Americans often say that there are only two things a person can be sure of in life: death and taxes. Many people feel that the United States has the worst taxes in the world.

Taxes are the money that people pay to support their government. There are generally three levels of government in the United States; federal(联邦的), state and city; therefore, there are three types of taxes.

　　Salaried people who earn more than four to five thousand dollars per year must pay a certain part of their salaries to the federal government. The percentage varies depending on their salaries. The federal government has a two-level income tax; that is, 15 or 28 percent. $17,850 is the cut-off. The tax rate is 15 percent below $17,850 and 28 percent above.

　　The second tax is for the state government: New York, California, or any of the other forty-eight states; Some states have an income tax similar to that of the federal government. Of course, the percentage for the state tax is lower. Other states have a sales tax, which is a percentage charged to any item which people buy in the state. Some states use income tax and sales tax to raise their revenues(税收).

　　The third tax is for the city. This tax comes in two forms: property tax (residents who own a home have to pay taxes on it) and excise tax(货物税),which is collected on vehicles in a city. The cities use this money for education, police, public works, etc.

　　Since Americans pay such high taxes, they often feel that they are working one day each week just to pay their taxes. People always complain about taxes. They often say that the government misuses their tax dollars. They all believe that taxes are too high in this country.

1．How much money does an American earning $40,000 per year pay to the federal government as income tax?

A．28% of this income.                           B．15% of this income.    

C．$17,850                                       D．$5,000.

2．What tax does an American have to pay to the city if he owns a car?

A．Property tax.      B．Excise tax.     C．Income tax.    D．Sales tax.

3．The percentage varies depending on _______________________ .

A．different people  B．different states      C．different taxes  D．different salaries

There once lived a young man who was always unhappy and complained about his poverty. One day, he went to see a fortune teller to inquire how to become      16     . The fortune teller said, "Young man, you are already wealthy now."

"Where is my wealth?" the young man asked     17    .

"It is with you. Your     18     is (are) your wealth. You use them to see this world. You use them to see all the     19    things in this world. You can read, study and learn. Your hands are your wealth. You can use them to work. You can use them to hug your beloved ones. Your     20     are your wealth. You can go to any places..." the fortune teller said.

"You call these wealth? Everyone has them," the young man said.

"These are wealth. What you have now are not what others can luckily have. Are you     21     to give your eyes to me? I am willing to give you a lot of money to     22      for them," the fortune teller said.

"No, are you crazy? I am not going to exchange my eyes for money! They are     23     to me!" the young man     24     .

"Precisely, these are wealth to you. You will not exchange them for money. Furthermore, although a lot of people have their wealthy things, they do not     25     them or treasure them. They are not     26     to Heaven for giving them their wealth. They even complain that Heaven is unfair to them. Do you want to    27     one of them before you will treasure them?" the fortune teller said.

Everyone is wealthy. But we should not     28    it for granted. We need to treasure our wealth, take care of it and use it     29     . We should not overuse it because once it is     30     , it is gone forever. Remember it is our wealth that we do not want to lose.

1.A. happy           B. young             C. wealthy        D. poor

2.A. anxiously B. sadly     C. quietly         D. patiently

3.A. knowledge       B. skills              C. brain           D. eyes

4.A. ugly            B. beautiful           C. strange          D. useful

5.A. legs          B. cars                 C. jewels          D. banknotes

6.A. lovely        B. optimistic             C. angry          D. willing

7.A. charge        B. buy                  C. exchange       D. change

8.A. precious       B. useless               C. extra           D. special

9.A. wept    B. demonstrated          C. smiled          D. yelled

10.A. see      B. realize               C. keep            D. hold

11.A. grateful B. careful               C. meaningful        D. faithful

12.A. get     B. grasp                C. have             D. lose

13.A. take          B. make                C. set               D. sell

14.A. wrongly  B. wisely               C. naturally          D. really

15.A. old           B. used                C. gone             D. dead

There once lived a young man who was always unhappy and complained about his poverty. One day, he went to see a fortune teller to inquire how to become      16    . The fortune teller said, "Young man, you are already wealthy now."
"Where is my wealth?" the young man asked     17   .
"It is with you. Your     18    is (are) your wealth. You use them to see this world. You use them to see all the     19   things in this world. You can read, study and learn. Your hands are your wealth. You can use them to work. You can use them to hug your beloved ones. Your     20    are your wealth. You can go to any places..." the fortune teller said.
"You call these wealth? Everyone has them," the young man said.
"These are wealth. What you have now are not what others can luckily have. Are you     21    to give your eyes to me? I am willing to give you a lot of money to     22     for them," the fortune teller said.
"No, are you crazy? I am not going to exchange my eyes for money! They are     23    to me!" the young man     24    .
"Precisely, these are wealth to you. You will not exchange them for money. Furthermore, although a lot of people have their wealthy things, they do not     25    them or treasure them. They are not     26    to Heaven for giving them their wealth. They even complain that Heaven is unfair to them. Do you want to    27    one of them before you will treasure them?" the fortune teller said.
Everyone is wealthy. But we should not     28   it for granted. We need to treasure our wealth, take care of it and use it     29    . We should not overuse it because once it is     30    , it is gone forever. Remember it is our wealth that we do not want to lose.

短文填词（共10小题；每小题1分，满分10分）
Life is not easy. Some people complain they are too busy, becausework t__【小题1】____ up most of their time. Other people complain their lifeis ___【小题2】_____(充满压力的), with challenges coming one after another. Of course, everyone ____【小题3】___ (更喜欢) a happy life to a hard life.But __【小题4】___ you know, happiness won’t knock on our doors of itself.
To __【小题5】___ (支持)their families, farmers have to work hard in the sun.To get promoted, clerks have to work extra hours in the office. To make___【小题6】__ (进步) ,athletes have to stand hard training and even suffer ____【小题7】____ injuriesand diseases. Life is full of difficulties. ___【小题8】_____ you are happy or notdepends on how you deal with them. In my o____【小题9】_____,strong determination is the best ____【小题10】_____(品质)in leading a happy and rewarding life.

短文填词（共10小题；每小题1分，满分10分）

Life is not easy. Some people complain they are too busy, because

work t______ up most of their time. Other people complain their life  76.__________

is ________(充满压力的), with challenges coming one after another. 77.__________

Of course, everyone _______ (更喜欢) a happy life to a hard life. 78.__________

But _____ you know, happiness won’t knock on our doors of itself. 79.__________

To _____ (支持)their families, farmers have to work hard in the sun. 80.__________

To get promoted, clerks have to work extra hours in the office.

To make_____ (进步) ,                                         81.__________

athletes have to stand hard training and even suffer ________ injuries 82.__________

and diseases.

Life is full of difficulties. ________ you are happy or not    83.__________

depends on how you deal with them. In my o_________,             84.__________

strong determination is the best _________(品质)                   85.__________

in leading a happy and rewarding life.