[EGPWS]

...It's just a matter of time before they figure out how to tax internet transactions.

I can only speculate that the costs incurred with the figgerin' will be a moot subject, only to be determined as part of the overall cost of government service provided to us all as a well deserved service.

[Myrddin]

I worked for an early internet startup called First Virtual Holdings, Inc from 1996 to 1998. It was the first serious attempt to do secure purchases in the online environment. The technology turned out to be too difficult for the average small business person to comprehend. Web pages using SSL overtook the market because it was dirt simple for the end user and retailer.

Trying to police the taxation of internet transactions is a nightmare. Even if every transaction was labeled with a social security number, there would be a need to account for all the purchases made over a wide variety of online sellers to be certain that the tax was actually paid in every case. Every retailer would have to maintain a tax account with every state and report the sales on an ongoing basis. The states would be saddled with collecting a detailed account of sales tax paid by every taxpayer in the jurisdication. A truly gross thought. Not to mention the "big brother" aspect of recording every damn thing you actually purchase on the net.