100,000.00 for that month.” She said.
“Who made this $100,000.00 sales increase, because I could use a salesman like that.” I asked jokingly.
“I guess I could call this my Christmas present from West Virginia ?” I said reaching for humor.
SILENCE........crickets.......
The main point here was there was no “I am sorry for the inconvenience” or any admittance to a mistake made and had I not taken the action I did, they may have filed a lien or filed suit to reclaim the supposed debt.

One of the Universal Truths is GOVERNMENT DOES NOT MAKE MISTAKES.

[Trail Blazer]

Isn't it strange if the gov. owes you $$$ it does not have interest, not matter how late payed to you but if you owes the gov. there is interest attached if late....

[rhino 2]

Two oxymoron's;;

1] Military Intelligence.

2] I'm from the Government ' And I'm here to help you...

[tom w]

must be a new virus going around.
we have always paid our property tax before the date . this year we received our personal property statement from the county but nothing for the house. after waiting a couple of weeks and still nothing I stopped at the county collectors office to see why.
for my troubles I received 20 questions and a big ration of SH!* wanting to know my new address (we haven't moved in 30 years !) and It had been mailed !
I finally ask for a copy of the tax bill and paid it.
Im sure it wasn't their fault.

[Lucky]

GOV. They operate just like wives and mother in laws. (NO FAULT) RIDE SAFE

[Steve on 3]

As one who works in government, I am sympathetic to your stories but I also would bet that you make mistakes in your job too. Do autoworkers apologize to the eventual car owner when they screw something up on the line? Nope they hope qc catches it. DO mechanics replace a perfectly good part which does not fix your problem, yep, do they apologize.nope, they just charge you more.

Everyone makes mistakes. government workers are no different. Many times people come in with a chip on their shoulder for having to pay taxes. We didn't pass that law , we just get paid to collect. Our demeanor often reflects yours. I ask my staff to put themselves in our clients shoes and ask them to do what they would want done to or for them. As a result, we rarely have complaints go up the ladder. I get to handle the hard cases. Amazing how many times a guy will browbeat a woman clerk but will think twice before doing it to a linebacker sized guy standing right in front of him.

BTW I don't collect taxes. I am the Building Official and we inspect construction.

[Lee H. Mann]

As one who works in government, I am sympathetic to your stories but I also would bet that you make mistakes in your job too. Do autoworkers apologize to the eventual car owner when they screw something up on the line? Nope they hope qc catches it. DO mechanics replace a perfectly good part which does not fix your problem, yep, do they apologize.nope, they just charge you more.

Everyone makes mistakes. government workers are no different. Many times people come in with a chip on their shoulder for having to pay taxes. We didn't pass that law , we just get paid to collect. Our demeanor often reflects yours. I ask my staff to put themselves in our clients shoes and ask them to do what they would want done to or for them. As a result, we rarely have complaints go up the ladder. I get to handle the hard cases. Amazing how many times a guy will browbeat a woman clerk but will think twice before doing it to a linebacker sized guy standing right in front of him.

BTW I don't collect taxes. I am the Building Official and we inspect construction.

So, if I may translate what you are saying, it is a generally accepted practice (throughout the human spectrum) to blame that mistake on someone else. And since we didn't make the law, this therefore makes government employees exempt from responsibilities that would or should include an simple apology for that part of the government they represent.

Boy, have you found a home !

[bikerbillone]

Agree with the above post. How easy is it to say, "sorry, someone made a mistake". Think about it, who pays for government workers?

[Mick]

Part of this I think comes from Lawyers. Saying "I'm sorry " seems to be an admission of guilt. My one son who is in the military and has spent considerable time overseas told me if youre ever involved in a car accident overseas never say your sorry. Even if you mean sorry it happened. They were told even though it may not be your fault saying that is an admission of guilt so its better to say nothing. I guess our Government is following suit.

Jim Im glad everything worked out for you. Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday!

[tom w]

Agree with the above post. How easy is it to say, "sorry, someone made a mistake". Think about it, who pays for government workers?

that would be the public who are always wrong in situations like this. If I hadn't checked on my tax statement, who would have had to pay the late charges ?

in my situation I was the one being brow beaten by the woman behind the desk who treated me like a dirt bag turd and my taxes were not even late yet. by the way, I too work for the county gov.

[Steve on 3]

No you misunderstand what I am saying. Mistakes happen in every field of endeavor, and when possible one should own up to them and accept responsibility for them. Often times a simple "I am sorry , I made a mistake" goes a long way toward sooothing someones nerves but as someone working for the public, there are times when 'I am sorry, I made a mistake, may I pay those taxes for you and offer you my first born, my left kidney and my wife" all that would not be enough.

I spend a portion of my day doing customer service stuff where maybe my inspector is correct but his tone of voice was a little direct or perceived to be so. A little butt kissing to appease them .

