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A comment on Amazon in Its Prime: Doubles Profits, Pays $0 in Federal Income Taxes. Parent comment

Re:Amazon in Its Prime: Doubles Profits, Pays $0 in Federal ... by skh on Wednesday February 13, 2019 @02:51PM (#19156270)
Are you suggesting that those hundreds of thousands of shareholders all have a proportionate amount of input in determining how Amazon lobbies? I own stock in Amazon and have zero say in how it lobbies government or spends its money to influence the writing of laws.

The legal person known as Amazon has far more say and sway in U.S. elections than I do. The legal person known as Amazon is controlled by a few people. Transitively speaking those few people by virtue of their control of Amazon have an outsized influence on American elections.

Someday the U.S. will amend its Constitution to abolish the Electoral College and just let the CEOs of the Fortune 500 companies elect the President. It'd be a lot more honest that way.

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Re:Amazon in Its Prime: Doubles Profits, Pays $0 in Federal ... by fuzz4lyfe on Wednesday February 13, 2019 @02:53PM (#19156284)
If you dislike how Amazon does business why are you invested in them? That is one way to have a say, divest, forgo the profit and if possible make some noise on your way out. "I'll keep the profits but wag my finger at the behavior" isn't a reasonable stance to take in my opinion. As it is today you are directly funding the lobbying you claim to oppose.
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Re:Amazon in Its Prime: Doubles Profits, Pays $0 in Federal ... by skh on Wednesday February 13, 2019 @02:58PM (#19156356)
Oh, because I'm a hypocrite. But my hypocrisy has nothing to do with whether or not I'm right in saying that Amazon has an outsized influence on our elections. Fortunately the truth does not depend on whether or not I'm a hypocrite.
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Re:Amazon in Its Prime: Doubles Profits, Pays $0 in Federal ... by fuzz4lyfe on Wednesday February 13, 2019 @03:06PM (#19156430)
If people really oppose these tax changes why do they keep voting in the people who voted for them in the first place?

The fact is while people oppose them vocally they aren't willing to take any action to do so. People like you stay invested in Amazon while opposing it's business practices, that's just one example of many. Have a prime account, use AWS and so on and so on.

You might have a hundred million on your side but the amount of effort they are willing to put forth is maybe a facebook post so nobody cares.

It's not really a matter of outsized voices, it's just one voice isn't willing to do more than whisper.

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Re:Amazon in Its Prime: Doubles Profits, Pays $0 in Federal ... by skh on Wednesday February 13, 2019 @03:34PM (#19156705)
It's not really a matter of outsized voices, it's just one voice isn't willing to do more than whisper.

Your perception that the power an average person holds versus Amazon is roughly equal is not rooted in reality.

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