Re: Changes on the High Street
 

The profits have already been taxed in the UK, why should they be taxed again? Who says they would be subject to UK tax again? It could be another country, eg a tax haven.

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

If they aren't saving in why do they do it? You still haven't answered the question.

There's obviously some tax being avoided denying vital funding for our Great British public services and Our Boys fighting overseas. As Carth kindly pointed out money gets taxed at various different points on the journey so to say something has been taxed once is a red herring.

Where's the patriotism nomadking? I don't want to fund an EU fighting force by stealth with Amazon's (or anyone elses) profits being taxed there for transactions in the UK.

The question is why do you want to fund an EU army rather than ours?

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

If it were only that simple...

https://www.tba-associates.com/globa...-study-google/ [quote]

https://www.theguardian.com/technolo...-shaped-amazon

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

You calling me ridiculous takes the biscuit, jfman.

How many people will fall into poverty and die if the economy collapses? Our total death toll, including coronavirus deaths, is the highest for just 20 years, it has been reported. Did we take such measures then?

Of course not. Somehow, the world's public has been scared into believing that the end is nigh. I wonder who is to blame for that? Everything these days is sensationalised, which would be amusing if it didn't have such devastating consequences.

We need to get this country running again. The sensationalists have had their fun. Now let's get on with getting people back to work, opening the schools and shops and ensuring that our public services are available again. Keep the infected and the vulnerable isolated by all means, but that is all that is required now.

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

You should probably inform all the scientists, virologists, and epidemiologists how wrong they’ve got it...

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

Hang on there Old Boy, you aren't claiming that Universal Credit isn't enough to live on? Or that DWP benefits pay poverty amounts that impact on human health?

The state has the ability to support people and businesses. People pay in for the best part of 50 years Old Boy and we are looking for the state to support them for a meagre three months. The underlying business models are still there - all we need is something to bridge the gap of a solid lockdown.

Given the effort taken to reduce Coronavirus deaths the comparison is completely invalid.

This sums it up in your head - "fun". Nobody is laughing Old Boy, there's absolutely nothing entertaining about tens of thousands dead, tens of thousands of bereaved families, an NHS on the brink of collapse and hundreds of thousands of NHS staff putting their very lives at risk every day to keep everyone safe.

It's a damning indictment of where you are in your head that you can use the word "fun" to describe the actions of those trying their best to prevent it. I suppose you view these people as absolute fodder - front line soldiers to go in to inevitably die while the generals (big business in your eyes) watch and await the outcome.

I thought attitudes like those died out in the 20th Century but evidently not.

Let's not Old Boy. Let's rely on medical advice and rather than spreadsheets to inform decision making. Especially is analysis of them is as atrocious as yours.

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

We don't know who's infected Old Boy nor do we have the capacity to test everyone yet.

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

That's a very good question. A lot of people believe that capitalism is akin to one big ponzi scheme and will eventually fall. If this becomes reality, what will it be replaced with?

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

Capitalism is purely human nature. The urge to better oneself, provide for your family and give your offspring a better life than you had.

Socialism is a nice to have, insofar as if you have enough you may feel inclined to not take so much and share - but only after you have taken care of you and yours first.

The toilet roll debacle and unnecessary panic buying a few weeks only highlighted the fundamental base human traits.

I don’t believe there was any more toilet rolls available in socialist strong hold areas.

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

With millions of people sacrificed on the altar of capitalism at the hands of Coronavirus I think people would take stock. Not just poor people, and not just foreign people in distant wars, but including reasonably well off white people in countries like the UK and USA.

I think it'd be inevitable that people would rethink the role and purpose of the state. We are £2 trillion in debt (before Coronavirus) the obvious question being who to? Where did it go? Who did it benefit?

There's obviously a role for capitalism - as you say the natural profit making motive, and innovation through competition - are human instincts. However little regulated and barely controlled capitalism - that let's people like Richard Branson sue the NHS for millions then come cap in hand for a £4.8bn loan is simply unsustainable. If his airline fails it fails - the state should employ it's staff and take over it's routes.

The game is presently rigged in his favour - he extracts all the profits in the good times and gets bailed out in the bad times.

The aggregate of small businesses employ many people too Seph. 5.6 million people work for businesses employing fewer than 9 people. That's a lot of tax revenue end to end throughout supply chains.

That's people up and down the country in villages, towns and cities spending money.

Virgin Atlantic on the other hand employ 9,000 people worldwide. The big banks - tens of thousands each.

I've no issues with capitalism in markets that have perfect competition as understood in economics. None whatsoever.

---------- Post added at 21:49 ---------- Previous post was at 21:46 ----------

And in markets that don't have genuine competition and/or adequate regulation it's simply price gouging consumers. In others it is extracting profits by pushing your creditors and debtors as far apart as you can then failing leaving the taxpayer to pick up the tab.

That's not some sincere noble gesture to try and better one's self and provide for your family.

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

I’m not talking about the various intricacies of various systems, blah bloody blah, I talking about human nature.

If you and your family were starving, you did not know when you would eat next and you had two tins of beans.....would you give one tin away? Or be happy if the government took away one of your tins and gave it to someone else?

It’s human nature to accumulate possessions for oneself to make life better and if someone is not doing so well as you, then it’s up to you to be generous and help....that is fine and most people are.

However, to be told by the state that you cannot better yourself, and all wealth will be owned by the state and distributed as they see fit, goes totally against human nature and is exactly why socialism/communism etc..doesn’t work. Never has, never will.

??? I’m not talking noble gestures, I’m talking base human instinct.

Since the dawn of time it has been in our nature to accumulate all that we can, to live and to pass on to our offspring.

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

You can natter on all you please about human nature, it doesn’t justify the excesses of failed capitalism any more that it justifies robbery, fraud or other petty crime for the purposes of acquiring goods.

Dipping the pension pot to prop up a failing business, while paying yourself dividends, and leaving the taxpayer to pick up the tab is “human nature”.

You are also, as ever, viewing everything though a simplistic understanding that there is only capitalism or communism and not a grey area in between with (regulated) markets where they work and state funded provision in areas of market failure. I’m sorry you appear unable to understand the complexities of this, possibly because your adversarial political ideology doesn’t allow it, however I’m sure others can understand perfectly well.

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

Nope, having slept on it I still can't fathom what you're on about.

All I see are lots of fancy words strung together to make a statement that the 'man in the street' could make with just two . . . which everyone from any walk of life understands :D

Re: Changes on the High Street
 

Ah the lowest common denominator “man on the street”. Salt of the earth. :D

He will understand poverty and observe inequality. That said his ignorance will leave him susceptible to the press, social media and he will probably be convinced once more that his enemy is his neighbour and not the system itself.