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Amazon Pulls Out of Planned New York City Campus

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971–980 of 1001 posts

Re: Amazon Pulls Out of Planned New York City Campus

#971

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can offer a counterexample. In the city I live in, there have been several major tech companies that were given enormous tax breaks and other gifts in exchange for moving in. They'd move in, build their buildings and factories, and everything would look rosy for 3-5 years. Then they'd cut and run, leaving the city worse off than if it had never done the deal in the first place.

Yup, goes both ways. Assuming the companies promised more and underdelivered, your city's economic council should have written the contract-break into the contract. Or assuming the companies didn't promise that much, your city seems to either have done a deal aware of the potential of negative outcome (and accepted it) or did not do due diligence. But it doesn't discount the idea of economic incentives as a whole due…

> it doesn't discount the idea of economic incentives as a whole

I never said it did.

However, if you really need to make a contract iron-clad in order to protect yourself (and good luck with that!), that's a very strong indication that the entity you're dealing with is untrustworthy and you shouldn't be getting into bed with them in the first place.

The problem with most major corporations (and particularly major tech companies these days) is that they are not trustworthy actors.

Re: Amazon Pulls Out of Planned New York City Campus

#972

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What if another state gave the concessions, and then it worked out spectacularly for them, completely reviving a city and building up a new ecosystem that funnels in new wealth and new money. Would NY be kicking itself then?

??? You're suggesting that another city will generate money and wealth to rival NYC by getting a few Amazon jobs? Frankly, that would not happen. Maybe if that other city was DC? But, yeah, probably not even then.

Per capita, Northern Virginia is already the wealthiest area in the United States. Amazon will probably nudge it a little further into the lead.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest-income_countie...

Re: Amazon Pulls Out of Planned New York City Campus

#973
post #972

Earlier quoted context omitted.

??? You're suggesting that another city will generate money and wealth to rival NYC by getting a few Amazon jobs? Frankly, that would not happen. Maybe if that other city was DC? But, yeah, probably not even then.

Per capita, Northern Virginia is already the wealthiest area in the United States. Amazon will probably nudge it a little further into the lead. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest-income_countie...

That's income per capita, which is a little bit different than wealth.

There is no place, in the US, that rivals the wealth and power of NYC. Now internationally, that's where you start to get your Beijing's, and your London's, and your Tokyo's, and your Monte Carlo's, and your Paris, and Shanghai's etc. But in the US it's NYC at the center of the preponderance of wealth and power. Only place in a position to make a run at NYC is DC, and they'll need a lot more than Amazon to do it.

(There's also LA and Chicago, but those cities are not as "powerful", nowhere near as wealthy, and to be frank, making a run at NYC is not their ambition.)

Re: Amazon Pulls Out of Planned New York City Campus

#974
post #972

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Per capita, Northern Virginia is already the wealthiest area in the United States. Amazon will probably nudge it a little further into the lead. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest-income_countie...

That's income per capita, which is a little bit different than wealth. There is no place, in the US, that rivals the wealth and power of NYC. Now internationally , that's where you start to get your Beijing's, and your London's, and your Tokyo's, and your Monte Carlo's, and your Paris, and Shanghai's etc. But in the US it's NYC at the center of the preponderance of wealth and power. Only place in a position to make a…

How are you quantifying wealth and power?

Re: Amazon Pulls Out of Planned New York City Campus

#976
post #948

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'll choose that 0 over giving away 3 billion every day. I don't care how you try to justify this sort of corruption.

Perhaps consider having even a mild understanding of how tax incentives work before spouting nonsense righteous indignation?

Perhaps consider that not everyone who disagrees with you is an ignorant fool.

Re: Amazon Pulls Out of Planned New York City Campus

#977

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>Second, LeBron (and other athletes) earn playing income in every jurisdiction they play in, not based solely on the jurisdiction that the team is based in. This means they are responsible for filing taxes in each of these jurisdiction. That’s pretty funny how well settled that area of Law is, and yet again Amazon thinks it’s pretty special in that regard also...historically they haven’t paid those taxes either (stat…

Merchants don't pay sales taxes, they collect them on behalf of the taxing entity. The tax is owed by the consumer to the entity regardless of whether the merchant collects it or not. Amazon was trying to give itself an advantage over physical retailers, but thus had nothing to do with Amazon trying to get out of taxes.

>Merchants don't pay sales taxes

That’s cute, but not the way the Law works generally. Maybe you can point to a single state where the law is different, until then I’ll just say the general rule is if the merchant makes of $x they are required by law to collect sales tax. Where or not the merchant does, they will be liable to the state for payment of the same, not the individual consumers.

If the law worked the way you represent why would any merchant collect and pay sales tax to the states?

Re: Amazon Pulls Out of Planned New York City Campus

#978
post #242

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It rarely happens, but it's always refreshing to see when real estate investment doesn't just equal free money.

It happens pretty often, actually. It's a myth that real estate is some kind of money printing machine.

Adam Smith is down with that statement too. he said it best in his book "The Wealth of Nations," published coincidentally in 1776 that a home/house/condo is not an investment:

“...a dwelling-house, as such, contributes nothing to the revenue of its inhabitant. [...] and though it is, no doubt, extremely useful to him, it is as his clothes and household furniture are useful to him.” [...] If it is to be let to a tenant for rent, as the house itself can produce nothing, the tenant must always pay the rent out of some other revenue which he derives either from labor, or stock, or land. ..."

(12th paragraph) https://www.bartleby.com/10/201.html

My advice to my kids is that they should buy a dwelling and not live in it. Let it be an investment, let someone else pay the mortgage and the upkeep as well.

Re: Amazon Pulls Out of Planned New York City Campus

#979
post #554

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Most new Yorkers supported the project even when told about the subsidies. It's a vocal minority that sank the project https://www.wsj.com/articles/majority-of-new-yorkers-support...

They sank it? Amazon could have easily ignored them for all eternity if they wanted. A vocal minority can't influence a random housing development, you think they had any say over Amazon? That's a STRETCH

The politician that grants approval to the developments was just selected. He is the most anti Amazon person, he grants approval or not with a small committee. He refused to even meet with Amazon executives. 3 times they asked for an audience, he rejected all 3 and chose to grandstand. He built a name for himself, saw him on the news this morning and he looked like a complete fool.

Re: Amazon Pulls Out of Planned New York City Campus

#980
post #844
post #808

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't see it as a "what can you do for me". A lot of Amazon's interest were aligned with that of many New Yorkers. Both Amazon and most New Yorkers want to have a strong transportation system and a diverse economy that doesn't just rely on taxing bloated financial bonuses to pay for services. They also want New York to be an in-demand tech hub with a deep labor pool and be a place where people actually want to live…

If skyscraper-studded Manhattan is hostile to businesses, I am really curious what a city friendly to businesses looks like....

It's possible the studding of skyscrapers occurred before the hostility, right?
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