3 ms·

Except it would be a complete dud, have spun bearings masked with thick oil, any number of issues. Oh and then you get to pay tax on that purchase again.

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
Broken_Hippo 3y ago
You can get it looked over by a mechanic before you buy. You can take it on a test drive - I thought this was standard practice. And I'll mention that your likelihood of major horribleness is much less if you are buying a newer car rather than an older one. And yes, you might have to pay taxes, but you get that with the dealership as well. Dealerships aren't immune to taxes.
- post_break 3y ago
  My point about the taxes was just frustration. Buy and sell a car 100 times, pay taxes on it 100 times. It's theft.
  - gwd 3y ago
    One could also say that ownership is theft: you're putting up a fence and preventing other people from using a resource, backed with a gun. More reasonable people acknowledge that there are obligations both ways: Society has an obligation to the individual (private rights and ownership), and individuals have an obligation to society (taxes and limitations on what you can do to private property). I do agree that sales taxes seem kind of weird and arbitrary way to collect society's obligations. Personally I prefer something along the lines of Georgeism, where only property is taxed. This makes the ownership / taxation thing symmetric.
  - Broken_Hippo 3y ago
    No, it is just tax. Tax is part of a person's contribution to society. If you aren't getting much value for your taxes, perhaps elect better people to handle that tax money.
    - int_19h 3y ago
      In practice, we seem to be electing people whose main difference is which country we're going to bomb next year. It would sure be nice to vote for someone who'd use all that money for something actually useful, and who could credibly win. But so far I haven't seen any such. Which is not surprising, since the people who get elected through the current system have a vested interest in maintaining it, no matter which side of the aisle they're on other issues.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

Broken_Hippo 3y ago

You can get it looked over by a mechanic before you buy. You can take it on a test drive - I thought this was standard practice. And I'll mention that your likelihood of major horribleness is much less if you are buying a newer car rather than an older one. And yes, you might have to pay taxes, but you get that with the dealership as well. Dealerships aren't immune to taxes.

post_break 3y ago
My point about the taxes was just frustration. Buy and sell a car 100 times, pay taxes on it 100 times. It's theft.
- gwd 3y ago
  One could also say that ownership is theft: you're putting up a fence and preventing other people from using a resource, backed with a gun. More reasonable people acknowledge that there are obligations both ways: Society has an obligation to the individual (private rights and ownership), and individuals have an obligation to society (taxes and limitations on what you can do to private property). I do agree that sales taxes seem kind of weird and arbitrary way to collect society's obligations. Personally I prefer something along the lines of Georgeism, where only property is taxed. This makes the ownership / taxation thing symmetric.
- Broken_Hippo 3y ago
  No, it is just tax. Tax is part of a person's contribution to society. If you aren't getting much value for your taxes, perhaps elect better people to handle that tax money.
  - int_19h 3y ago
    In practice, we seem to be electing people whose main difference is which country we're going to bomb next year. It would sure be nice to vote for someone who'd use all that money for something actually useful, and who could credibly win. But so far I haven't seen any such. Which is not surprising, since the people who get elected through the current system have a vested interest in maintaining it, no matter which side of the aisle they're on other issues.