Yep.....

That clause... "Sound mind and body"...If "Uncle Sam" dropped 1.1 Billion (let alone miliion) on the floor, they wouldn't waste their time to pick it up...Maybe they will just toss that in with the Hundreds of Billions we are giving the "IMF" to bail out the EU (instead of the countries / regions it was established to help)

ugh what a waste. unbelievably stupid.

rmb:

While I agree with you to a point, it's still kind of cool that he took the nations debt that seriously and tried to do his part. I know I'm worried about my childrens futures with respect to the debt and hate the fact that this may be our generation's legacy.

SI

I agree he should have willed it to a needy group directly. However, if the house was located in Sanford, Florida; the city bureaucrats probably wouldn't have allowed it.

"Officials in Sanford, Florida are expected to discuss a controversial ordinance Monday that clamps down on those who help the needy."

"The meeting was scheduled after some residents complained about the feedings in Centennial Park."

It was reported that the "pen pushers" in Sanford said that it was OK to continue to feed the pigeons and squirrels at the park but not the homeless residents of Sanford. They purportedly went on to say that if they made it a crime to the feed the homeless, people will stop feeding them and maybe they would just go away.

wait wait. Didn't norquist tell the millionaires that if they wanted to help to feel free to give extra? This guy did, and now hes a bad guy?

Gotta love Floriduh.

Maybe we could stop feeding Rick Scott.

Actually, Mal'achi, there is good reason not to "help" the homeless. Homeless shelters that do a good job, do NOT want churches and individuals giving blankets to people under the bridge and feeding people outside the shelter. All this does is make it "easier" to be homeless and for individuals to not seek the help the local governments are offering. Every bit of food, money, or warmth they get on the street translates to a lower likelihood that they will enter these shelters and be exposed to people that can actually help them out of their homelessness.

I have a friend who's job is to work for the homeless in Knoxville, and she has to speak to churches and encourage them not to do things that seem natural to do to help these people who are in a bad circumstance. Just because a rule or law seems heartless on the surface, doesn't mean it actually is.

ugh what a waste. unbelievably stupid. he couldve willed it to needy people directly. ridiculous.

Yes it was, our gov is a shopaholic on a shopping binge and he might has will have thrown it in the trash, but at least he tried to do something about the national debt. Hopefully this will make others hold our politicians responsible and accountable for the debt sometime in the future..

I also admire him for donating his money to the feds, instead of just whining about how others need to pay more taxes like some other types do..

His relatives were probably selfish, spoiled 'Occutard' brats and his motive was to show them that they dont get anything!

That money was blown by the government in a few minutes.

It's his money, and he can still spend or bequeath it any which way he likes. And it's none of our damned business, thank goodness.

I guess if you hate your family like he obviously does this seems like a logical thing to do.

Selmers is obviously a fan of talkinghead newstainers because the 'Occutards' are mainly people squeezed out of the system by the crooks and whores on Wall Street. As long as we have a large portion of sheep who listen to the Limbaughs, Becks and O'Reillys of the world they'll not get close enough to the truth to grasp it. Besides, the assumption that his relatives were 'Occutards' is simply a small mind making something out of nothing. Fantasy reality.

Just putting money in the hands of the politicians. Makes me sick.

Jesus, Selmers. Are you from Florida too?

Now all we need are about 14 MILLION more people to do the same thing, and will their $1 million house to the government...and we STILL won't have anything left over after paying off the national debt.

It's taxes, folks. We all need to pay a little more, consistently, even when we are running a budget surplus. Start with the rich, and extend it to everyone else eventually. All it would take is a percent or two increase in taxes paid by everyone and to implement some minor, common sense spending limitations and we could reverse decades of compounded economic incompetence by this country...easily. No significant impacts on economic growth, no significant impacts on people of lesser means, either. Everyone would feel it...but only a little. I think it's the only way there is to go, literally, except straight down the economic toilet.

