What is Digg?208 Comments
- rivalius13, on 05/03/2008, -8/+126Hopefully Amazon win, otherwise NY will have set a nasty precedent, I don't wanna pay sales tax on my fleshlights!!
- PeppermintPig, on 05/03/2008, -8/+111Looking at this as a state jurisdictional issue, the answer should be no. If you are bound to the laws of another state, where does that end? Can they start charging you other types of use fees? When regular people do this, it's illegal, but somehow it's legal because the state says so?? You cannot impose a debt onto someone else without their consent or knowledge... that's like going to a store and buying something, but saying so-and-so is going to pay for it, charge it on their account.
These government loonies need to find real jobs and stop sucking away peoples wealth. - Xelseragoth, on 05/03/2008, -1/+66The biggest issue here should be that this seems unconstitutional. By doing this, NY state is regulating interstate commerce, and last time I checked, thats a big no no for the states...
- Braxo, on 05/03/2008, -5/+49I wish New York state legislators were more creative in lowering taxes rather than being creative in creating taxes.
- webefools, on 05/03/2008, -13/+50Go Amazon Go! I'm tired of being taxed for everything! The government taxes for everything! They take away all my money. Taxed for trying to make a living, they take a good chunk of it away. Taxed for enjoying my junk foods, fax tax. Taxed for enjoying my nicotine and taking a breath of air. Taxed when when I take a dump in the toilet. Taxed for taking a walk. Taxed for having a car. Taxed for wearing clothes. Taxed for not dying. Taxed Taxed Taxed. I mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore.
- WindReaver, on 05/03/2008, -3/+34Amazon could stop all sales to NY and force the issue by having many irate citizens pissed at the government.
- Skurt, on 05/03/2008, -4/+32I recently bought a cell phone from Verizon online (the boss said it had to be Verizon and he is paying the cell bill, *I* just had to buy my phone) anyway, I see on the bill that CALIFORNIA REQUIRES Verizon to collect tax on the amount that the phone WOULD HAVE COST RETAIL! The price NO ONE pays, and they are collecting tax on this phantom amount...
so my LG Chocolate was on sale for $79, the normal asking price is $120, but the MSRP is $250 so CALIFORNIA TAXED ME for the $250 Price of the Phone, that NO ONE EVER PAYS.
if I went to Verizon to pick up the phone it would cost $79 and I would have got charged the $79 tax rate.
What kind of Taxation without representation is this crap!! - exomni, on 05/03/2008, -2/+28Quill Corp. v. North Dakota, 504 U.S. 298 (1992) is a Supreme Court of the United States case concerning sales tax. Quill Corporation sells office supplies. North Dakota claimed they owed sales tax since they sold their products in the state. Quill claimed they did not owe sales tax since they did not have a location in North Dakota and did not employ anyone in the state. The Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of Quill.
- inactive, on 05/03/2008, -2/+26No problem. I can buy from canada. Or mexico. Or anywhere else. I'd rather pay extra shipping than an unfair tax.
For that matter, what if the servers are on an indian reservation? - kotn2012, on 05/03/2008, -3/+27I say we dump their tea into the harbor!
- IanRReardon, on 05/03/2008, -21/+43You can see the hypocrisy on digg with stories like this.
You have the Obama lovers who will turn around and blast any additional taxes. Guess what, if he gets elected its only going to get MUCH worse. You can not be for lower taxes and Obama at the same time. They are just completely incompatible viewpoints. - rockchops, on 05/03/2008, -5/+26Asa former resident of NY state, I can attest to the fact that its tax system is absolutely f**king RIDICULOUS! So, naturally this is no surprise for me that they'd try to do something absurdly greedy like this.
- turkeyssr, on 05/03/2008, -4/+23Whether or no you agree with the war or ANYTHING else this country is doing, I think all sides/parties can agree we're taxed FAR too much. States simply don't have the right to tax across state boundaries. Only the Federal Government can do that. Don't forget WE are the government!
- cnot3, on 05/03/2008, -4/+16Whats a constitution? Isn't that an aircraft carrier or something?
- gwyrth, on 05/03/2008, -3/+15They're taxing us to DEATH. Our gas in NY is a good 10 cents more than it is over the border in PA. Thruway tolls have gone up 3 times in a short space of time and now they want to raise them again. If they want to attract businesses and residents here, they need to ease up. OK, everyone loves NYC, but as for the rest of the state, it seems like everyone is packing up and moving out.
- chambana, on 05/03/2008, -0/+12well at least the new governor is blind to it
- consonance, on 05/03/2008, -2/+13If this goes to the Supreme Court, it will be struck down regardless of politics. The Court will examine the law using the balancing test, which will weigh the the reason for the law and the effect or undue burden it will have on interstate commerce. For a reasonable law to withstand this test, it must be both reasonable and not an undue burden. Since the NY tax law has a discriminatory effect on interstate commerce, there's no way that it could be upheld.
