You forgot to include the belief that the person who knows what your decision will be also created the universe. Since he/she/it decides what the universe will be like, and also knows what all of the decisions in the future of that universe will be, how can you say that there is also free will?
God might not influence you at the moment you make a decision, just like an author doesn't rewrite his story every time a person reads it. But he did write it once, even if it was long ago.
If he/she can convince the jury that your work is worth millions of dollars, then it might be worth having it destroyed so you can sue the storage company.
Why would they move their production to the US, when they can just keep it in 'insert 3rd world country here' - reducing their labor costs to just about 0, while reporting their profit in the US. That way they don't have to take the trouble of creating a profitable subsidiary in Cayman islands or a place like that.
So corporate taxes are not needed? Why not turn things around and abolish personal taxes.
Any personal income will still get taxed, either through sales tax or through inheritance tax, and you could eliminate at least half of the paperwork the IRS has to do.
As far as I know, covering up murders/manslaughter is still against the law. So, since 'those in power' knew about it and did nothing, they DID break the law.
That could actually be a fitting punishment for white collar crime. Make them pay off any damage they caused to others with hard work.
First confiscate all of their assets. If it's not enough to pay off their victims, throw them into a work camp. Make them work for minimum wage until their debt (+interest of course) is gone. Of course if they do more work then just their quota, you should pay them an appropriate bonus, to keep them motivated.
With this kind of punishment it won't matter if they keep assets hidden offshore. It will just mean that they get to spend a few more lifetimes locked up.
The problem with your plan is that it assumes that you can get more money from BP by immediately selling off it's assets, then you can get from keeping it operating. If that was the case, wouldn't it have been bought out by a competitor?
It also gives you a large amount of cash right now, when the consequences of the spill won't truly be known for a long time. So the likely result is that the 'wrong' people - those whose lively hood won't be effected for longer then a year or to - will get a larger piece of the pie then some whose source of income won't recover for decades.
No, that would be an over-reaction. We don't yet know for certain what the damage will turn out to be. So why not just suspend the rights of BS stockholders and put the company under the temporary control of the US government until all of the damage from the spill is repaired. Absolutely all of the corporation's profit should be used to combat the damage, and all executive bonuses should go into the same fund as well.
Another good step would be to order the executives to keep working in the corporation of face criminal charges. Let them take at least some of the punishment, not just the stockholders.
In time (years, decades, centuries), when the situation returns to normal, the old stockholders or there descendants can have the company back, if there is anything left of it.
Punishment like that would make stockholders and executives at least a bit more likely to avoid accidents, rather then just hope they don't happen, then take the golden parachute if they do.
Their goal is not to sell more units, their goal is to sell software for those units. From what I've heard, most of the profit from console is in the form of license fees from game makers. So Sony has a big interest in preventing anyone not paying those fees from writing any software for the PS3.
But does DRM stop piracy? Does it even significantly slow it down? Most games are cracked on or before the day of release, just making DRM a problem that paying customers have to deal with.
What don't have enough money to file the patent in both the UK and US? And by the time your widget earns you enough money to file, a big corporation has already filed for the patent in every country except the UK?
Investigation? And who is going to investigate the Russian/Nigerian,.... spammers/botnet operators? Since the whole thing would be a civil trial, you force your competitor to spend a lot of money chasing down ghosts all over the world, leaving him with less money to mount a defense. And even if/when you find the spammers - what are you going to do? Arrest them and have them extradited to the US and force them to testify? Your only leverage would be money - bribing them for more then your competitor. In the end even if you manage to get them to testify, all you have is a person willing to change their testimony for money, probably even during trial.
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The rich will have their company - registered in a tax haven - do most of their purchases from abroad.
It's just a matter of perception.
There is not much of a difference between a product being sold for 10$+10% sales tax or 11$ where the business pays the tax out of their own income.
By the time you get in front of a judge your legal costs will be so high that the verdict won't matter.
You forgot to include the belief that the person who knows what your decision will be also created the universe. Since he/she/it decides what the universe will be like, and also knows what all of the decisions in the future of that universe will be, how can you say that there is also free will?
God might not influence you at the moment you make a decision, just like an author doesn't rewrite his story every time a person reads it. But he did write it once, even if it was long ago.