Over the last few decades, both parties have drastically overspent on their own respective priorities whenever they could get away with it. No matter who's running things, we need to cut back a little. Everyone knows it. They just won't actually do anything about it.

We are going to continue to face severe economic calamities if we don't a), cut spending a little across the board; b), raise taxes a little; c), keep doing it no matter what; and d), give it enough time to succeed. We keep going back and forth, back and forth, one party in power overcompensating for the indulgences of the other guys when they last held the reins, instead of doing the right thing and holding the budgetary line and maybe reining it back in a little bit.

Thanks Geno65. Not wanting to leave the next generation with a $14T debt is a good thing. To those who criticize the man's actions, it's not just about today. It's the generation yet to be born. Is our legacy to be filty air and water plus massive debt? It happened on "our watch." We elected them.

Matt-1145746

Apparently, you are unaware of how things work in Flor-duh. Sanford is located in the central part of the state better known as "horse country". Horses are actually treated better than people in some of the smaller towns in the region.

As SNAPPA, another Newsvine poster previously stated:

If they had their way work houses and prisons would be an option for the poor of this nation. For some reason they cannot understand why there are poor people in America but there are and they ARE our responsibility every bit as much as our brother or sister. Better yet they would rather you didn't mention it at all it would be better to keep it a dirty secret locked in the closet and never talked about.

As for your friend who works in Knoxville:

who's job is to work for the homeless in Knoxville, and she has to speak to churches and encourage them not to do things that seem natural to do to help these people who are in a bad circumstance.

It is my humble assumption that she is clearly violating the verbiage of the First Amendment; "Separation between Church and State" section of our U.S. Constitution.

Good grief, that's the stupidest thing I have ever heard of...I can't think of a bigger waste..

war in iraq may be a bigger waste

If you took away every single deduction and/or taxed everyone and every corp about 13% more we'd balance the budget. Lets go.. How would you like it if you had to pay 13% on top of what you pay now!

That's your fair share. Should be easy right..

How about just cutting spending by half..

Charity starts at home and I am sure some of his family members would have needed that money more than this wasteful government.

scooby-doo,

I'm more inclined to think that the Vietnam war was a much bigger waste?? What did that accomplish except 60K dead Americans...

Wow more money in the hands of the politicians .......as if they don't blow enough of our money.

Hell...It probably cost "Uncle Sam" a billion to accept and process that million

THe story does'nt say if he stipulated how the money was to be spent or by what department of the government. You would think that one can't just write a check made "payable to Uncle Sam" there had to be some legal document regarding it. IF the family did'nt know the conditons of the "gifts" you can bet the will would have been contested and title to the home would be tied up in the courts. None of us knows if the family got anything in the will or not as this story is so woefully incomplete that its seems to be a waste of space to have even put it out there. Then somehow the conversation drifts to feeding the homeless. There are no where near enough shelters or programs to assist homeless back into jobs, homes etc.. TO ENCOURAGE OR EVEN LEGISLATE NOT FEEDING CITIZENS OF THIS COUNTRY IS HORRIFIC, UNAMERICAN AND SHOULD BE DANG NEAR TREASONOUS GIVEN THE BILLIONS THE US GOVERNMENT SENDS IN TAXPAYER MONEY TO OTHER COUNTRIES IN PART FOR THAT PURPOSE. The rich in the above mentioned horse country can go right ahead and pay much more taxes before any of the average citzens should be forced to. The problem with America is the lack of compassion or concern for their own countrymen, and horrendous GREED!!!! The biggest WELFARE MOOCHES are the politicians who profit from their power, ex: GIngrich and FAnnie Mae. and then expect the bills for their extreme lifestyles to be footed by the taxpayer while our mentally ill, disabled, veterans, seniors and lower income citizens are expected to GO KICK ROCKS!! Most of this nations people are just a pay check or one catastrophic illness away from homelessness and that happens to these well to do SOBS who say "don't feed the Animals" and maybe they'll just go away.

Mr. PheaNiques,

That's funny!! Ain't that the F'in truth...

