Re: Bankroll Definition and Recommendation for No-Limit Hold \'em
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This begs a question from my gambling-tax free UK mind:
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hypothetical situation:
you work at a 9-5 job for a couple weeks, and you get a paycheck. You do not take the paycheck to the bank and get it cashed, ... eventually it is lost / stolen
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Does a US citizen still owe taxes on this unrealised gain?
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Tax is owed on income when it is earned. Everything boils back to this. There are exceptions carved out for things that appreciate/depreciate in value like stocks/art/etc. These are specific carveouts though. When you receive a check from your employer, whether it's cashed or not, that income is earned, so you owe taxes on it. If you find $20 on the ground, that is technically income, and should be reported. No one does this, but that doesn't mean it's okay/right/whatever.
In general, people don't want to pay taxes, so they'll try to rationalize why they don't owe it on this form of income, etc. The only question is "to whom are they trying to rationalize this behavior"
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