Without US support in the UNSC, Israel would be under so many sanctions that their economy would collapse.
It becomes slightly less justified if you include the fact that you're sitting on his back, cutting off his toes.
It depends on how good your lawyer is.
If he/she can convince the jury that your work is worth millions of dollars, then it might be worth having it destroyed so you can sue the storage company.
Why would they move their production to the US, when they can just keep it in 'insert 3rd world country here' - reducing their labor costs to just about 0, while reporting their profit in the US. That way they don't have to take the trouble of creating a profitable subsidiary in Cayman islands or a place like that.
So corporate taxes are not needed? Why not turn things around and abolish personal taxes.
Any personal income will still get taxed, either through sales tax or through inheritance tax, and you could eliminate at least half of the paperwork the IRS has to do.
So you're claiming there is no difference in attending a concert and buying a recording?
Then why do people buy tickets that cost many times the price of a CD/itunes download?
Concert attendance is not likely to change due to any laws governing downloads.
As far as I know, covering up murders/manslaughter is still against the law. So, since 'those in power' knew about it and did nothing, they DID break the law.
That could actually be a fitting punishment for white collar crime. Make them pay off any damage they caused to others with hard work.
First confiscate all of their assets. If it's not enough to pay off their victims, throw them into a work camp. Make them work for minimum wage until their debt (+interest of course) is gone. Of course if they do more work then just their quota, you should pay them an appropriate bonus, to keep them motivated.
With this kind of punishment it won't matter if they keep assets hidden offshore. It will just mean that they get to spend a few more lifetimes locked up.
The problem with your plan is that it assumes that you can get more money from BP by immediately selling off it's assets, then you can get from keeping it operating. If that was the case, wouldn't it have been bought out by a competitor?
It also gives you a large amount of cash right now, when the consequences of the spill won't truly be known for a long time. So the likely result is that the 'wrong' people - those whose lively hood won't be effected for longer then a year or to - will get a larger piece of the pie then some whose source of income won't recover for decades.
No, that would be an over-reaction. We don't yet know for certain what the damage will turn out to be. So why not just suspend the rights of BS stockholders and put the company under the temporary control of the US government until all of the damage from the spill is repaired. Absolutely all of the corporation's profit should be used to combat the damage, and all executive bonuses should go into the same fund as well.
Another good step would be to order the executives to keep working in the corporation of face criminal charges. Let them take at least some of the punishment, not just the stockholders.
In time (years, decades, centuries), when the situation returns to normal, the old stockholders or there descendants can have the company back, if there is anything left of it.
Punishment like that would make stockholders and executives at least a bit more likely to avoid accidents, rather then just hope they don't happen, then take the golden parachute if they do.
They are about as valid as every peace treaty signed since the beginning of mankind.
Their goal is not to sell more units, their goal is to sell software for those units. From what I've heard, most of the profit from console is in the form of license fees from game makers. So Sony has a big interest in preventing anyone not paying those fees from writing any software for the PS3.
If there were no pirates we'd still have DRM. Just like now it would be used to stop people from re-selling the books/games, just like it is now.
But does DRM stop piracy? Does it even significantly slow it down? Most games are cracked on or before the day of release, just making DRM a problem that paying customers have to deal with.
You forgot:
6. All of these points are only revealed once you've paid your rent (non refundable), as they are written on a wall inside the apartment.
But the moment you let your investor know about your invention, he can go and patent it.
What don't have enough money to file the patent in both the UK and US? And by the time your widget earns you enough money to file, a big corporation has already filed for the patent in every country except the UK?
Being the victim of a crime does not give you the right to commit crimes.
Things like right to exist probably are in it.
Fixed that for you.
Still a good result for the rest of the world.
Investigation? And who is going to investigate the Russian/Nigerian,.... spammers/botnet operators?
Since the whole thing would be a civil trial, you force your competitor to spend a lot of money chasing down ghosts all over the world, leaving him with less money to mount a defense.
And even if/when you find the spammers - what are you going to do? Arrest them and have them extradited to the US and force them to testify? Your only leverage would be money - bribing them for more then your competitor.
In the end even if you manage to get them to testify, all you have is a person willing to change their testimony for money, probably even during trial.