Poll of the Day > Lol. Trump just ragged on Amazon for not paying taxes and overusing USPS.

(+) Yeah! (+)

Donald Trump tweeted...

I have stated my concerns with Amazon long before the Election. Unlike others, they pay little or no taxes to state & local governments, use our Postal System as their Delivery Boy (causing tremendous loss to the U.S.), and are putting many thousands of retailers out of business.

That first comment is gold.
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Don't hate him cuz you ain't him

Taxation is theft
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BADoglick posted...

Taxation is theft

Not by any definition of the word.

BADoglick posted...

Taxation is theft

Not when youre free to leave the country
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how else would you use the postal service if not to deliver mail?
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helIy posted...

...

how else would you use the postal service if not to deliver mail?

Yeah, that one is a bit of a head scratcher, its not like Amazon doesn't pay to ship stuff with USPS the same as anyone else.

The first comment is pure gold though since Trump is on record stating that it is just smart business to pay as little taxes as possible.

helIy posted...

...

how else would you use the postal service if not to deliver mail?

Yeah,that was my question. They use the delivery system as a delivery system...

Far-Queue posted...

That first comment is gold.

And people whine about Trump blocking them, trying to sue him over it. It's also inaccurate, since we also had details about Bill's relationship with Monica and other women, but he probably wasn't paying attention to politics until Trump took office.

_AdjI_ posted...

BADoglick posted...

Taxation is theft

Not by any definition of the word.

Clearly by some definitions, considering it's coerced through threat and the amount is determined by them.
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Zeus posted...

Clearly by some definitions, considering it's coerced through threat and the amount is determined by them.

Can you supply some of those definitions
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Technically, the U.S. Postal System causes a "tremendous loss to the U.S." regardless of if Amazon uses it or not.

But I don't know why people even look at Trump's twitter as if it means something.
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Trump doesn't know how something works.
What else is new?

Can't say I know enough about the situation. Is Trump suggesting Amazon uses USPS too much as opposed to using FedEx, UPS, or other private companies? Is Amazon getting a better deal via the USPS thus causing FedEx, UPS, etc. to miss out on some potential income?
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InfestedAdam posted...

Can't say I know enough about the situation. Is Trump suggesting Amazon uses USPS too much as opposed to using FedEx, UPS, or other private companies? Is Amazon getting a better deal via the USPS thus causing FedEx, UPS, etc. to miss out on some potential income?

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/amazon-contract-with-usps-fact-checking-trumps-tweet-about-amazon-and-the-post-office/

_AdjI_ posted...

BADoglick posted...

Taxation is theft

Not by any definition of the word.

If it's not theft, then don't pay taxes.

In the interests of devil's advocacy here, it's probably noting that Trump has political incentive to attack Amazon since it's owned by Clinton ally Jeff Bezos who bought WaPo and has used it like a Super PAC against Hillary's competition, arguably targeting both Bernie Sanders and Trump with a disproportionate number of negative opinion pieces as well as coverage.

Mead posted...

Zeus posted...

Clearly by some definitions, considering it's coerced through threat and the amount is determined by them.

Can you supply some of those definitions

In common usage, theft is the taking of another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theft

knivesX2004 posted...

Trump doesn't know how something works.
What else is new?

Uh, he knows very well that Amazon doesn't collect taxes from third-party sellers which deprives states of income.

"But Trump is referencing the company's lack of sales tax collection on its third-party platform sales outside a handful of states. The third-party business represents roughly half of Amazon's unit sales, according to Stifel.

Some retail competitors argue this policy for third-party vendors that sell on Amazon's platform gives it an unfair advantage."
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/03/29/heres-the-controversial-tax-practice-by-amazon-thats-got-trump-so-upset.html

Not that you'd bother educating yourself on anything like this.

InfestedAdam posted...

Can't say I know enough about the situation. Is Trump suggesting Amazon uses USPS too much as opposed to using FedEx, UPS, or other private companies? Is Amazon getting a better deal via the USPS thus causing FedEx, UPS, etc. to miss out on some potential income?

Hard to say. Amazon has a separate contract with the USPS so it's not going to pay the same rates as somebody normally sending something through the mail. Supposedly the USPS still makes a profit, although I imagine it's considerably less than it might make from others. Amazon isn't unique in managing to get a separate rate, but it's far higher volume than most competitors. And, I should mention, that non-profits are losing their special shipping rates (which were essentially at-cost) while this is happening.

Otherwise if we're talking about it just benefiting more from use of infrastructure, that's a less valid complaint unless it was imposing some added burden on the system (which, if it's dramatically paying less for shipping, might be true in a weaker sense of the term)
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Zeus that is just something that some stranger wrote on wikipedia

They could even be a pedophile for all we know
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BADoglick posted...