Nice gesture but the government has provedthat it is not responsible enough to be responsible for properly distributing the money. now where will it go some general fund to support some useless foreign project in some ME wasteland. maybe build another school in Afghanistan so the Taliban will have something to practice blowing up. It sure as hell wont be spent on the US.

Question...

Does anybody know where I can cash a check for .3 cents (my share)

I knew a rancher in Hillsborough Co. FL. He left everything to his Alma Mater the UNC. Didn't leave his family anything. His wife was dead & his son was a deputy sheriff. It's funny though his brand new Cadillac turned up missing.

It'll probably be spent on funding more IRS agents for extra audits next year.

i think we should be starving the US gov't, not willing our property to them so they can auction it and spend 10 times what they earn from the sale. it was his place to do what he wanted with though, and thank god we can still do that...

Well, it was his own property to give, so it is none of our business how he intended the donation to be spent. After all, it's the thought that counts! He was obviously a generous, patriotic, caring & concerned American citizen. May this kind and charitable gentleman rest in peace.

@ aquatone

I agree that spending needs to be controlled and more measured (i.e. don't start or get involved in unnecessary military matters to begin with - specifically Iraq) and less pet projects that don't result in job creation or improved infrastructure.

The fact is that by a measure of GDP taxes are historically low compared. They have not been lower since the 50s. The biggest change has occurred in the upper end tax brackets, a direct result of the Bush tax cuts, which were poorly timed considered that spending was ratcheting up by our government simultaneously. Couldn't spend the surplus money fast enough that was burning a hole in our government's pockets. It really wouldn't hurt to just let tax breaks from Bush expire for the highest income earners.

That beings said - debt and spending is not really that big of a concern, but is highly inflated by the media/news. From a standpoint of percentage of our GDP, we are paying historically low payments against our countries debt. Compared to 95%+ of countries with debt we are probably closer to being solvent. That is why the world continues to buy U.S. bonds to continue to fund our spending.

I think everyone needs to consider before the tax cuts implemented under the Bush administration we running a surplus and had money in the bank. We also were experiencing some significant growth.

The name of the game is transparency in spending - two bills each year and all pork barrel spending, supplemental spending and regular spending should be included - only exceptions emergency aid, defense and social security/medicare. Disallow spending being attached to all other bills. This would cause Congress to curb unnecessary spending that currently can be "hidden" in completely non-related bills. This would give voters, constituents and citizens the ability to clearly understand and scrutinize what it is there elected officials are actually proposing and voting to spend money on. No more panning to big business with bills that benefit their largest donors.

He must have died of koolaid poisoning. What a waste of money.

What a waste. This will not even pay for one trip of the Dumbamas. If given to the homeless and elderly, it would have been a good thing. To give anything to those MFs in the government is flat out stupid!

I have to look at this from a Democrats point of view. how much money can we borrow against the two million $ and still make the interest. then who should we give the money to.

@d buck

I didn't see it, you may be a genious...lets do the math...just use the 1.1 million to pay the interest on the extra Hundred Billion we can spend this year...then we can assume that someone will die every year and do the samething, then we can spend the extra hundred billion every year...and since it won't be included in the official budgeting we can claim that we are reducing budget deficits by that same 100 Billion...I thought they said this governing stuff is complicateed

D Buck-2239568

I have to look at this from a Democrats point of view. how much money can we borrow against the two million $ and still make the interest. then who should we give the money to.

I don't hear Liberals crying for more money to be spend on silly ass war machinery. We want the biggest welfare takers, the defense contractors, to be reigned in and cut to the bone. I don't want our reputation as a country to be tied to imperialism any longer.

GOP= don't tax and make sure more is spent. Carter and Clinton shrunk the size of the debt--while Reagan, Bush I and Bush II grew the debt.

Our country is growing weary from the wars and their cost---both human and fiscal. Cut that defense budget and get back to me.

