Austrian bank employee drops 120k into river.

[Vince82]

It probably didn't end up in the river, but it's a good story:

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/new...-1226655229774

http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/ba...o-river-374120

[Wolferz]

Should've thrown the banker in the river.

Give a man a gun and he can rob a bank.
Give a man a bank and he can rob the world.

[Platapus]

Originally Posted by Wolferz

Should've thrown the banker in the river.

And pollute a perfectly good river like that? Have you no heart?

[Wolferz]

Originally Posted by Platapus

And pollute a perfectly good river like that? Have you no heart?

oops, sorry. I forgot about the oil slick that would be produced.

[CaptainHaplo]

Working in the financial industry - yes, for a large, multinational bank no less, it astounds me how so many want to target the industries that actually create prosperity for many (and not the employees). My employer didn't get a bailout, so don't even go there. It was offered and we turned it down.

Roast the banks and "big business" like "big oil" and "big pharma" - but its really strange when a loved by the left company like Apple makes 13 Billion in 1 quarter and you hear nothing. Heck, they made 30 Billion and didn't pay 1 dime in taxes on it at all.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...the-apple-way/

http://money.cnn.com/2012/08/20/tech...any/index.html

"Big oil" makes less than 7 cents on every dollar you spend for gas. At $4.00 a gallon, they make less than 30 cents.

http://energyanswered.org/questions/...i-spend-on-gas

Guess what GuvCo makes on that same gallon......
Federal Taxes are 18.4 cents across the board. The average state tax per gallon is $0.34, for a national average of $0.48 cents a gallon. As the price of gas goes down, GuvCo still makes its margins because regardless of how much it costs - you still need the same AMOUNT, while evil "big oil" profits go down because of the decrease in price. And let's not forget, "evil big oil" does all the work extracting the oil, refining it and shipping it - while GuvCo does nothing more than sit there with its hand out raking in the profits.

Yet no one seems to want to throw politicians off the bridge, when they are the ones robbing us all blind.... at the pump and through our taxes.

Get a clue. Many people who work in finance or other "big, evil businesses" bust our tail every day trying to do the right thing for ourselves, our families and our neighbors. Does anyone really believe GuvCo is doing the same?

[Wolferz]

Easy there, Haplo ol' bean.
We all know the bubbamint is the prime highwayman in all things. Singling out specific commodities to exploit for cash. Making a minority of consumers the targets for their greed. Then they pretend to be Robin Hood but, they can't even get that right. Robin Hood stole from the rich, not everybody who owned a horse or enjoyed tobacco, alcohol and telephones.

Excise taxes should cover the entire bill for the bubbamint but, to make it fair, they should institute a national sales tax on everything. That way ALL citizens pay their fair share. Not just those who smoke, drink, or drive a car.

[Schroeder]

Originally Posted by Wolferz

Excise taxes should cover the entire bill for the bubbamint but, to make it fair, they should institute a national sales tax on everything. That way ALL citizens pay their fair share. Not just those who smoke, drink, or drive a car.

Don't you have an "Added Value Tax" in the states?

[Platapus]

I have read several articles about the advantages of a "consumption tax" and the more I read about it the more attractive it seems.

The problem is that if we adopt a new type of tax, we need to kill another type of tax to balance it out. I fear that if the idea of a consumption tax passes, the government would treat that as an additional tax, and not a replacement tax.

[Wolferz]

No, there is no value added tax here in the states. Maybe in a few states there is but not on a national level.
Excise taxes were instituted primarily to fund specific departments and agencies within the government. Like taxes on alcohol, tobacco and firearms are meant to fund the ATF. Fuel taxes are meant to maintain our roads. Two hundred years and a lot of mismanagement later, it's a bloody mess with no end in sight.
Income taxes were said to have been created to pay off the war debt from WWI. A blatant lie to be sure. Income taxes were actually instituted to pay the interest on the government' loans after they took us off the gold standard and created the modern form of the treasury. Which is actually twelve privately owned banks. Can you smell the bailout?

[Sailor Steve]

This year is the 100th anniversary of the Federal Income Tax. Maybe it's time to call it a failed experiment and put it in the dumpster.

[Wolferz]

Originally Posted by Sailor Steve

This year is the 100th anniversary of the Federal Income Tax. Maybe it's time to call it a failed experiment and put it in the dumpster.

With you on that one Steve. 100%

[CaptainHaplo]

Steve and Woflerz - I agree as well!

[Stealhead]

A VAT would be a great idea as a replacement to the income tax.You can not really cheat a VAT while an income tax you can cheat.

It would also save the goverment a lot of money because the money would be coming in all the time from sales of goods and services it would be irrelevant how little or how much money you made because the rate would be the same for everyone and you are only paying for what you buy.I see that as pretty a pretty fair way to do things and people are always buying things.No more need for a yearly income tax which is how it would save the government a ton of money because they would not need to confirm a persons income anymore and all that crap.

[CaptainHaplo]

We do not need a VAT at all.

What is needed is a pure consumption tax. There is a huge difference. A VAT is taxes at every level. A consumption tax is paid once - by the consumer, not by the various manufacturers.

[Spiced_Rum]

At least cigarettes are taxed at a high rate so that the government can claim back some benefit money from the professional non-working class, who statistically are more likely to smoke and drink than other sections of working society.