Taxation is theft

Taxation is just the government charging citizens to pay for public goods that would almost certainly not be provided by the uncoordinated actions of people. Without taxes, our country would not have a military. However, the military does provide you with some benefit even if you didn't pay your taxes.

Theft is just taking away and keeping someone's property, usually without their knowledge or permission. I don't think they're the same thing. The government can't expect to protect citizens endeavors just with voluntary donations, right?
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lol, he thinks giving a business work somehow causes them "loss"!
And he's supposed to be the business-savvy president! (he's not, but a lot of fools still think he is)

TigerTycoon posted...

Technically, the U.S. Postal System causes a "tremendous loss to the U.S." regardless of if Amazon uses it or not.

Uh....no.
The Postal Service is entirely self-funded through the prices it charges for its services and while in some recent years the decline in physical mailing has resulted in annual losses, they've adjusted to the drop in mail activity and typically don't end their years w/ losses any more (nor did they for the vast majority of their existence prior to email).
They do end every year with a massive debt, but that's not due to their business model not working. That's due to a law Congress passed forcing them to pre-fund their retirement plans for decades into the future, which means they're required to set aside billions of dollars and report it as a loss.

https://www.nalc.org/government-affairs/body/2015-pre-funding-fact-sheet.pdf

VioletZer0 posted...

_AdjI_ posted...

BADoglick posted...

Taxation is theft

Not by any definition of the word.

If it's not theft, then don't pay taxes.

That would be theft.
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Mead posted...

Zeus that is just something that some stranger wrote on wikipedia

They could even be a pedophile for all we know

As opposed to some strange dictionary pedophile? >_> Also, what's up with you and pedophiles all of the sudden?

jramirez23 posted...

BADoglick posted...

Taxation is theft

Taxation is just the government charging citizens to pay for public goods that would almost certainly not be provided by the uncoordinated actions of people. Without taxes, our country would not have a military. However, the military does provide you with some benefit even if you didn't pay your taxes.

Theft is just taking away and keeping someone's property, usually without their knowledge or permission. I don't think they're the same thing. The government can't expect to protect citizens endeavors just with voluntary donations, right?

The fact that some of the money is spent on you doesn't change that it's theft. If I stole $20 from you and handed you a $5 ice cream cone, it doesn't magically stop being theft.
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adjl posted...

VioletZer0 posted...

_AdjI_ posted...

BADoglick posted...

Taxation is theft

Not by any definition of the word.

If it's not theft, then don't pay taxes.

That would be theft.

Not by any definition of the word. >_> Granted, I understand that you have a wonky perception where 100% of what an individual earns really belongs to the government -- as does anything they own and even the person themselves -- and anything the government chooses to grant back is done as a show of good will and magnanimity
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Also, what's up with you and pedophiles all of the sudden?

I dont think Ive made any other comments about them that I can recall

I guess I should just come out and admit that I am against pedophila
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Zeus posted...

Not by any definition of the word.

You're illegally taking a good or service without paying the agreed-upon price for it. Textbook theft.
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Mead posted...

Also, what's up with you and pedophiles all of the sudden?

I dont think Ive made any other comments about them that I can recall

I guess I should just come out and admit that I am against pedophila

I'm against slavery but you don't hear me randomly bringing it into conversations.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLtdF1-0m0o" data-time="

adjl posted...

Zeus posted...

Not by any definition of the word.

You're illegally taking a good or service without paying the agreed-upon price for it. Textbook theft.

lolwut? That goes back to my ice cream remark -- you're not agreeing to a price or service. They're forcibly taking the money and handing you something you may or may not want. That's textbook theft. (Well, except without the "illegal" part because the government makes the laws.)
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Zeus posted...

you're not agreeing to a price or service.

Choosing to live in a community constitutes a tacit agreement to follow their laws, including paying the price they ask for. You agree to the local taxes by living where you do. Don't like them, you don't have to live there.
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streamofthesky posted...

Uh....no.
The Postal Service is entirely self-funded through the prices it charges for its services and while in some recent years the decline in physical mailing has resulted in annual losses, they've adjusted to the drop in mail activity and typically don't end their years w/ losses any more (nor did they for the vast majority of their existence prior to email).
They do end every year with a massive debt, but that's not due to their business model not working. That's due to a law Congress passed forcing them to pre-fund their retirement plans for decades into the future, which means they're required to set aside billions of dollars and report it as a loss.

This.

Trump's statement would only be true if the USPS deliveries were subsidized (including commercial ones like Amazon's), which they're not. There's been many statements by USPS saying they scrambled like crazy to do Amazon's bidding because they wanted the business. It actually helps (at least money wise. In some cases I read they had to overwork employees quite a bit and that might take a toll. But that's a different problem).