Have to agree. Chances are that 1M isn't going to the people he was hoping, it's going to line the pockets of the greedy head honchos that run/ruin this country. His heart was in the right place, too bad the chances are high that those who really need it, won't see a penny.

If he willed it to needy people directly he might as well have put it in the toilet as well. People have a rosy idea of what poor people are like, they all equate them to Bob Crachit and Tiny Tim when in fact most of them hate and will bite the hand that feeds them. Some are truly grateful but when it comes to the homeless and I have dealt with them for years they will take advantage of everything they can get, they will beg from you and if you give them something they'll say it's not enough and ask for more. Most poor people are not and will not ever be hard-working respectable people, they don't want to be, it's too much work. If it was given to a charity to help the poor it would be the same thing, if most of it didn't wind up in the pockets of the director it would be a miracle.

I've seen quite a few people assume that he gave his family the shaft......I didn't see that at all, I'm thinking that Million he gave to the government was just the tip of the iceburg of his fortune. He was probably worth several million and just did a good deed before he died and gave $1 million to Uncle Sam.

This is sad/sick. He must of done this to pee off his family. So instead he pee's off the entire nation for his stupidity. He could of gave it to the Vets who are homeless.

I wonder who were the real jerks ... him or his family.

Hope the gov donates this money instead of dividing it up amongst themselves.

The tremendous number of people who have swallowed the rhetoric of the far right astonishes me.

Can't you see that it's not "the government's" fault? Can't you see that it is people who 'game' the government -- and people who buy politicians -- who are at fault here?

Seriously, if you cannot trust the government (that is, the people WE elect) to act in the best interest of Americans, who can you trust?

Ted-803281

"If you took away every single deduction and/or taxed everyone and every corp about 13% more we'd balance the budget. Lets go.. How would you like it if you had to pay 13% on top of what you pay now!

That's your fair share. Should be easy right..

How about just cutting spending by half.."

It isn't, tax EVERYONE! I don't know where you got those phony numbers (is Limbaugh posting them?) So you truly believe millions of Americans would not suffer extremely negative effects (including yourself) if spending were halved? We aren't even addressing our infrastructure needs at this point. And the GOP has already slashed revenues to the point we cannot pay our bills. These "solutions" we see from the Right are anything but solutions!

Why is it the Republican argument that everyone of us is the 1%? We simply return those particular people to Clinton era rates (about 4% above current rates) and we arrive at your conclusion. No need for an increase on the middle.

I heard a really crazy number yesterday. That is that the 6 Walton siblings own as much wealth as the bottom 30% of our society. As a member of the top 10% I can't justify any of this. Of course my accountant finds me a few breaks and I pay less than many middle income earners. He has to earn his pay after all. Regardless that extra money ends going to help pay medical bills for my uninsured girlfriend who has a pre-existing condition which I cannot write off. We are just ordinary people with ordinary problems. Money doesn't solve everything. It just makes the suffering somewhat easier. Being wealthy is something I never aspired to be. But considering all of the advantages I had growing up it was pretty much an inevitable conclusion. That is not the case nor has it ever been the case for most Americans. I would be a fool not to realize that fact.

I would like to see the goverment have to pay inheritance tax to the old guy's family or a good charity for a change. Reverse it to see how much dissapears from the goverments hands. But, they get all of it I am sure!

I applaud this man. He is a true patriot. Thank you, sir. Rest in peace.

It just dawned on me, I understand his motives. what he is trying to accomplish is near genius. He doesn't want his family to become frustrated animals fighting over the money, so for that reason and a laugh from the grave he decided to give the politician's something more to fight over.

Exactly, checked the price the government pays for toliet seats lately? How about funding for crap like studies on the sex life of salamanders? Billions are wasted annually on useless crap like that. The government needs to STOP wasteful useless spending, cut their salaries, freeze their wages, make it illegal for politicians to vote for their own raises, stop bailing out banks and corporations, basically funding the terrorists we abhor by sending money to countries that harbor terroists, wasting billions fighting for countries that would rather see us dead right down to the most helpless infants, and stop allowing politicians from profiting from their positions in goverment. Then we can talk about donating our inheritances to them.