We also get the customers who believe we make all the laws in the county. There are restriction as to where you can have a junk yard here. Some folks don't understand that. I didn't write the law. I just have to tell people what it is and enforce it. I often hear "Well when did I go to sleep in SC and wake in up red f____ng China?" Not my rule but I have a job to do. I do it as compassionaltely as I can and as fairly but still I have to do my job as I am instructed to do it.

And let me add this for government workers everywhere. We are people just like you. WE also pay taxes just like you do and don't like them either. We understand you are upset. We understand taxes are not fun but generally we didn't have anything to do with levying your taxes. we just collect them. There is no need for you to come in screaming at us and cussing at us. We have guideleines to follow. Put yourself in our shoes. How would you like someone you don't know screaming and cussing at you for something you didn't do and didn't cause? Clearer picture now?

My department inspects construction to see that it is up to code and regularily assists homeowner builders who think they are contractors to complete a project that maybe won't fall on them or electrocute them 10 years down the road. My job ultimately is life safety. I take that job seriously. I tell people that I look at their project and inspect it as if my Mother was going to live in it. If it's good enough for her, it is good enough for them. If it's not good enough for her, they need to fix it.

Bottom line...it never hurts to say "I am sorry, I screwed up." but it's never wrong to treat people with courtesy either. no matter if they did screw up. Dids Shakespere say it " To err is human, to forgive , divine".?

Merry Christmas

Steve

[Lee H. Mann]

No you misunderstand what I am saying. Mistakes happen in every field of endeavor, and when possible one should own up to them and accept responsibility for them. Often times a simple "I am sorry , I made a mistake" goes a long way toward sooothing someones nerves but as someone working for the public, there are times when 'I am sorry, I made a mistake, may I pay those taxes for you and offer you my first born, my left kidney and my wife" all that would not be enough.

I spend a portion of my day doing customer service stuff where maybe my inspector is correct but his tone of voice was a little direct or perceived to be so. A little butt kissing to appease them .

We also get the customers who believe we make all the laws in the county. There are restriction as to where you can have a junk yard here. Some folks don't understand that. I didn't write the law. I just have to tell people what it is and enforce it. I often hear "Well when did I go to sleep in SC and wake in up red f____ng China?" Not my rule but I have a job to do. I do it as compassionaltely as I can and as fairly but still I have to do my job as I am instructed to do it.

And let me add this for government workers everywhere. We are people just like you. WE also pay taxes just like you do and don't like them either. We understand you are upset. We understand taxes are not fun but generally we didn't have anything to do with levying your taxes. we just collect them. There is no need for you to come in screaming at us and cussing at us. We have guideleines to follow. Put yourself in our shoes. How would you like someone you don't know screaming and cussing at you for something you didn't do and didn't cause? Clearer picture now?

My department inspects construction to see that it is up to code and regularily assists homeowner builders who think they are contractors to complete a project that maybe won't fall on them or electrocute them 10 years down the road. My job ultimately is life safety. I take that job seriously. I tell people that I look at their project and inspect it as if my Mother was going to live in it. If it's good enough for her, it is good enough for them. If it's not good enough for her, they need to fix it.

Bottom line...it never hurts to say "I am sorry, I screwed up." but it's never wrong to treat people with courtesy either. no matter if they did screw up. Dids Shakespere say it " To err is human, to forgive , divine".?

Merry Christmas

Steve

Divinity and Government are two distinctly differing philosophies. I have worked with various government agencies for over 45 years and found that the meek get the most help. I didn't accuse or belittle the women, nor did I beat my chest when they made an error.

Your rant sounds like you may resent any implication that Government could ever be wrong as an entity and responsible for an action that requires an apology. You site many examples of what you experience in your job and the unjustified demands the general public will make upon you. Is this a "people against the government" mentality? I made no such demands, nor was I rude or overbearing in my exchange. I will however accept your government apology.

Merry Christmas to you and all of the other members of TrikeTalk.

[Steve on 3]

Divinity and Government are two distinctly differing philosophies. I have worked with various government agencies for over 45 years and found that the meek get the most help. I didn't accuse or belittle the women, nor did I beat my chest when they made an error.

Your rant sounds like you may resent any implication that Government could ever be wrong as an entity and responsible for an action that requires an apology. You site many examples of what you experience in your job and the unjustified demands the general public will make upon you. Is this a "people against the government" mentality? I made no such demands, nor was I rude or overbearing in my exchange. I will however accept your government apology.

Merry Christmas to you and all of the other members of TrikeTalk.

Not sure where you get this is a rant or that I think government is divinity. Hey, I/we make mistakes everyday but my point was ..so do other workers. Govco doesn;t have a monompoly on that, merely that the issue of taxes gets one fired up and folks will and do tsake it out on workers who are simply doing their jobs. For every difficult customer we get, we probable serve 100 pleasant ones. From your post above, I wonder exactly who has the bias against someone. I'm not too ssure its me sir.

Merry Christmas to you and a Happy New year. May you New Year be filled with happy mikes and smiles ////from a government worker not a divinity.