I'm against slavery but you don't hear me randomly bringing it into conversations

You just did
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Heres another thing about taxes: they can also be thought of as a tool that the government uses to discourage or mitigate the effects of certain behaviors. Like a cigarette tax might help offset the health risks that smokers bring upon themselves and bystanders. In this case, I would argue the tax on smokers isnt a theft. Rather the smokers are paying a cost that more accurately represents the cost that smoking inflicts on the society at large.
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adjl posted...

VioletZer0 posted...

_AdjI_ posted...

BADoglick posted...

Taxation is theft

Not by any definition of the word.

If it's not theft, then don't pay taxes.

That would be theft.

When you're so much of a slave you think the government owns the fruits of your labor.

helIy posted...

...

how else would you use the postal service if not to deliver mail?

They probably get an extremely low rate while heavily clogging the system.
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adjl posted...

Zeus posted...

you're not agreeing to a price or service.

Choosing to live in a community constitutes a tacit agreement to follow their laws, including paying the price they ask for. You agree to the local taxes by living where you do. Don't like them, you don't have to live there.

You are completely full of shit. You know damn well no one chooses where they live and most people can't afford to move to another State or country.
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adjl posted...

Choosing to live in a community constitutes a tacit agreement to follow their laws, including paying the price they ask for. You agree to the local taxes by living where you do. Don't like them, you don't have to live there.

Where can I live where I don't pay taxes?

I see Amazon doesn't fund Trump.

I guess that means he's allowed to say the right thing.
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ninja_lootz posted...

adjl posted...

Zeus posted...

you're not agreeing to a price or service.

Choosing to live in a community constitutes a tacit agreement to follow their laws, including paying the price they ask for. You agree to the local taxes by living where you do. Don't like them, you don't have to live there.

You are completely full of shit. You know damn well no one chooses where they live and most people can't afford to move to another State or country.

That's on them. Taxes are the price for living in a given area. If moving to a different area wouldn't save enough tax money to justify the cost of moving, then that just means paying the local taxes instead is the best economic decision, not that taxes are fundamentally involuntary.

VioletZer0 posted...

Where can I live where I don't pay taxes?

Generally anywhere that doesn't have an actual society to be part of and contribute to. Let me know how that works out for you.

VioletZer0 posted...

When you're so much of a slave you think the government owns the fruits of your labor.

Do you complain that a barber owns the fruits of your labour when you get arrested after refusing to pay for your haircut? Of course not. Don't steal from people by refusing to pay for the things they give you for an agreed-upon price.
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I never agreed to pay taxes. Taxes you agree to pay to is called "Charity"

VioletZer0 posted...

I never agreed to pay taxes. Taxes you agree to pay to is called "Charity"

I think it's about time we got rid of the whole "churches don't pay taxes" bullshit loophole. They're clearly businesses.

adjl posted...

Generally anywhere that doesn't have an actual society to be part of and contribute to. Let me know how that works out for you

There is no such place. You go into the middle of nowhere and start a society from the ground up, government will hunt you down for taxes.

Mead posted...

I'm against slavery but you don't hear me randomly bringing it into conversations

You just did

bro, lol
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adjl posted...

Generally anywhere that doesn't have an actual society to be part of and contribute to. Let me know how that works out for you.

You have to pay taxes even if you live off grid in the woods.
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VioletZer0 posted...

You go into the middle of nowhere and start a society from the ground up, government will hunt you down for taxes.

On what? The land you're on? As they should, dems the rules. Anything else? I'm gonna need a citation for that.

VioletZer0 posted...

I never agreed to pay taxes. Taxes you agree to pay to is called "Charity"

You're choosing to be a part of society. Taxes are the price you pay for that.
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so either you pay taxes or die? are those your options?

Mead posted...

BADoglick posted...

Taxation is theft

Not when youre free to leave the country

Which you're not, from the IRS's POV

Viking_Mudcrap posted...

Mead posted...

I'm against slavery but you don't hear me randomly bringing it into conversations

You just did

bro, lol

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VioletZer0 posted...

so either you pay taxes or die? are those your options?

Ironically you could also go to prison.
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I don't mind Amazon. My coworkers says the boxes they get are small or varied, but some of them are just the right size for cross-stacking boxes.

adjl posted...

You're choosing to be a part of society.

That's debatable.
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TigerTycoon posted...

Technically, the U.S. Postal System causes a "tremendous loss to the U.S." regardless of if Amazon uses it or not.

But I don't know why people even look at Trump's twitter as if it means something.

Do you think the USPS is funded by taxes or something? Because if so I'd really like it if people completely and totally ignorant on issues stopped making blatantly false statements.

The USPS has to compete with private companies without public funding while being forced to pay more into retirement funding due to lobbying from other delivery companies.

If you don't want to pay taxes, then don't call 911, use the roads or public schools.

I mean if you really want to privatize everything you're going to deal with monopolies and price gauging much worse.
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