SO WHAT IS YOUR ...

TELL ME -- WHAT IS YOUR IQ?
My version of a political put-down tale
making the rounds in the U.S.A.
October 2009

By Victor Drummond ©

The latest thing in Hi-Tech cocktail bars opened recently in Canada’s Silicon Valley North with a lot of media reporting of the excellent service provided by robot bartenders.

One of the first persons to patronize the new bar was the head physicist at the National Research Council.

He took a seat at the bar and was promptly attended to by a robot bartender. “What may I do for you?” asked the robot.

Make me a martini replied the customer. The bartender buzzed, and clicked, flashed a few lights and placed a martini on the bar in front of the customer. After taking a few sips of the drink the customer exclaimed: “That is the best martini I have ever tasted.”

The robot thanked the customer for the compliment and said: “I hope you don’t mind but would you tell me your IQ level?” The customer looked a bit surprised but replied: “My IQ rating is in the high 150’s!” “Why did you ask?”

The robot replied: “I have been programmed to provide conversation to customers that are suited to their interests and make their visit here as pleasant and normal as possible.”

With that the robot engaged the customer in a conversation that dealt with the theory of the origin of the universe, the structure of atoms from neutrinos to positrons. The scientist found the robot had boundless information on all topics in the field of physics.

Another customer arrived and took a seat at the bar. The robot bartender asked this new customer: “What may I do for you?” The customer replied: “Make me a Pina Colada”

The robot, clicked, whirred, flashed a few lights and placed a Pina Colada on the bar in front of the customer. After taking a few sips the customer exclaimed: “This is the best Pina Colada I have ever tasted.”

The robot thanked the customer and then said: “I hope you don’t’ mind my asking but would you tell me your IQ level?”

The customer looked a bit surprised but answered: “I don’t mind telling you my IQ level is in the 100 range but why do you want to know?”

The robot explained to this customer – as he had for the first customer -- and then went on to discuss Sports, Global Warming, Environmental protection, and the Canadian government policy of taxing phantom income.

The robot exchanged comments on how government expediency often supersedes qualities such as honesty, decency, integrity, morality, fairness and even justice.

The robot explained that a rationale of any government in assuming the purchase of a corporation’s common shares, via an employee Incentive Shares Option (ISO) agreement, to be somehow an exclusive transaction that justifies levying a stand-alone tax was discounted, by the robot, as a self-serving unjustified action on the part of the government.

Such shares acquisitions, the robot explained, are no different than any investor buying the same shares on the open market.

They are not a gift or an award from the employer bestowed upon the employee. They are simply a purchase by the employee from their employer bought and paid for with the employee’s own after tax dollars.

Participating employees were frequently misled by their employer ISO plan administrators as to the tax liabilities that would be incurred by holding their purchased equities past the time of delivery.

This deception by the plan administrators was not deliberate -- but was due totally by the confusing ISO tax policy the government itself was declaring publicly.

The bottom line result was that honest, hard-working Canadians found themselves entrapped in an outrageous, unfair, unjust, financially devastating tax levy.

Customer number two was amazed at the depth of knowledge the robot had on so many topics’.

They were just in the middle of their conversation, on the phantom income tax issue, when a third customer took a seat at the bar.

The robot then soon asked this last customer: “What may I do for you?” The customer replied: “C3PO Just pour me a pint of beer.”

The robot clicked, whirred a bit and flashed a few lights and then placed a mug of beer on the counter in front of the customer.

The customer chug-a-lugged the whole pint down and as he wiped his mouth on the sleeve of his jacket he said “C3PO Fill-er-up”. “And by the way I have a comment to give you guys on the phantom tax thing I heard you talking about.”

He went on to say: “Of course it is fair to tax people on money they might have had.” “It is their own stupid, greedy, fault if they didn’t take a profit when they had the chance.” “Then they whine and cry they have been badly treated.” They are just a lot of tax evaders now looking for sympathy.” etc. etc.

The robot refilled the mug of beer for this customer and then went back to talk with customer number two.

Customer number two then said: “How come you didn’t ask your last customer what his IQ was?” The robot replied: “I didn’t ask because he wouldn’t have a clue.” “Besides my customer IQ response program doesn’t function at IQ levels below 50.”
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So what is your IQ level? “Do you believe taxing honest, hard-working Canadians on income that only existed in theory – is fair?”

Do you believe levying a tax on potential gain that is immune to the real losses produced by those very same equities is fair, or even reasonable?

In my opinion those are ideal questions to establish the IQ and quality level for Canadians.

For Canadians that have the power to elect a government which truly represents, and protects, the best interest of all Canadians -- but couldn’t care less about the denial of their own rights and the abuse of their fellow Canadians by their own government – it is their compassion/quality factor not necessarily their IQ level that is deficient.

The government is the servant of the voters – not the other way around. So use the power of your vote to elect the government all Canadians deserve.

See you at the voting polls for the next Canadian federal election O’Grady

Victor Drummond ©