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RIDICULOUS: Internet taxes could arrive by THIS autumn

news.com.com — The era of tax-free e-mail, Internet shopping and broadband connections could end this fall, if recent proposals in the U.S. Congress prove successful. Digg to oppose these anti-lower class and anti-economy proposals.

Who dugg this? Made popular Jun 3, 2007

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  • TenebrousX, on 10/11/2007, -3/+701"One senator is even predicting taxes on e-mail."

    translated:
    One senator has no idea how the Internet or email works
  • guitarh3ro, on 10/11/2007, -22/+293This is *****. I already pay for my internet, why should they make me pay taxes, too?
  • jdh24, on 10/11/2007, -14/+250Just what we need: more taxes!
    Poor people use the internet to avoid sales tax and the cost of gas because shipping is frequently free, especially on big name sites like amazon.com. They use the internet to communicate and get information more cheaply than buying books, but now Congress wants to squish this free (apart from ISP charges) alternative to driving around town to talk to people, buy things, or sending letters by mail which use gas.
  • nixonrichard, on 10/11/2007, -13/+170"It disadvantages local businesses because they are less competitive. It disadvantages poor people who lack Internet access because they are forced to pay higher sales taxes to compensate for the people using Internet and catalog purchases to avoid sales taxes."

    So, by your logic we should have a google tax because google hurts local libraries. As a matter of fact, anything that is "more competitive" should be taxed to hell because it hurts existing "less competitive" businesses. We should all get taxed into oblivion because we use cars (which hurt the horse and buggy industry), we use microwaves (which hurt the wood-burning stove industry), and we use prescription drugs (which hurt the blood-letting industry).

    Also, somehow, an internet tax is GOOD for poor people . . . just like a tax on cars is good for people who can't afford a car? Are taxes on health care good for people who can't afford health care? The Internet is not a luxury item which tears up roads or pollutes lakes. It's something that should be available for use to anyone who wants it, not so expensive that it's cheaper to use archaic methods of gathering information and conducting commerce.

    When I buy something online I AVOID driving to a store to get it. Why should I pay taxes to local roads. The shipping method I use already includes local, state, and federal taxes.
  • nixonrichard, on 10/11/2007, -121/+218***** Democrats!
  • cactus476, on 10/11/2007, -8/+84"This is *****. I already pay for my internet, why should they make me pay taxes, too?"

    They already do.
  • DruSam, on 10/11/2007, -1/+77You think our government would actually do an effective job at cutting spam? These people don't even know how to correctly and ethically use the money we give them now. Leave the spam cutting to software engineers and entrepreneurs. Case in point Gmail already does an effective job of blocking most spam.
  • sarazen, on 10/11/2007, -1/+70"Give you five guesses which one that is. Need a hint? Tubes."

    If you are suggesting Ted Stevens from Alaska who called the Internet a series of tubes, you would seem snarky and clever to the uninformed and be 100% wrong.

    Uncle Teddy might not quite grasp how the Internet works, but is dead set against taxing it, as the article states. Here, I'll quote it for ya, 'Sen. Ted Stevens, an Alaska Republican, said Wednesday that he'd like "to see an impregnable ban on taxes on the Internet."' You did read the article didn't you?
  • meshman, on 10/11/2007, -4/+66Try collecting it.
  • dt40, on 10/11/2007, -38/+95The sales tax aspect of this is NOT a new tax. It is enhancing enforcement of existing taxes.

    Resist sales taxes if you think sales taxes are a bad idea. However, uneven application and enforcement of sales taxes based on the purchase mechanism is absolutely silly. It disadvantages local businesses because they are less competitive. It disadvantages poor people who lack Internet access because they are forced to pay higher sales taxes to compensate for the people using Internet and catalog purchases to avoid sales taxes.

