Amazon pays $0 on Federal Income Taxes for 11 Billion

[Fuzzy Necromancer]

http://fortune.com/2019/02/14/amazon-do ... axes-2019/

We all too often have socialism for the rich and rugged free market capitalism for the poor. -MLKjr

[BridgeConsoleMasher]

Same story with Netflix I believe.

[Madner Kami]

*slowclap*

[clearspira]

That MLK quote makes no sense because no definition of socialism means ''restrict money to the few.'' Here is the first paragraph of wikipedia for you:

''Socialism is a range of economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production and workers' self-management, as well as the political theories and movements associated with them. Social ownership can be public, collective or cooperative ownership, or citizen ownership of equity. There are many varieties of socialism and there is no single definition encapsulating all of them, with social ownership being the common element shared by its various forms.''

Here's a far more accurate quote courtesy of Gordon Gekko:

''The richest one percent of this country owns half our country's wealth, five trillion dollars. One third of that comes from hard work, two thirds comes from inheritance, interest on interest accumulating to widows and idiot sons – and what I do, stock and real estate speculation. It's bullshit. You got ninety percent of the American public out there with little or no net worth. I create nothing. I own. We make the rules, pal. The news, war, peace, famine, upheaval, the price per paper clip. We pick that rabbit out of the hat while everybody sits out there wondering how the hell we did it. Now, you're not naive enough to think we're living in a democracy, are you, Buddy? It's the free market. And you're a part of it. You've got that killer instinct. Stick around, pal, I've still got a lot to teach you.''

[BridgeConsoleMasher]

That MLK quote makes no sense because no definition of socialism means ''restrict money to the few.'' Here is the first paragraph of wikipedia for you:

''Socialism is a range of economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production and workers' self-management, as well as the political theories and movements associated with them. Social ownership can be public, collective or cooperative ownership, or citizen ownership of equity. There are many varieties of socialism and there is no single definition encapsulating all of them, with social ownership being the common element shared by its various forms.''

Here's a far more accurate quote courtesy of Gordon Gekko:

''The richest one percent of this country owns half our country's wealth, five trillion dollars. One third of that comes from hard work, two thirds comes from inheritance, interest on interest accumulating to widows and idiot sons – and what I do, stock and real estate speculation. It's bullshit. You got ninety percent of the American public out there with little or no net worth. I create nothing. I own. We make the rules, pal. The news, war, peace, famine, upheaval, the price per paper clip. We pick that rabbit out of the hat while everybody sits out there wondering how the hell we did it. Now, you're not naive enough to think we're living in a democracy, are you, Buddy? It's the free market. And you're a part of it. You've got that killer instinct. Stick around, pal, I've still got a lot to teach you.''

https://jalopnik.com/how-a-17-year-old- ... -a-5591644

[Nealithi]

I may need to try and find them. But I thought the 'tax loopholes' that keep being reported are doing things like cleaning up factories. Going solar, and other environmental moves designed to make a company greener. Thus they can reduce tax debt to zero by doing things we want them to do.

[BridgeConsoleMasher]

I may need to try and find them. But I thought the 'tax loopholes' that keep being reported are doing things like cleaning up factories. Going solar, and other environmental moves designed to make a company greener. Thus they can reduce tax debt to zero by doing things we want them to do.

Go for it, but there is the ongoing concern of companies going to the lowest bidder in taxes for this kind of thing.

[Nealithi]

I may need to try and find them. But I thought the 'tax loopholes' that keep being reported are doing things like cleaning up factories. Going solar, and other environmental moves designed to make a company greener. Thus they can reduce tax debt to zero by doing things we want them to do.

Go for it, but there is the ongoing concern of companies going to the lowest bidder in taxes for this kind of thing.

I am sorry if I seem a bit thick here. But I do not understand the lowest bidder in taxes you mention. Can you explain it to me, please?

[BridgeConsoleMasher]

I may need to try and find them. But I thought the 'tax loopholes' that keep being reported are doing things like cleaning up factories. Going solar, and other environmental moves designed to make a company greener. Thus they can reduce tax debt to zero by doing things we want them to do.

Go for it, but there is the ongoing concern of companies going to the lowest bidder in taxes for this kind of thing.

I am sorry if I seem a bit thick here. But I do not understand the lowest bidder in taxes you mention. Can you explain it to me, please?

Well it's a problem of capital flight when it's on the national level. Republican talking point is that if you raise corporate taxes, then the corporations all flee to developing countries where regulation is less intricate and the countries are willing to let you set up shop for less tax costs for what benefit they do get.

States in the US aren't much different. Amazon being pushed out of New York is a recent example of pushback against the same kind of invitation states send for businesses to set up shop and pay less income tax.

I do really get what you're saying. I kinda doubt environmental impact offset really makes up for it. Though when environmental efforts on a marginal scale are pushed more than welfare concerns on your own terf (I've heard of it as an issue in my county where a lot of money was put into bike trails), it doesn't fare the best.