Feds to Decide What Can be Sold at Your Garage Sale

Publius' Forum ^ | 5/29/09 | Warner Todd Huston

[Mobile Vulgus]

With the first days of Summer a long standing American tradition emerges anew from yards and garages all across the country. Once again this season we will see the venerable American garage sale bloom everywhere. Homeowners will be seen busily setting up folding tables or bringing picnic tables from back yards to load them up with used clothes, toys, collectibles, and items of all sorts. Couples will once again cruise the neighborhood looking to those bargains. It's as American as Baseball, and the rest.

But a new player has been introduced to the venerable garage sale scheme and this one isn't looking for a deal. It is a new player that isn't looking to ask you "how much" but is looking to tell you what you'll be allowed to sell. It's the federal government and it's iron boot heel come a'calling at your local garage sale.

That's right, folks, the federal government is here to warn you that you will no longer be allowed to sell certain things at your garage or yard sales or even on auction sites like ebay. If you are a scofflaw, Big Brother is here to stomp you. The nanny state is here to "protect" you. And you better watch out or there's no telling what just might happen to you if you don't bow down to the all powerful state.

Ignorance of the law is not an excuse

Read the rest at Publiusforum.com...

[Mobile Vulgus]

Outrageous government intrusion in our lives.

[Paladin2]

JBT full employment act.

[Buckeye McFrog]

wait until they show up trying to collect a VAT tax...

[GeronL]

how long before they tax garage sales?

[Zeppelin]

wait until they show up trying to collect a VAT tax...

a Value Added Tax tax???

I'm reporting that one to the Department of Redundancy Department.

[theBuckwheat]

They already have already laid the groundwork to make sure you report income from your eBay sales. For the present, at least, the reporting limit is too high to bother most people, but just wait.

[scooter2]

Welcome to the USSA.

[Paladin2]

Well, the left used to always refer to Amerika. Maybe its time (the revolution) has come.

[Andy from Beaverton]

Where am I to find another set of lawn darts?

[Russ]

"how long before they tax gagarge sales?"

Where I live you have to go to the township office and pay for a permit to have a yard/garage sale. In my world that's just a tax by another name.

[OneWingedShark]

How long before we tar-and-feather these ‘people’?
...or shoot them, that’s another, more permanent, solution.

[DonaldC]

That article isn’t clear...what exactly is the gov wanting to limit the sale of at garage sales? If it is to limit sales of items that cannot be sold at stores, like used mattresses or dangerous cribs, wore out car seats, or something like that, then I don’t have a problem with it.

[ctdonath2]

If vigorously enforced, this act will have a devastating effect on certain collectible markets like old toys, books, comic books and vintage clothing collectors.

Despite what most people remember of it, the scary part of "1984" wasn't that Big Brother was watching, it was that history - and evidence thereof - was being rewritten to current political standards.

[TxAg1981]

you are already taxed on garage sale items. you are supposed to claim that income on your 1040.
welcome to Amerika

[FreedomNotSafety]

So we really do need the government to protect us from ourselves. If I want to buy an old mattress from my neighbor at his garage sale, of what business is that of yours? Why would you encourage this type of intrusion?

[DonaldC]

If it is illegal for a business to do so, why should garage sales be exempted?

[MinuteGal]

Hey, man!

I think you're on the wrong forum.

Leni

[petercooper]

[MinuteGal]

After garage sales, can lemonade stands be far behind?

After all, the nutty Acorn socialists demand "a level playing field for all" in this country as they lavishly distribute our tax dollars to whomever they please.

Leni

[tacticalogic]

That article isn’t clear...what exactly is the gov wanting to limit the sale of at garage sales? If it is to limit sales of items that cannot be sold at stores, like used mattresses or dangerous cribs, wore out car seats, or something like that, then I don’t have a problem with it.

Under what enumerated power do you think the federal government has the authority to do this?