WASHINGTON -- Shoppers can often save big buying online instead of at the local mall. But a chunk of the savings comes at the expense of state and local governments, in the form of sales taxes that are not paid on many Web purchases.
The losses add up for cash-starved state and local governments across the country.
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Choctaw Nation decides to expand their casino. Governor of Mississippi, after being told what the Choctaws are doing is legal by the state Attorney General, decides that's not good enough and is suing. Legislators don't even hide the fact that the reason they are suing is because they can't collect taxes on the dealings of the proposed casino.
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Something that crosses my mind a lot is how little anti-war and pro-war talk there is. I mean, even though I am only a quarter century old, I remember times seeing news of large protests against the war and people actually debating the purpose and the pros and cons to it choosing sides.
Read more »WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Mortgage loan originators will have to be fingerprinted and sign up to a central registry to do business in future, according to final rules issued on Wednesday by the Federal Reserve and other regulators.
The rules are part of the Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act of 2008, also called the S.A.F.E. Act.
They were issued by the Fed, Comptroller of the Currency, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, Office of Thrift Supervision, Farm Credit Administration and National Credit Union Administration.
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The Coast Guard has gathered evidence it failed to follow its own firefighting policy during the Deepwater Horizon disaster and is investigating whether the chaotic spraying of tons of salt water by private boats contributed to sinking the ill-fated oil rig, according to interviews and documents.
Read more »Investigators "have identified several dozen Pentagon officials and contractors with high-level security clearances who allegedly purchased and downloaded child pornography, including an undisclosed number who used their government computers to obtain the illegal material.
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"...government regulations are requiring that their headquarters on the beach be made handicapped-accessible, even though the only people who ever use the two-story building are the lifeguards."
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One of the biggest leaks in US military history has exposed several cover-ups over the war in Afghanistan, including the deaths of hundreds of civilians.
Read more »At least 15 have been killed and dozens injured in a stampede started when police moved to block people from entering festival grounds.
Read more »Gosh, wasn’t Obama going to be bringing transparency? Guess that didn’t work out too well after the election wrapped. Funny how those promises get broken. Sometimes we forget that politicians don’t have convictions. They only have platforms.
Read more »Dan Wheeler, a Washingtonian and victim of identity theft found himself arrested due to his identity being stolen by a sex offender. The state refuses to clear Wheeler's name, for fear that the actual offender will continue to use Wheeler's name as an alias. Why not arrest everybody? What's to stop the sex offenders from using anyone's name?
Read more »Marco Wanderwitz, a conservative member of parliament for the German state of Saxony, said it is unfair and unsustainable for the taxpayer to carry the entire cost of treating obesity-related illnesses in the public health system.
The German teachers association recently called for school kids to be weighed each day, The Daily Telegraph said. The fat kids could then be reported to social services, who could send them to health clinics.
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I can't blame someone for avoiding taxes, unless they are a blatant statist who encourages new taxes at every opportunity. This is hypocrisy to a T.
Read more »Those already outraged by the president's health care legislation now have a new bone of contention -- a scarcely noticed tack-on provision to the law that puts gold coin buyers and sellers under closer government scrutiny.
Read more »A senior US general once criticised for saying it was "fun to shoot some people" has been picked to take over US Central Command, leading the military command running the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Read more »Here's a head scratcher: as everyone knows from elementary chemistry courses, gold is the most inert metal in the world - it does not rust, nor corrode. Yet this is precisely what Russian commercial precious metal trading company, International Reserve Payment System, discovered on thousands of (allegedly) 999 gold coins "St George" (pictured insert) issued by the Central Russian Bank.
Read more »A Quebec man, fed up with his skyrocketing property taxes, carted more than 200,000 pennies down to City Hall to pay his bill.
Read more »A promoter was beaten and tased outside of a Harrisburg, PA night club after demanding the badge number of the cop who'd previously sprayed him in the face with mace as he was handing out flyers.(Article contains video links)
Read more »Americans armed themselves to the teeth and paid through the nose to have a smoke, according to a U.S. government report released on Wednesday. The U.S. federal government collected $20.6 billion in taxes on alcohol, tobacco, firearms and ammunition in fiscal year 2009, up 41 percent from the previous fiscal year, according to the annual report of the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. --- Remember, kids... "Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms" should be a convenience store, not a government agency.
Read more »Brighton resident Mordechai Rennert was just stepping down from the podium after asking a series of questions at the June 23rd board meeting when the Town Clerk turned to then Police Chief Thomas Voelkl and said (regarding Rennert) "Can you shoot him? I'll take responsibility."
Read more »Welcome Free Talk Live 2.5! Now, with Reddit!
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The content here is the same as you will see on the FTL Subreddit. Please submit bug reports on the appropriate BBS subforum.
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