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Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,911
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

I Think the IRS needs to monitor sites .....

such as e-bay, etc., and watch these people that are gouging for toilet paper, paper towels, etc.  Then see if these same people declare their profits on their income taxes the next year and if they don't, go after them for not reporting their true income.  There is just no need for this hoarding and gouging.  If everyone would just buy what they need, there would be enough to go around.

 

I couldn't find a bag of flour in three grocery stores that I went to.  Something I didn't even expect.  It's a sombering sight to see empty shelves.  We Americans just aren't used to that.

“I can do things you cannot, you can do things I cannot; together we can do great things.” St.Teresa of Calcutta
Honored Contributor
Posts: 8,738
Registered: ‎06-06-2019

Re: I Think the IRS needs to monitor sites .....

I thought they were.

Spoiler
 
Honored Contributor
Posts: 8,736
Registered: ‎02-19-2014

Re: I Think the IRS needs to monitor sites .....

I think price gougers should be punished, but not by the IRS. I don't think we want the IRS monitoring and making value judgements on whether we bought too much hand sanitizer and making us prove what we did with all of it.

 

But state AGs, absolutely prosecute some of the worst cases very publicly. And EBay and Amazon need to hire more people to put a stop to that nonsense on their platforms.

When you’re accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression.
"Power without love is reckless and abusive, and love without power is sentimental and anemic." - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr
Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,902
Registered: ‎03-12-2010

Re: I Think the IRS needs to monitor sites .....

Not a fan of a Big Brother state.

Sellers can charge whatever fantasy price they wish. Buyers do not have to pay.

 

I can't imagine ever being short on paper products in my home. Always stocked for several months buying when items are on sale & with coupons. I sympathize with people who have limited storage for such items, but I would always make extra room somewhere for an extra pack of TP, paper towels and facial tissues, even if I had to give away some shoes, LOL!

Valued Contributor
Posts: 874
Registered: ‎03-03-2020

Re: I Think the IRS needs to monitor sites .....

give away shoes?!? 😳 well now that's just crazy talk!!! 🤣
Honored Contributor
Posts: 14,932
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

Re: I Think the IRS needs to monitor sites .....

[ Edited ]

@queendiva wrote:

Not a fan of a Big Brother state.

Sellers can charge whatever fantasy price they wish. Buyers do not have to pay.

 

I can't imagine ever being short on paper products in my home. Always stocked for several months buying when items are on sale & with coupons. I sympathize with people who have limited storage for such items, but I would always make extra room somewhere for an extra pack of TP, paper towels and facial tissues, even if I had to give away some shoes, LOL!


@queendiva 

 

We have all kinds of supplies. I put a large table in the spare bedroom to put stuff on top of plus underneath while we deal with this krap. Hopefully we have most things we will need this year.

My freezer, refrigerator, pantry are full. We have TP but none has been available around here. Don't know how long before they get it stocked. I picked up boxes of kleenex yesterday at all places I shopped in case we need them. I did not buy anything that will not eventually get used.

My trunk is also full of paper products.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 35,603
Registered: ‎05-22-2016

Re: I Think the IRS needs to monitor sites .....

Not only are the gougers heartless, as are some of the hoarders. But now there is a real low with people scamming to sell products they claim will cure or prevent CV infection. They are breaking the law.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 13,401
Registered: ‎07-15-2016

Re: I Think the IRS needs to monitor sites .....

What?

 

If you have some extra time on your hands, read George Orwell's "1984" or Ayn Rand's "Anthem."

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Honored Contributor
Posts: 15,344
Registered: ‎05-01-2010

Re: I Think the IRS needs to monitor sites .....

Ebay  is monitoring. I know someone who bought a lot of hand sanitizers when this all first started and put them on eBay for more money than he paid. eBay found the listing after awhile and took it down. Yes, I think it was a terrible thing for him to do.

 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 21,733
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: I Think the IRS needs to monitor sites .....

Gouging is illegal. And prosecuting it does not mean that we have an authortarian state or a Big Brother one.

 

What it means is that we count on our government to assure that we are safe and healthy, which means that the private sector does NOT have unlimited freedom to do whatever the heck it wants.

 

I thought that everyone knew this.


~Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle~ Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland