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One suggestiong is to tax international phone lines, so that business calls (like to service centers, and software groups) cost enough that it harmonizes the costs of doing business overseas with the cost of doing business here. Its not a tariff so the "free traders" can't yell protectionism. It is just a usage tax.

Funny what you will tolerate (I don't care for using taxes as a way to manipulate the market) but it may be the only solution to the politician's perfidy.

One suggestiong is to tax international phone lines, so that business calls (like to service centers, and software groups) cost enough that it harmonizes the costs of doing business overseas with the cost of doing business here. Its not a tariff so the "free traders" can't yell protectionism. It is just a usage tax.

I have no problem with this but it does not address the H1B and L1 visa problem nor does it address the free insurance for overseas investment from the US taxpayer.

One suggestiong is to tax international phone lines, so that business calls (like to service centers, and software groups) cost enough that it harmonizes the costs of doing business overseas with the cost of doing business here. Its not a tariff so the "free traders" can't yell protectionism. It is just a usage tax.
You're using it like a tariff. Some guy mentioned it before. The result may be the same. Companies may just move to Europe and avoid talking on the phone too much with the states.

Here's another problem: feasiblity. Companies can run phone conversations over encrypted channels through the internet or leased lines. I suppose you could just tax all bandwidth. Right now the US is the center of the world as far as network topography. All lines go to New York just like all roads went to Rome. It would be dumb to invest government money to build great backbones, and then tax the crap out of them so nobody will use them.

It's globalism:
Play the game best and you win.
Don't play, isolate yourself, and don't lose.
Play it worse then the next guy, and you'll get screwed.

People all over the world are complaining about it. Usually we're "winning". People usually don't complain then.