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And this is why there's a distinction between "tax avoidance" and "tax evasion". Tax avoidance refers to using legal means to reduce your tax bill. Tax evasio

by amyjess 12y ago

And this is why there's a distinction between "tax avoidance" and "tax evasion". Tax avoidance refers to using legal means to reduce your tax bill. Tax evasion means illegally not paying your taxes.

baddox 12y ago
Yeah, and "dodging taxes" doesn't clearly distinguish between the too. Also note that a lot of people oppose perfectly legal tax avoidance techniques that they consider to be loopholes.
- amyjess 12y ago
  Agreed. I was going to put something in my post like "and that's why a good argument will make it clear which one you're talking about", but I ended up forgetting to put it in. Also, tax avoidance is just plain smart. Any for-profit business that doesn't practice tax avoidance is just throwing away money.
  - jakobegger 12y ago
    Paying taxes is not throwing away money, its contributing back to the society that you profit from. Contributing as little as legally possible is not 'sensible' it's greedy.
    - baddox 12y ago
      So why not give more? You can donate directly to the US Treasury. What are the odds that the tax laws get exactly the optimal revenue?
    - amyjess 12y ago
      They're a business. A business is obligated to make money.
- Guvante 12y ago
  Not charging sales tax is technically legal but certainly a grey area. Since almost every state that has a sales tax has a use tax you are just shifting the burden of reporting onto your consumer. The reality is most people don't report (or under-report) their required use tax so you are really assisting them in committing tax evasion. So while not directly illegal, certainly not fully legal.