  • imjustabill, on 10/11/2007, -1/+56Have you not looked at your phone or cable bill lately? You're already getting taxed like crazy for them.
  • bufmike, on 10/11/2007, -15/+70You do know you have to pay the use tax on those purchases don't you? I know many don't pay the tax, but that is the way it works.
  • Smeed, on 10/11/2007, -2/+44***** email tax. They will never be able to enforce that.
  • nixonrichard, on 10/11/2007, -10/+51Actually, I think you DO want to beat a dead horse.
  • Cloud7654, on 10/11/2007, -5/+45Eh, who cares. I already beat the internet and the final boss is a let down anyways.
  • fuzzmeister, on 10/11/2007, -3/+35Taxes on eBay income, sure. Sales tax on internet purchases, eh. But email taxes? WTF?
  • sarazen, on 10/11/2007, -7/+37Ladies, ladies, first this has to PASS, and then it has to be SIGNED. Even with the Dems in charge of congress they do not make a definitive majority. They couldn't overturn a presidential veto without significant Repub support which would be unlikely, so ramrodding this thing through ain't going to be easy. So far Pelosi has not proved herself to be any Tom 'The Hammer' Delay so all this panic seems way premature. Remember, few senators or representatives wants to be on the hook for being the one to vote for new taxes come re-election time, not to mention Bush doesn't have much reason to sign a tax increase for a Democratic congress. Such is the beauty of divided government. Crackpot bills come up all the time, but it takes way more than being introduced to make them law.

    Now the moratorium on locally taxing connection to the Internet via, dsl, cable, etc. is a bit more dicey, still it is important to remember that this is the government we are talking about here, and if they do let the moratorium lapse, you can have a much greater voice with your local city council or state legislature if you don't like the idea of a connection tax.

    Still for all those worried, by all means, contact your Senator and Representative. They do like to talk to the people.
  • PopcornDave, on 10/11/2007, -5/+33@imjustabill

    "You pay for the gas, car and roads that you use when you go to the store to buy something that you have to pay tax on. Why should the internet be any different?"

    If they would be using the monies collected to improve upload/download speeds then maybe, and that's a BIG maybe. But since the government doesn't provide DSL connections, we're already paying taxes on our phone lines. And I believe that we've been paying that to finance the Spanish American war, which I believe has been over for about 100 years.

    What exactly are the states going to use this money for anyway? Gas taxes go to road repair. Perhaps if they were going to institute a nationwide fiber optic phone system that we could use for our internet people wouldn't be complaining as much.

    At this point it's just a money grab, nothing more.
  • Drexus, on 10/11/2007, -5/+32The internet is a medium of communication. So if they want to tax the internet, will they tax TV, Radio and cell phone communications? How about talking on the phone? Is VOIP going to get taxed? Where do they draw the line?
  • brandonhines, on 10/11/2007, -0/+26"Digging" an article doesn't oppose anything. How about "write your senator" in the summary instead?
  • dangermen, on 10/11/2007, -32/+58YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE PAYING TAXES ON ON-LINE PURCHASES. THEY'RE CALLED USE TAXES.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Use_tax

    Here is the deal:
    - If you don't pay them, your state can send you nasty grams in the mail saying "We see you have filed zero dollars in use taxes, please pay them." These notices are fairly common. IOW, the state tax departments are saying "Look, we aren't stupid, you're buying stuff on line, pay your tax". Now who here wants to keep records of the crap they buy JUST so you can pay use tax at the end of the year?
    - With a mandated sales tax, it means YOU don't have to keep records for paying end-of-year taxes. They just add it on to your purchase like any other state(if your state has a sales tax). I don't know about you but I'd much rather pay the friggin tax up front then worry about the stupid EOY paperwork.

