Being someone who works in the payroll field, I see this happen a lot more than it should if people actually took the time to READ their Form w-4 when they fill it out.

And yet, when the small percentage who write in "EXEMPT" that really are not exempt -- which incidentally is a larger percentage of the population than those who actually are "EXEMPT" -- go and fill out their taxes the following year and discover that (as I am legally required to do if "EXEMPT" is written on that line) all federal taxes have NOT been taken out of their checks, it's apparently MY FAULT that they were too stupid to read it in the first place.

It's not a complicated form, people.  Also, I am quite helpful if you have a question while filling it out -- I'm NICE even!!!

So, then, when they find out that they owe several hundred or thousand(s of) dollars to the IRS, they call me up, cussing me out, and generally pissing me off until I remind them (with their form in front of me for reference) that THEY are the ones who wrote "EXEMPT" on THEIR form and that the Federal government prohibits me from correcting your dumbass mistakes or interpreting what you MEANT to do versus what you DID do.

So, in closing of this rant, I bid to all the stupid people out there who have called me in the last week or two bitching me out because of your stupidity:

HAVE FUN PAYING OFF THE IRS BITCHES AND DON'T COME CRYIN' TO ME BECAUSE I DON'T GIVE A FLYING RAT'S ASS!

Have I mentioned that I really hate tax season?

/end rant