- PeppermintPig, on 05/03/2008, -3/+14There's no fault in ignorance, if it is not willful. While people COULD spend half a day researching tax law and court precedent, it's typically not a useful way to spend their time when they themselves have taxes, upkeep and living expenses to deal with. The state has no interest in enlightening the people about the law, but judges and lawyers will wield it against the people just the same.
It's perfectly legitimate to rage against the machine here, because there are so many laws it is impractical for people to know them all.
"The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws." - Cornelius Tacitus - positron, on 05/03/2008, -5/+16It's not just Obama supporters. Doesn't matter who you vote for, they will raise taxes. Maybe not directly. Maybe not immediately. They may even try to make it look like they are cutting taxes, but in the end more of your money will be going to the state. It's what bureaucracy does. It's the nature of the beast.
- PeppermintPig, on 05/03/2008, -1/+11You forgot the sarcasm tag. Oh, you're serious? 0_0 Well...
Government always allocates the money less efficiently, often giving sweetheart contracts to corporations connected to certain politicians. Example 1: Iraq rebuilding. Example 2: 100 year so-called private contract to maintain roads, which often have toll booths placed on them. Example 3: Favortism of the Telecoms and municipal control over infrastructure. Example 4: The inefficiency of distributing benefits and bureaucratic bloat of the Welfare system, including, but not limited to hospital overcharging via medicare. I could go on but I wont.
Further reading:
http://mises.org/story/1471 - exomni, on 05/03/2008, -5/+15Sales tax makes no ***** sense anyways. We should abolish all sales tax.
- inactive, on 05/03/2008, -1/+8Yeah, I'll just quit grad school a year away from my PhD so I can move out of New York. I mean, New York really sucks, but it would have to suck REALLY bad for me to throw away everything I've put into grad school. Of course, you can be absolutely ***** sure I'll leave and never set foot in NY again the day I finish my research.
- reclusiveraider, on 05/03/2008, -1/+8that was plural, how many do you need?!
- crimson117, on 05/03/2008, -3/+10I'd rather have a Democratic government tax me than a Republican government borrow from the Chinese on my behalf.
- aerotive, on 05/03/2008, -4/+10I expect Amazon to win. Their affiliates don't meet the threshold of a real physical presence, and they have a strong equal protection argument. Legislators were stupid to ever call this the Amazon Tax in public.
- 007brendan, on 05/03/2008, -1/+7I don't make more than 200k, and I've been paying slightly less tax the last couple years because of the bush tax cuts, not that I support him, but I support ALL tax cuts. Who the hell is actually fighting for more taxes? Do you think raising taxes on people that make more money than you is going to improve your standard of living? It won't, because the people that make more that 200k are just going to demand more because they know the will be taxed more. Where do you think that extra money will come from? Companies will charge ALL consumers more, or they will be forced to pay other employees less. Essentially, the wealthy will maintain the same standard of living, while everyone else suffers. And the extra money generated by these new taxes will most certainly not go towards any services that you or I will benefit from. Probably funneled into some kind of defense spending or nation building initiative that goes straight to Haliburton.
- inactive, on 05/03/2008, -0/+6*sharpening pitchfork*
- dh122, on 05/03/2008, -1/+6And replace it with what? Higher income tax? Property taxes? Not even a drastic cut in spending would make up for the lost revenue.
- 0011002, on 05/03/2008, -0/+5The state is trying to argue that if you advertise on a site that the owner is in NY then you have to pay. That however is like saying if you have an ad on tv that shows in NY you should have to pay. Basically the government sees a big untapped market and they suddenly want in.
- smurfsahoy, on 05/04/2008, -0/+5I think you're missing the point. It doesn't matter what NY laws are if they are unconstitutional. If I did my research, and discovered that NY has had a law on the books for 30 years that says I, living in California, have to send them a check whenever it snows in Manhattan, would that mean I have no right to complain about it, and would automatically lose in court?
You can't force laws on people (Amazon in this case) who aren't in your jurisdiction, didn't vote for them, or vote for any representatives of the body that did. They can pass laws about how Amazon ships its materials around once they are in the state, but not anything about how they do or do not collect taxes on the sale. - Xelseragoth, on 05/03/2008, -0/+510 cents more than it is in PA? You must have either great gas prices in your part of NY, or terrible gas prices in that part of PA. Last I knew it was more like 30 cents...