    One thing to make life easier for consumers AND businesses: only allow one tax rate per state. example: Wisconsin has a moronic tax system where every county can charge differing rates something up to like 1/2% on top of whatever the state charges. Some counties are 5%, some are 5.5%, or like 5.25%. So to make it easier on on-line retailers, just legislate single tax rates per state for those that have a sales tax. End this moronic madness now.
  • PeppermintPig, on 10/11/2007, -3/+29They tax because they can, and they love to tax soft targets. They must believe that internet users are pushovers. If this tax goes through, it probably means we are. Keep an eye on those who are supporting this! This is a liberty issue which must be defended against!

    Broadband is costly enough in my area due to lack of competition. Does that mean the high price of broadband in my area will have a proportionately inflated tax? I'm voting Ron Paul so we don't have to deal with these ridiculous taxes. Why do they need MORE taxes???
  • Drexus, on 10/11/2007, -5/+30Sorry, I live in Canada.
  • zediker, on 10/11/2007, -2/+25Well, even if they do tax e-mail, I predict a new standard of communication will develop over the internet, and it will not be called e-mail. Then all we have to do is wait a few years for them to tax that service, then create a new one again, yet slightly different, and then start the cycle all over again. Remember, you can only tax what you specify you can tax. Change what you are using, and it cannot be taxed. Voila, problem solved.
  • ChewyBass, on 10/11/2007, -2/+23Sen. Michael Enzi, a Wyoming Republican, at a Senate hearing on Wednesday. "Are we implicitly blessing a situation where states are forced to raise other taxes, such as income or property taxes, to offset the growing loss of sales tax revenue?"

    Sir, let me set one thing clear for you. You are a government entity and not a business, you are not in this to make revenue. One of governments function is to make and enforce laws. When did this become a business model for ever increasing "revenues" so you can turn around and tell the people "look at how much money I brought you". ***** you. You should be kissing our ass and telling us thanks for sending in our taxes.

    Yes, I am a republican.
  • nirav72, on 10/11/2007, -2/+22@nixonrichard "***** Democrats"

    While I'm not a democrat, I have to comment against your ignorance.

    This bill was introduced by a Republican ..you *****. Read the article!!

  • kikibun, on 10/11/2007, -1/+19It would be trivial to get around email taxes: send your email from a web portal located in another country.
  • tech42er, on 10/11/2007, -5/+22@nixon
    Welcome to Communism, the perfect egalitarian society, where no one hurts anyone else by being more competitive.

    @pop
    What else is the gov?
  • PopcornDave, on 10/11/2007, -0/+16Why do they need more taxes?

    Because they spend money like a drunken horny sailor in on shore leave. Fiscal responsibility gets left at the door apparently.
  • mrASSMAN, on 10/11/2007, -4/+20dude, i'm lazy and tired. and illiterate.

    (my mom wrote this comment for me)
  • Pseudorious, on 10/11/2007, -3/+17@sarazen

    You beat me to it, but let's see how many diggs noahhoward gets from other diggers who don't read the articles.
  • statix, on 10/11/2007, -3/+17go ahead let them tax email.

    so 6.5% sales tax of $0.00 = comes out to....$0.00
  • OsiVert, on 10/11/2007, -0/+14Taxing email would be impossible. How would you tax it? Who would get taxed, the senders or receivers? The senders can spoof addresses and IP's, making it impossible to track them down. The receivers don't always want to get the email, and even so, you can just sign up for an email that's hosted in another country.
  • rejoined, on 10/11/2007, -1/+14One surefire way to cause an Internet revolt is an introduction of a bill by a wiseass senator which would tax watching internet porn.
  • Pootle4rthur, on 10/11/2007, -4/+17well,
    as someone who lives in Europe, I'm finding it hilarious

    How exactly a tax on email would function over the international borders of the internet makes my tiny mind melt.
  • rumbl3r, on 10/11/2007, -0/+12Lets recreate the Boston tea party by throwing modems and computers into a river! Hoorah!
  • MarkusBlair, on 10/11/2007, -6/+18"Fudging Democrats!"

    U.S. Senator Mike Enzi, R-Wyo.