Those ar custom made pencils and hammers built to government specs!

You're pretty much on target, THATSWHATSHESAID1, except I'd suggest that we need to take a look at the countries we're fighting for and figure out just why we are fighting for them. If it is about democracy and about human rights, we should support them -- preferably not through fighting.

But if it is about creating economic conditions that favor multinational corporations, that is definitely not what our government should be doing. We've done that for too long, and it is a lose-lose situation except for the corporations.

And research on the sex life of salamanders could lead to other discoveries. Better that than obliterating countries and killing people.

Chances are pretty damn good that all but one of his nieces and nephews would have hated him anyway, and that's only if he had the foresight to pass the house on to just ONE of his nieces and nephews. Sounds to me like the fellow was smart enough to avoid that whole nutroll and avoid turning all of his nieces and nephews (as well as all other family members) against each other.

I don't notice anywhere in the article where it says the house and the additional million he gave the gov were his only assets. That said, his nieces and nephews may not have deserved to be recognized in his will anymore than the gov. Just because you are related to someone doesn't mean you automatically deserve the money they worked their entire life to amass. OTOH, perhaps the entire family has money and the 2.17 million given to the gov amounted to less than the inheritance tax on the estate.

not enough info to really know.

I totally agree MJ, I don't recall reading that either...I'm think that Million dollars was only a portion of his fortune

It will be enough to roll Air Force 1 on to the tarmac and prepare for the next trip to Martha's Vineyard. maybe throw in a little boat ride for the girls.

sarg , d-buck

What a stupid thig to think. The nephews and neises have got their share. Alos probably from the auction. Thed Obama's don't travel that much. a vacation is a given, the other trips are most always one has a chore

. Shame on you. When you get our Wizard Knut will show you who will flutter the time away.

Thanks, it's a nervous condition I have. Probably a side effect from the drugs I've done over the years. Are they tax free or do I have to pay taxes?

Now you 2 are funny as hell.

Rick,

You just need to show SinCristo all or some of your teeth....LOL

dano, the muriatic acid has done ate up his teeth. Like a halloween pumpkin.

Exactly. Love of country. I admire this gentleman for that.

Unfortuanately, the man wasn't trying to leave the estate to government afterall. He really had an "Uncle Sam" that he was trying to leave everything to, but the gov't was awarded the estate by a federally employed over-seer.

Our goverment is weak and corrupt so thats how the world views us. We are the pariahs of the world now. I'm embarassed to be an American.

Why is it considered a waste to give to the government? Because they WASTE THE MONEY!

Shady, we will be right over to help you move to some forsaken land that you can feel less ashamed of. Say France?

Its a waste because our government has a reputation for making extremely poor financial decisions. In no way will this money be used efficiently. After personally viewing invoices issued to the government by an undisclosed supply warehouse totalling approximately $3,300, my fellow colleagues determined that a quick on line purchase to Lowe's with a 2 day delivery to a non governmental warehouse (for security reasons) would have cost the government $890.00 for the exact same materials. We were told that if the purchaser could not render proof that the existing budget had been reached, hence a basic dewault 18v drill totalling $780.00, the next years budget would be reduced dramatically, which would affect bonuses, payroll and other extras the fine government had become accustomed to.

ShadyJay;

Take some action, renounce your citizenship and go some place else. Do it!

how sad.....shoulda been willed to surviving relatives....just shows how unloving and confused this entire nation has become...I know confused is probably not quite the right word I wanted to use but I think some of you know what I mean....

Why do conservatives always consider government spending of money a scandal and government spending of blood as completely legit?

For the man who left his home=== perhap's that million will be split up enough to give out as food stamps so people can have something to eat. I would love to know what else the will said.

honest midwest

I agree that it his decision to do with the money as he pleases, but we Americans have the right to voice our opinions, just as you do. If he would like it wasted on a new 2 million dollar desk that makes cappuccinos for Obama, then so be it. But those who approve oh his decision to donate to our government mob, have no right complaining about the state of our economy.

