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They also invariably evade taxes. Go wild on that downvote button, guys, but there's no need: everyone already knows it, and there is never going to be a politi

They also invariably evade taxes. Go wild on that downvote button, guys, but there's no need: everyone already knows it, and there is never going to be a political will to do something about it.

freedomben 8y ago
Do you believe in a right to privacy regarding purchases? (every electronic transaction can be tracked for all time) If so, how does that weigh against the small amount of tax evasion that takes place? I do think there's a right to privacy, and I do hope it's difficult to gather political will for taking away rights.
- markdown 8y ago
  In my country, many retailers now have to connect their cash registers directly to the taxman. The law behind this was enacted last year to counter tax evasion.
  - pas 8y ago
    Does it work? I mean, it's much easier for a tax inspector to simply go to the store, when it's busy, and wait for the slip up (when the clerk accepts money but does not use the register). But in my opinion this was rare even before. And in really small operations, they don't have a register anyway. (Or take the gamble and don't use it.)
    - markdown 8y ago
      > Does it work? There's no reason why it shouldn't. > I mean, it's much easier for a tax inspector to simply go to the store, when it's busy, and wait for the slip up (when the clerk accepts money but does not use the register). Why would a lowly clerk break the law for his multi-millionaire employer? And why would a customer do business with a company that didn't provide receipts? That's not how it works. The fraud happens further up the food chain. However, if the taxman knows exactly how much money came in from customers by monitoring the cash register, he knows how much to expect in taxes from that business. > But in my opinion this was rare even before. Perhaps in your country. A few years ago whistleblower protections and a reward system were enacted here. So anyone who dobs in a company that's been evading taxes gets a percentage (IIRC 10%) of the unpaid taxes subsequently recovered. Since then there's been a string of highly-publicised cases of the taxman coming down on tax evaders. They recover taxes and squeeze more out of them in penalties and fines, and the whistleblower (probably some low-paid bean counter in the company) get's a huge lump of cash for his troubles. Anyway, as a result of these events, now the taxman monitors the tax registers of large companies that accept cash. Certain categories of commerce and small businesses are exempt.
killjoywashere 8y ago
You think Arco evades taxes? They're a pretty large gas station chain and they don't accept credit cards.
- diebeforei485 8y ago
  Arco is not an all-cash business though - they accept debit cards.

They also invariably evade taxes. Go wild on that downvote button, guys, but there's no need: everyone already knows it, and there is never going to be a political will to do something about it.

freedomben 8y ago

Do you believe in a right to privacy regarding purchases? (every electronic transaction can be tracked for all time) If so, how does that weigh against the small amount of tax evasion that takes place? I do think there's a right to privacy, and I do hope it's difficult to gather political will for taking away rights.

markdown 8y ago
In my country, many retailers now have to connect their cash registers directly to the taxman. The law behind this was enacted last year to counter tax evasion.
- pas 8y ago
  Does it work? I mean, it's much easier for a tax inspector to simply go to the store, when it's busy, and wait for the slip up (when the clerk accepts money but does not use the register). But in my opinion this was rare even before. And in really small operations, they don't have a register anyway. (Or take the gamble and don't use it.)
  - markdown 8y ago
    > Does it work? There's no reason why it shouldn't. > I mean, it's much easier for a tax inspector to simply go to the store, when it's busy, and wait for the slip up (when the clerk accepts money but does not use the register). Why would a lowly clerk break the law for his multi-millionaire employer? And why would a customer do business with a company that didn't provide receipts? That's not how it works. The fraud happens further up the food chain. However, if the taxman knows exactly how much money came in from customers by monitoring the cash register, he knows how much to expect in taxes from that business. > But in my opinion this was rare even before. Perhaps in your country. A few years ago whistleblower protections and a reward system were enacted here. So anyone who dobs in a company that's been evading taxes gets a percentage (IIRC 10%) of the unpaid taxes subsequently recovered. Since then there's been a string of highly-publicised cases of the taxman coming down on tax evaders. They recover taxes and squeeze more out of them in penalties and fines, and the whistleblower (probably some low-paid bean counter in the company) get's a huge lump of cash for his troubles. Anyway, as a result of these events, now the taxman monitors the tax registers of large companies that accept cash. Certain categories of commerce and small businesses are exempt.

killjoywashere 8y ago

You think Arco evades taxes? They're a pretty large gas station chain and they don't accept credit cards.

diebeforei485 8y ago
Arco is not an all-cash business though - they accept debit cards.