Taxes

[AKDejaVu]

Originally posted by Swoop
So how long have you been an international tax expert?

Who?  Me or Curval?

I personally know very little about international tax issues.  That's why I would ask about them.

I do know about the U.S.'s tax policies in regards to its population.

Basically... the original quote had the validity of me sitting back and criticizing U.K.'s tax policies.

And Lazs... a flat tax would greatly reduce the need for 90% of the IRS as would a sales tax / property tax system.  But... regardless, if it comes to people having to mail in money, there will be people that don't pay.  That will have to be tracked and dealt with.

AKDejaVu

[MrLars]

Originally posted by Wotan


Show me a waiter who honestly reports his income?

 

True story...

During the first year of the Exxon Valdez spill the herring and some salmon fishing was banned in Prince William Sound.

The fishermen were up in arms demanding payment, and rightfully so IMO, for their lost income.

Exxon realized their responsibilty to pay back the affected fishermen for their full year of losses...

...so, Exxon paid out a lot of money to those that requested these funds, but the fishermen weren't very happy with their checks one damn bit!

It turned out that Exxon's payment to them was dependant on the amount that each fisherman claimed on their '88 fed tax forms.

Fishing is more or less a cash business, in Alaska, as in many other states, their reported income is on average 1/3 of what they actualy make.

That first year < March '89 to March '90 > in Valdez was interesting to say the least

There were some fishermen that didn't squeak though, some came away with tons of money and were called  'spillionaires' by the locals. I know of 5 single boat fishermen < bow pickers, 25 or so feet and a cost of about 35-40K each > that worked since day 1 of the spill as water taxis. They had all fuel, food and repairs paid by Exxon. The typical contract for these boats was writen up on a yellow legal pad by hand for...get this, $4,500 a day. The five guys I got to know that had such a contract worked the spill for a minimum of 5 months straight.

After the initial rush for equipment the average daily fee paid for a water taxi slipped to $750 a day. They still got a check from Exxon for their lost fishing income also

[Airhead]

Originally posted by Curval


So, no sweat.  I'm not offended, or surprised, that you do not wish to take advantage of the services offered by the little island in which I live.

LOL OK, nice backhand. You're right, though, I'm too little to ever take advantage of the tax benefits offered by accountants running tax shelters for large corporations on the outer bank.  Don't worry, I'm not offended that my lack of income is no surprise to you. I'm also not offended nor surprised you're soliciting clients on the bbs.

[miko2d]

Demanding that people file tax returns likely violates the 5th Amendment. That is quite separate from the matter of paying taxes.

 miko

[lazs2]

deja... there will allways be loopholes and people who skirt the edges... A consumption or sales tax is fine it only needs to be collected from the bussiness.   Only a bussiness need file returns.   I don't want a tax on income.
lazs

[StSanta]

Nah, wait til you pay 50% income tax, 25% sales tax 180% fees on cars, 250% fees on water, an electricity market without competition. Wait til you earn less money working overtime than you do on nromal hours due to tax pressure.

The best tax collectors are in Denmark. Not only are they extremely good, they're also extremely efficient.

You ain't seen nothin' yet in the US. Wait til you work ten months of the year solely for mr Government.

After that, I'll be accpeting your complaints. Which will be taxed.

[capt. apathy]

The advantage to a sales (value added) tax over a flat tax is that you don't have to pay a gov't agency to keep tabs on where your money comes from.
There would be little incentive for tax fraud, as the cheating would have to be done in cooperation with the store you are spending at.  Why would they risk tax fraud charges to help you catch a break on your taxes?
 Your income would be private and it would encourage saving or investing because you wouldn't have to pay taxes until you spend it.
 As far as it taxing the poor more heavily than they are now. That could easily be handled by making certain things exempt from the tax.  Medical care, & food (the kind that could be bought now with food stamps, not a night out) come to mind right away.
 

Not that I enjoy the rape of my weekly paycheck, but I find the invasion of my privacy more offensive than the actual amount taken.
As it is now in order to pay a accurate % of my check I need to keep records of where I stay when out of town on business, where I eat and how much I spent.  
 And the tax courts can charge you with tax fraud and convict you without evidence.  All they have to do is accuse you.  The burden of proof is on you.  
 Say you have an expense that they claim is fraudulent, you are guilty unless you can find evidence (records) that it is accurate. And you can go to prison.  In any other criminal case the burden of proof would be on the gov't to prove you didn't have the expense.