New Year's Eve

Advanced Topics:

• Phrasal verbs

• Implications

• Reductions

• Informal expressions

• New Year's Eve

• Taxes

Summary:

Springfield celebrates New Year's Eve and Ned Flanders starts his tax return.

Before You Watch:

1. What traditions are associated with celebrating the New Year in the United States? How do these traditions compare with those in your country?

2. What do Americans do each year to file a tax return? When are taxes due?

A1. Common New Year traditions include counting down to midnight, drinking champagne, kissing your significant other, and setting off fireworks.

In Times Square in New York City, they celebrate the countdown to midnight by slowly dropping a ball with many colored lights from a pole. The ball begins to descend one minute before midnight while the crowd chants the countdown. The ball reaches the bottom at midnight, signaling the start of the New Year. Many other cities in the U.S. have adapted this tradition to fit their own local culture, including Kennett Square, Pennsylvania where they drop a mushroom instead of a ball, and Mobile, Alabama where they drop a moon pie.

A2. Each year, Americans who pay taxes must complete a document called a tax return. This document helps the taxpayer determine whether they paid enough taxes to the government in the past year. Taxpayers must complete a tax return for the federal government and for the state(s) in which they live and work.

Federal tax returns are normally due on April 15th. The due date for state taxes varies from state to state; for example, in Delaware, tax returns are usually due at the end of April, but Florida has no income tax for individuals, so most people there do not need to complete a state tax return.

Transcript

Crowd: Ten, nine, eight --

[The countdown ball gets stuck and stops descending]

Crowd: -- eight, eight, eight --

Homer: Oh! Will this horrible year never end?

Chief Wiggum: We've never lost a year before, and I'll be damned if we're gonna lose one on my shift!

[Chief Wiggum shoots the ball with his gun. The ball dislodges and descends quickly]

Crowd: Seven, six, five, four, three, two, one!

[Cheering and singing]

Ned Flanders: Oh, January first. Better get going on those taxes, Neddie!

[Ned sitting at his kitchen table with a folder labeled LEFTORIUM TAX RECORDS]

Ned Flanders: Hmm. Let's see, cash register ink. Well [chuckles], that's a business expense, isn't it? l- Oh, but then I do enjoy the smell of the stuff, don't I? Better not risk it.

Tod Flanders: Daddy, what do taxes pay for?

Ned Flanders: [Chuckling] Oh, why, everything! Policemen, trees, sunshine, and let's not forget the folks who just don't feel like working, God bless 'em.

Answer each question and explain your reasoning for your answer:

1. True or False: Homer implies that he has had a bad year.

2. What emotion does Chief Wiggum express before he shoots the ball with his gun?

   • Anger

   • Determination

   • Frustration

   • Confidence

3. What is implied about Ned Flanders' personality when he begins his tax return on January 1st?

   • He is a responsible person.

   • He is morally superior to everyone else.

   • He is anxious.

Now you practice:

Ned explains to his son that taxes pay for policemen, trees, sunshine, and people who do not want to work. Do you think that is an accurate description of what taxes pay for? Why or why not? What other things do taxes pay for in the United States? How does that compare with taxes in your country?

Email your response to jpenna@udel.edu for this week's Simpson's practice.