August 26 roundup

5 Comments

  • I often see items in the roundup posts, like the “Junk fax” item today, that have only links to old Overlawyered posts (or occasionally old posts at other sites), and wonder why? Is there some new news about this case, and the link was accidentally omitted, or is this just here because you thought we’d enjoy seeing again?

  • I have to say, while I’m no fan of taxes, the “Tax on Bloggers” story is overblown. I have a business in Sunnyvale, California, and I have to pay the City of Sunnyvale for a business license every year.

    If someone’s going to say they’re a “blogger” when asked what their occupation is, and they make money doing it, they need to pay for a business license. Period.

  • Brian –

    As a frequent Overlawyered visitor, those posts are “greatest hits” links, highlighting extreme cases of what Overlawyered covers.

    There really are some gasp inducing archives, and with so many to go through, it’s nice to have Wally (oh yes, I went there) pick out a doozy now and then.

  • R – I think a valid analogy would be to replace “blogger” with author, writer or poet. Such pursuits have no direct impact on City services or infrastructure.

    It appears the main difference between “blogger” and “author” is that a blogger has a slightly higher visibility prior to any real success (i.e. money) and fame in the endeavor.

  • Sorry, Roy. There are a lot of taxes, for example, that cost me more in bookkeeping and compliance costs than the actual tax is. For example, my county, Santa Clara California, has a “Business Property Tax” where I am taxed on the value of my office furniture in my rental office. It’s a small office; the tax is about $200/year. I spend more than that on compliance, record keeping, etc, and the value of my time when I have to meet with the County Compliance officer who makes a personal visit each year.

    I think it’s a good reality check for these “bloggers” to get an understanding of what doing business in America involves. If you have a business, you have to pay taxes. If there’s an exemption for low-income business, what’s to stop me from forming a new business for each hour of work I perform?