4 ms·

The US IRS can and will jail you if you do lie, so that might not be the best analogy.

by arbuge 7y ago

AndrewUnmuted 7y ago
They can jail you for a mistake, let alone a lie.
- wbl 7y ago
  No, they cannot jail you for a mistake if in fact you honestly think you did everything right. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheek_v._United_States https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheek_v._United_States
  - hcknwscommenter 7y ago
    That's not quite right. The case you cite does support your position. But, the bar for jail time is a higher hurdle for the gov't to surmount than that. You merely have a good faith belief you did not violate the law. Therefore, if you are handling a gray area and you know the IRS could take a different position, you can still rest easy about jail time so long as you don't intentionally deceive/lie/etc. This is not legal advice
    - wbl 7y ago
      The IRS even has a way for you to tell them "I think the law says this".
  - perl4ever 7y ago
    Also, if you and they don't find a mistake for a few years, there is a statutory limitation on them even collecting money. I don't remember exactly, but it's less that I'd thought.
smacktoward 7y ago
That was the point, it's "ask" in the sense of "we're not really asking."
epanchin 7y ago
It’s a good analogy. It explains the word “ask” in this case means “requires”.
nkrisc 7y ago
In terms of expressing the linguistic point being made, it seems like a fine analogy. The point is, apparently, that "ask" is a euphemism for something that you are effectively obligated to do. You're reading much too far into it.
- Far_Heat0 7y ago
  Sounds more like he wasn't reading far enough into it
- andyjpb 7y ago
  As an English person I am finding this thread very confusing because I encounter very few situations where "ask" doesn't mean exactly what patio11 is describing. This is especially true when the dialogue is between two people (or entities) of different social status or power, but it's also pretty rude to not oblige when you are close to the person. The only time it is truly voluntary is when there is no relationship and nothing to lose by declining.
  - roel_v 7y ago
    If the IRS would "ask" me about income in the same way that I "ask" my wife to pass me the peas when we're having dinner, you can be sure I wouldn't be paying any taxes...

The US IRS can and will jail you if you do lie, so that might not be the best analogy.

by arbuge 7y ago

The US IRS can and will jail you if you do lie, so that might not be the best analogy.

AndrewUnmuted 7y ago

They can jail you for a mistake, let alone a lie.

wbl 7y ago
No, they cannot jail you for a mistake if in fact you honestly think you did everything right. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheek_v._United_States https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheek_v._United_States
- hcknwscommenter 7y ago
  That's not quite right. The case you cite does support your position. But, the bar for jail time is a higher hurdle for the gov't to surmount than that. You merely have a good faith belief you did not violate the law. Therefore, if you are handling a gray area and you know the IRS could take a different position, you can still rest easy about jail time so long as you don't intentionally deceive/lie/etc. This is not legal advice
  - wbl 7y ago
    The IRS even has a way for you to tell them "I think the law says this".
- perl4ever 7y ago
  Also, if you and they don't find a mistake for a few years, there is a statutory limitation on them even collecting money. I don't remember exactly, but it's less that I'd thought.

smacktoward 7y ago

That was the point, it's "ask" in the sense of "we're not really asking."

epanchin 7y ago

It’s a good analogy. It explains the word “ask” in this case means “requires”.

nkrisc 7y ago

In terms of expressing the linguistic point being made, it seems like a fine analogy. The point is, apparently, that "ask" is a euphemism for something that you are effectively obligated to do. You're reading much too far into it.

Far_Heat0 7y ago
Sounds more like he wasn't reading far enough into it
andyjpb 7y ago
As an English person I am finding this thread very confusing because I encounter very few situations where "ask" doesn't mean exactly what patio11 is describing. This is especially true when the dialogue is between two people (or entities) of different social status or power, but it's also pretty rude to not oblige when you are close to the person. The only time it is truly voluntary is when there is no relationship and nothing to lose by declining.
- roel_v 7y ago
  If the IRS would "ask" me about income in the same way that I "ask" my wife to pass me the peas when we're having dinner, you can be sure I wouldn't be paying any taxes...