Let The Fireworks Begin!

As we celebrate the birth of this great country, we just had to take a moment to wish you a happy Fourth of July from all of us at Dolans.com!

Some of us are even old enough to remember when July 4 was called "Independence Day." But independence from what?

For those of you who have forgotten your grade school civics and those of you who are products of the current most expensive education in the world that no longer teaches civics (!), let us refresh your memory or enlighten you, whichever the case may be.

We fought the British with the rallying cry, "No taxation without representation!" And we won! Although, nowadays, with our independence being encroached upon by Big Government, you may be feeling like we threw off one yoke merely to don another.

Now we have "taxation WITH representation" which hardly seems any better. In fact, we think it's worse!

To make my (Daria here) point, you need to know about Congress's latest doings. It recently passed a law that contains a Yankee doodle dandy of a surprise for any American thinking of renouncing their citizenship to move overseas – and for any foreigners who have lived and worked legally in this country on a green card and then decide to return home.

The Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Act of 2008 (the HEART Bill), which rightfully gives benefits to soldiers who have served our country, has a nasty surprise tacked on to the end that will basically keep disgruntled Americans within the borders of the United States and will discourage and dissuade future educated foreigners with needed skills to stay home and not come. Perfect!

We'll fill you in on all the details in the days ahead. And of course, we'll be taking a look at the tax schemes (many of them hair-brained!) that our candidates for president are proposing so that you can protect yourself and your loved ones. You won't want to miss some of the ways we're all about to be picked up, turned upside down and shaken until our pocket change falls out.

As you celebrate "Independence Day," don't bother mailing teabags to Congress or throwing tea into the harbors of our country, no matter how tempting it may be. The time has come instead to throw Congress into the harbor... any harbor.

We'll keep you posted, so stay tuned. In the meantime, enjoy your holiday!