And in the rare case that the money will be use productively, I apologize profusely.

I don't really follow the logic, AbleKane. Can you clarify?

But those who approve oh his decision to donate to our government mob, have no right complaining about the state of our economy.

Because it has come to the attention of Americans that our government clearly has no clue how to allocate funds appropriately. This $2 million will in no shape or form, go toward our deficit. If you agree that the government should choose where the funds should go, then so be it, it is your free choice to have that opinion but we all know the truth that it will either end up in the hand of terrorists or for some corporate parachute bailout.

Thank you.

AbleKane... do you believe that the the government is "of the people, by the people and for the people"? If you don't, then you can leave anytime. If you do, then the government is just doing what the people want them to do. And I don't want to hear any of this "I am an Americain citizen, I can say anything I want" crap either.

DuhJay - lol. You are one smart man. I apologize for my opinion but no, they are not for the people. If you believe that the government does what we ask, then you are one sorry individual. I fought for my country and strongly believe opinions can change things for the better, instead of "if you dont like, leave dude". But If I have to deal with the likes of you in order to see progress, there is no hope and I will gladly leave but my savings have been depleted due to this outstanding economy you are so proud of and appparently you have no ambition to change.

ablekane,

The facts of life - the "government mob" is us, the American people. We created the government and reaffirm it every election. We could change it entirely every two years, by electing a completely new House (where all the spending decisions begin.) Any wasteful spending in a department or agency could be eliminated during a funding vote. If bureaucrats are wasting money, adjust their budget to zero and repeal authorization for their existence - job done.

Love that, "its like the government found his wallet and would not return it". Totally what the government attitude is. The sad fact they don't just wait to "find" your wallet. Most of the Politicans will knock you down, kick you in the head and take that dang wallet right out of your hand and put a tax bill back in it!!!!!!!!!!!

Historically there have always been people who donate to the fed govt. Every so often a story shows up in the media. Plus look at all the people who donated/loaned money during the revolutionary war and never did get paid back. . . I remember the 70's and the fringe lefties referring to "Amerika", I've concluded the righties are pretty much like that only from the other side and there seem to be a lot more of them.

Fuel up the jet and yatch boys, we just BS another taxpayer to give us free trip around the world...They just keep throwing it our way. The people love us!

Ok Jay, lets just talk about Crawford then huh? How far is that? Obama has not taken near as many vacations as Bush did. You want facts, just look them up for yourself. Why is it that if someone doesn't agree with you, they are a druggie, or a mooch? People like you are mostly what is wrong with this country today.

Its' not that people are hating on him for being generous with his money, hell I respect that, its that he thought the government would actually do the right thing with it.

Been better to send it straight to China and tell them to take it off our tab.

I don't understand why it's so difficult for people to get that we don't owe China billions of dollars we owe American corporations with interests in China billions of dollars. The Chinese are just pecking at the crumbs, granted they are large crumbs but they are crumbs nonetheless.

And that is why we will never get out of our situation with China until some other third world cesspool pops up to be exploited. Because Big Business owns the government lock, stock and barrel and uses it as a mechanism to funnel money into it's own greedy pockets.

I'm sure we own them at least 1.175 million dollars, not even pocket change compared to billions

Agreed. That money could have gone to help people who need it, instead it'll just get used to pad the politicians' pockets.

government send plenty of money out to people who need it. Or at least it did before the cut backs.

So??? It's a week's worth of interest, we don't have to pay.

a week Katy more like 1 minutes worth of interest

Yeah, Victor, I realized that later.

They probably had to pay $600 apiece for new toliet seats and about $5000 a piece for new beds, and a couple of hundred k a month for new Drs. to do the regulated STD tests etc.. that legal whorehouse are required to. And yeah they'd run it into the ground cause of all the freebies for government officials left the whores no time for paying customers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!