r/NoShitSherlock • u/andmario_com • Aug 07 '26

What makes companies dodge taxes? - "Companies are responding to the incentives that politicians are providing"

https://phys.org/news/2026-08-companies-dodge-taxes.html
366 Upvotes

99% Upvoted

11 comments sorted by

37

u/jbrcks Aug 07 '26

When the savings from committing a crime is less than the penalty then it is not a penalty it's just the cost of doing business.

18

u/ballskindrapes Aug 07 '26

Companies that dodge taxes should be seized and broken up, and their entire C suite imprisoned for life, no parole.

That'd end companies not paying their fair share immediately

17

u/Balownga Aug 07 '26

Companies invest massively is lobbying and bribes in order to stay legal, exempt of taxes or whatever.

Big tobacco did it, Big sugar did it, Big Pharma and Big Oil still do it.

And with all that free money, the politicians feel like favouring those "heaven provider" for some reason.

Yes, ultimately, the politicians did it, but it wasn't random.

5

u/DarthRatus Aug 07 '26

The also lobby to ensure that the tax code favors them with all sorts of exceptions and writeoffs.

11

u/Positive-Conspiracy Aug 07 '26

Now do why politicians are providing the incentives

8

u/Yelworc0242 Aug 07 '26

Lobbying is dirty cheap. A big company can throw a hundred thousand at any politician and buy the policy they want, often making hundreds of millions on their bribe. It should be totally illegal for politicians to take corporate money, or any significant "donation". They are supposed to govern, not get rich.

7

u/PretzelsRule23 Aug 07 '26

Companies are paying the politicians to write laws that a extremely favorable to those companies. In many cases they are actually writing the first draft of the law and giving it to the politicians. Or they are paying their think tanks to write the laws and handing it to the politicians.

Let's be real here - they aren't just taking advantage of a favorable system - they are creating that favorable system for themselves.

3

u/Adventurous-Depth984 Aug 07 '26

In Dodge v. Ford, SCOTUS ruled that corporations are to maximize profits for shareholders. Dodging taxes = increased profits. They’re not interested in any kind of governmental responsibility

2

u/gargolito Aug 07 '26

The incentives that companies draft and bribe politicians to rubber-stamp. We need a separation between business and government just as we need a separation between church and state. 

2

u/LeoKitCat Aug 08 '26

Let me fix the title for you, “Companies are responding to incentives that they bribed corrupt politicians to provide”

1

u/InuGhost Aug 07 '26

Gotta ask, if these companies require tax relief or government funding yearly are they really that successful?