- danomagnum, on 05/03/2008, -2/+7Article 1,Section 10
No State shall, without the Consent of the Congress, lay any Imposts or Duties on Imports or Exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing its inspection Laws: and the net Produce of all Duties and Imposts, laid by any State on Imports or Exports, shall be for the Use of the Treasury of the United States; and all such Laws shall be subject to the Revision and Controul of the Congress. - Phoenyx, on 05/03/2008, -1/+6It is more than just about taxes. It is implying that affiliates are agents of Amazon. That would legally change the relationships companies have with affiliates which is bad law.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agent_%28law%29 - ChildeRoland420, on 05/03/2008, -0/+5I don't know why you're getting dugg down. You're right. That's why there's a little box on almost every State income tax form asking you the dollar amount of things purchased out of state.
- vspazv, on 05/03/2008, -1/+6(Blink) A 24 year old male digg user that has never heard of a fleshlight...
I'm confused. - 007brendan, on 05/03/2008, -0/+5Since when did the government "GIVE" me money? I earn value and wealth, which unfortunately, in the U.S. is most commonly represented with Federal Reserve notes, but I may pump all my wealth into gold in the near future, because the government can't just print more gold, causing it to lose value.. I can't even believe this is a real comment.
- fusionFactor, on 05/03/2008, -0/+5He means these:
(NSFW)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fleshlight - crimson117, on 05/03/2008, -0/+5Um, that is some pretty craptastic taxation, but you do in fact have a representative to whom you can complain and or vote out of office if he/she doesn't respond to your satisfaction.
- Codeblew, on 05/03/2008, -2/+7Hmm lets see. Obama has talked about raising the capital gains tax by almost double. I make considerably less than 200k a year yet I still invest in the stock market. So, there is your proof.
- twinklyJesus, on 05/03/2008, -1/+5It would be less problematic if you and the five other hyper-masturbatory pseudo-intellectuals, who think like you, just saved your allowance and moved to Switzerland when you graduate from high school.
- Nosocialism, on 05/04/2008, -4/+8Actually, McCain has indicated that he will extend Bush's Tax cuts, which basically helps anyone in the top 50% of income earners. What about the Bottom 50% you ask, why should they get a tax cut? Because here's the COLD hard FACTS, direct from the IRS website. Over 96% of all personal income taxes were paid by the top 50% of income earners in the U.S. The bottom 50%, paid only 3.67%. In other words, they paid practically nothing, so WE are the ones who deserve a tax break. I have a very small staff, last year I made less than 100K, if my taxes go up I might have to fire someone, so guess what, it's not just people making over 200K that will be affected. It will be EVERYONE!
Either you will be working for someone who's taxes will be going up, so they will have to fire someone (could be you), or lower their pay or lower their benefits (like some of my clients are planning to do). Or YOU will be one of the ones who has to pay more taxes period. - Ashoro, on 05/03/2008, -2/+6False you are required to pay tax regardless. A business is only required to help collect the tax (Sales Tax) if they have physical prescense in that state. In the scenario they are not in that state, the purchaser (YOU) are required to do the paying (Use Tax), since it was not collected. About 2~3% of taxpayers pays the Use Tax. Some do it out of honesty, and some because they can't away with it. Some things get audited and they can find out if you needed to pay or not, like furnitures shipped from another state.
- PeppermintPig, on 05/03/2008, -2/+6But they're demanding that Amazon collect the tax for them. That's an unlawful obligation.
It's the State's problem that they do not have the means to collect the tax. Of course, if they put some effort into it, you'd likely end up with a regulation arm that costs more to run than it makes in taxes, which would hurt everyone. - FreakyT, on 05/03/2008, -1/+5I remember Tacitus saying that.
- meells, on 05/03/2008, -2/+6Ever been to one? If you had, you would know what a silly question that was.
- kubedawg, on 05/03/2008, -0/+4vag/mouth/anal?
- 0Xonox0, on 05/03/2008, -5/+9No Taxation Without Representation!
- wit21, on 05/03/2008, -1/+5I agree that the government spends inefficiently and is corrupt, but from what I've seen of the general populous, Americans are morons with money, too. The average person puts themselves into debt because they feel entitled to have anything they want, whether they can afford it or not (and making more money doesn't seem to help this problem). If you give it to CEO's and the like, they just keep it for themselves, their employees be damned (no trickle down).
I'm sure diggers disagree with me here as most seem to be libertarian, but I say get involved in politics and do everything you can to eradicate ***** like lobbyist gifting. Vote for/support people who will be responsible. We have a failing infrastructure because all of our money goes to a stupid war and other *****. In the end, taxes are necessary (if "we the people" are the country, then "we the people" are also the income source for the country...that's an innate part of living in a democratic republic. If we want freedoms, we also have to take responsibility for every aspect of the country, including finances). Otherwise, we privatize everything and business leaders think less about what the nation needs socially than a corrupt politician does. - Avor, on 05/03/2008, -4/+7I think this issue could back to our prior Constitution (Articles of Confederation) when states imposed import taxes from goods from other states. Needless to say, that system was scrapped (for that and other problems) for our current one. While not exactly the same, it is very similar, and I think Amazon is in a strong position.
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