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Strategies & Market Trends : Fatty's Donut Shop -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Lynn Goodman who wrote (2739)	8/2/1999 6:32:00 PM
From: Matt Brown	Respond to of 5041

Lynn, did you get up with Gary? Let me know.. FM REad this email on email...:( Matt, Taken from Hypermart newsletter dated Aug. 2, 1999 It's a sad state of affairs. I've seen this same sequence of events happen time and again these last few months: 1. You receive an email warning you about the United States Postal Service planning to charge postage for email. 2. You find out it's a hoax. 3. When you hear about the government's real plans to tax the Internet, you say to yourself, "That's a hoax!" Whoever started the bogus Internet postage rumors has done you a terrible disservice by taking attention away from the genuine issue. After reading this article you will be armed with the truth. When you're ready, please sign the World-Wide Petition to Prevent Internet Taxation at WWW.NoMoreNetTax.Com/index.htm?iday (the site also includes detailed documentation and the latest news). Without further ado, here are the facts: 1. The Internet Tax Freedom Act was enacted into law on 21 October 1998. This law places a 3 year moratorium on various forms of Internet taxation. 2. The Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce was created simultaneously "to study federal, state, local, and international taxation and tariffs of transactions using the Internet and Internet access." The ACEC is a 19 member panel consisting of various government officials and representatives from big business (including AT&T, MCI, Gateway, UUNet...) When the ACEC charter is complete (18 months from the passing of the Internet Tax Freedom Law), it must advise congress on the future of Internet taxation. 3. The majority of those on the panel are strongly in favor of imposing one form of Internet taxation or another. 4. You are being lied to every day about this issue. Those in favor of levying Internet taxes will tell you that sales tax revenues are lost to Internet sales. This is completely and utterly false. In fact, sales tax revenues actually increased by 5.6% in 1998, three times the rate of inflation! The federal treasury now has the largest surplus in history (close to one trillion dollars - that's a $1,000,000,000,000 surplus) and they are crying about not getting enough of your money. We even received an email from someone who reportedly was told by his congressman (who shall remain nameless) that he "personally guarantee[d]" there would be no Internet taxation. How could he say this when a committee currently studying not if the net should be taxed, but how it should be taxed? 5. Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk (a member of the ACEC) was even quoted as saying: "But we have to explain that when you are sitting at home in your virtual world and you have a short (circuit) and a fire breaks out, do you want us to send a virtual fire truck or a real big red fire truck to save your a*?" I guess the sky is falling after all. There you have it folks. The largest budget surplus in history. Sales tax revenues increasing by three times the rate of inflation. Yet, in light of these facts, apparently the government needs more of your money. Not only is the fiscal issue a non-issue, government interference with the net can kill your business. Clearly, the Internet has been the catalyst for the strongest world economy in history--and this without any interference from the government. Why would the government want to step in and mess things up? It is said that the Internet may be subject to over 30,000 different tax codes. Imagine what would happen to small business if just 5% of these tax codes were enforced. Would you be spending your time marketing or figuring out which pound of flesh goes to which agency? Think about it. Now, as a final note, before any of you send email condemning me as an anti-establishment wacko, allow me to head that off at the pass. I served in the U.S. Army for nearly a decade. I completely recognize the government's role in the creation of the Internet. I fully understand the necessity of government. However, the government works for us--not the other way around. This issue goes beyond national borders and party lines. Everyone of us should do his or her part to let the governments of the world know that we will not support any elected official that votes to pass any form of Internet taxation. Sign the petition today. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- Article by Mark Joyner, CEO of Aesop Marketing Corporation. Mark is the creator of 1001 Killer Internet Marketing Tactics - a must have* tool for anyone serious about doing business on the Internet.