Online sales may bring holiday fear for some U.S. malls

The customer is always right. And the problem is not Internet sales – people still like to browse in stores, where you can actually see the products – the problem is that Amazon is avoiding paying any sales tax by not collecting any and not telling the customer they’re supposed to pony it up on their own, so Amazon can offer lower prices than physical stores. In my opinion, you should at least have to collect for every state you have -any- building in, and that includes every one of Amazon’s fulfillment centers. And I wouldn’t be against the rules for sales tax being expanded to collection based on the state the customer is ordering from, so long as sales tax in general was lowered to offset the increased revenue. It’s worth paying a bit more to reign in Amazon’s monopoly, which effectively robs large amounts of money from content providers and in the long run reduces choice and therefore competition and quality of products.

There is no legitimate reason for states to collect tax on items sold via the internet from another state.

State and local agencies do provide services for “brick and mortar” stores, such as police, fire, etc.. The also educate workers to staff and run those stores. However, for internet sales, the state and cities provide NOTHING in return when they collect tax on out-of-state sales.

This is just about coming up with more ways to tax things which should not be taxed.

Uhm TJP, Amazon collects sales tax, if they pass that along to the states is another issue.

This is the same argument the makers of buggy whips and saddles had when people began buying automobiles. Technology changes and buyers want something more efficient, less expansive, and easily available. Brick & Mortar outlets in the Shopping Centers and Malls no longer have the near Monopoly they once enjoyed.

Tromping through a Mall after driving through annoying traffic and having to pay much higher prices isn’t the way things will be done much longer.

Want to actually compete a little longer? Lower Merchants Rents enough to lower their fixed overhead and operating costs and give them a change to remain competitive and keep renting from you a few more years!

seems to me that they don’t get the reason that many people rather shop via internet.. and it’ NOT the taxes.. 1. you can shop via the internet in the middle of the night..2. you can shop in your pajamas 3. You can shop while having a cold one OR a cigarette..4. you save money on gas..5. parking is never a problem.. 6. when it -30 /raining/ snowing you don’t have to walk from the back of a parking lost cause the first 6 parking spaces in all the isles are empty but dedicated to the handicapped parking making it impossible to even get LUCKY and get a space close to the store in bad weather.. 7. you don’t have to put up with all those over powering colones and scents which people with allergies can’t take.. 8. you can compare prices easily..9.no people pushing and shoving you..10. no pick pockets/gangs of teenagers .. 11.. money saved on a baby-sitter..Unless they have forgotten years ago people shopped via a catalog.. Sears being the biggest.. although there were others.. Wards..Aldens.. so internet shopping is comparable to those..there are things one does have to go to the store for like furniture.. (can’t sit on a chair via the internet) some types of clothing which need to be tried on.. but there again the internet helps showing the stores at which the products you MIGHT be interested in..

seems to me that they don’t get the reason that many people rather shop via internet.. and it’ NOT the taxes.. 1. you can shop via the internet in the middle of the night..2. you can shop in your pajamas 3. You can shop while having a cold one OR a cigarette..4. you save money on gas..5. parking is never a problem.. 6. when it -30 /raining/ snowing you don’t have to walk from the back of a parking lost cause the first 6 parking spaces in all the isles are empty but dedicated to the handicapped parking making it impossible to even get LUCKY and get a space close to the store in bad weather.. 7. you don’t have to put up with all those over powering colones and scents which people with allergies can’t take.. 8. you can compare prices easily..9.no people pushing and shoving you..10. no pick pockets/gangs of teenagers .. 11.. money saved on a baby-sitter..Unless they have forgotten years ago people shopped via a catalog.. Sears being the biggest.. although there were others.. Wards..Aldens.. so internet shopping is comparable to those..there are things one does have to go to the store for like furniture.. (can’t sit on a chair via the internet) some types of clothing which need to be tried on.. but there again the internet helps showing the stores at which the products you MIGHT be interested in..

Government is constantly trying to rob the people. I haven’t seen any data showing State Sales taxes are down as a result of internet shopping. Besides, companies selling on the internet have to pay shipping. Republicans who are always complaining about too many taxes are right in front of the line when it comes to taxing internet sales. What a joke. I thought Republicans were for “Free Trade” and open markets and all that. The States can charge all the taxes they want on internet sales and it won’t help the so called Brick and Morter stores. People shop the internet because it’s a much bigger market, more competition so better prices, it’s much safer and more convenient because you don’t have to risk driving and/or being robbed, and it saves time. So, go ahead and tax the crap out of the public, but it’s not going to stop internet Sales.

Hmmm . . . brave the seething masses of humanity at WalTargMart to pick over vandalized merchandise or stay at home and have a pristine Belgian waffle maker in unblemished packaging delivered to my door within 3 days from Amazon (even with free shipping)?

Why is the phrase “no-brainer” flashing before my eyes and ringing in my ears?

Sorry, the sales tax argument is vacuous. Amazon may offer a product slightly cheaper than a brick and mortar retailer, but by the time you figure in shipping and handling, it’s no real deal. Besides, online retailers will charge a sales tax at checkout if they have a presence in your state, so in some cases you could end up paying more for the privilege of shopping from home. For me, and I suspect most online shoppers, the big draw includes things that have nothing to do with money: selection, convenience, and customer service. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that I would (and probably have done) pay a premium for being able to avoid going out into the traffic and having to deal with other people just to make a small purchase.

To all the online shoppers be careful what the future holds. When your local stores all shut down and you have no place to sneak into to check out out a product before you buy it online, then you’ll all be stuck just looking at the little 2″ picture on your computer before you make your decision. Local stores are now just showrooms for dishonest people’s online purchases. If they stop making money, they will disappear. It’s sad people want the services a local store offers, touch, feel, examine and ask salesman questions, but are too cheap to pay extra for that service.

Things are much cheaper online. Even with shipping and tax there are much better deals found online. Plus, a purchaser can compare prices from several sellers instantly and shopping time is a matter of few minutes.

Viva World Wide Web!