    I believe Enzi is an R not a D.
  • gamebittk, on 10/11/2007, -5/+16They just suck at the internet.
  • tech42er, on 10/11/2007, -0/+11@sam
    Nope, I'll admit it. I don't think this should be a tax and I don't want this to be a tax, because the gov is completely abusing their powers with this (and other) taxes. Taxes on public things I suppose I can stomach but private transactions? BS. Hell, the ***** income tax is asinine if you think about it. Not necessarily illegal but still ridiculous and wrong.
  • Urusai, on 10/11/2007, -1/+12FTA: "If that doesn't happen, other taxes may zoom upward instead, warned Sen. Michael Enzi, a Wyoming Republican, at a Senate hearing on Wednesday. "Are we implicitly blessing a situation where states are forced to raise other taxes, such as income or property taxes, to offset the growing loss of sales tax revenue?" Enzi said. "I want to avoid that."

    What a load of unmitigated baloney. They passed the income tax amendment because they told people it was only going to apply to the rich, and only during of the war. Give them the right to tax anything, and they will tax it to the limit of rebellion. And once again, a Republican shows his true tax-and-spend colors. Don't buy their conservative rhetoric.
  • Archon810, on 10/11/2007, -0/+101. Taxes.
    2. People trying to invent new taxes and enforce old ridiculous ones.
  • bobcatred, on 10/11/2007, -2/+12Regardless of the fact that it'd be near impossible to track and collect, $0.001 an email is still WAY cheaper than paper flyers, billboards, tv or radio commercials, print ads, or even ads on most prominant websites. And if they have to pay an email tax, Spammers will argue that they have the right to spam you because they're paying for it. That's not going to stop anything.
  • PopcornDave, on 10/11/2007, -0/+9Exactly how many times should taxes be added to your purchase?

    Let's say you buy a book from an online retailer and you're not paying your local sales tax. The retailer is paying taxes on his income from the book. The packaging supplier and the printer of the book, in addition to the author are as well. The delivery service is paying taxes on the gas that they're using to bring you said book.

    Exactly what part of that is not bringing the taxes in to your community? Taxes are being paid at every step except for you. Since the book is being delivered, you've got both a road and a vehicle tax being paid.

    The local municipalities are just pissed because they're missing a cut of the pie. If government don't have the money to pay for something, then they need to look where they're spending the money. Perhaps they could start by cutting their own salaries and privileges.
  • cptn_cardboard, on 10/11/2007, -2/+11***** this *****.
    Internet: were seceding from all governments, especially America.
  • metall1c1ne, on 10/11/2007, -4/+13That is the dumbest ***** I've ever heard!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Internet Tax? ....hey, Congress....go ***** yourself!
  • Yodan1, on 10/11/2007, -0/+9***** I hate my country....our government is corrupt ***** who are going to ***** us into oblivion until their pockets explode. I hope you read this..anyone in the government who reads digg...this is a HUGE issue and its sick that people are sheep. Its time to kick the bastards in the nuts again. Remember the 60-70's? We need another one. The internet was made as a global telephone. We pay per month...go ***** yourselves if you think otherwise.
  • catalysis, on 10/11/2007, -1/+10Ebay income is already taxed. It's called income tax.
  • mikestro, on 10/11/2007, -1/+9Not sure, but maybe you are doing it from your home and not using state resources? How about this. Why should it be taxed in the first place? The whole concept of sales taxes "just because" needs to be questioned.
    Tea Party anyone?
  • PopcornDave, on 10/11/2007, -0/+8You can't. You'd probably be charged with dumping hazardous waste.

    If you really wanted to be symbolic, dump douche bags in to the Boston harbor.
  • NikoKun, on 10/11/2007, -2/+10I think we Really need to watch out about this issue, not because of this "tax on the internet" no, because that is a real hoax...
    Instead, watch out for the other crap the government will try to pull while using internet tax as a cover.
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