this post was submitted on 14 Aug 2024
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Coca-Cola Taxes (sh.itjust.works)
submitted 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
21 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

https://mastodon.social/@MEActNOW/112956139620337300

News: https://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyphillipserb/2024/08/06/coca-cola-could-face-16-billion-irs-bill-after-its-tax-court-arguments-fall-flat/

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[–] [email protected] 39 points 2 months ago

With a wink and a nudge, transactions are often structured to shift profits from high-tax countries to low-tax countries to cut their tax bills. The most popular target for transfer pricing abuse is intangible property, including licenses for manufacturing, distribution, sale, marketing, and promotion of products in overseas markets. Since intangible property doesn't really have a physical home—unlike, say, real estate—it's easy to transfer it to countries that offer certain benefits, including more favorable tax treatment. (That’s what’s in dispute in the Coca-Cola case.)

Ugh

[–] [email protected] 34 points 2 months ago (2 children)

and i bet nobody goes to jail in the end, and ultimately they end up profiting after paying it back

[–] [email protected] 14 points 2 months ago

You assume they’re paying it back and don’t do some pittance of a public service instead.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 months ago (2 children)

For this to be criminal it'd probably require intent to be proven which is difficult without a "smoking gun" of an email being like "do this to avoid taxes or be fired"- CEO. For it just to be civil fines is a lot simpler to show. Their inevitable appeal and potential reduction in fine is a different issue.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 months ago

Of course they have intent. That's not an issue at all. They're trying to avoid taxes, which is in itself legal, and they aren't denying that. Their theory is that the IRS is doing the math wrong.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 months ago

Which is hilarious because ignorance is not a defence for poor people.

[–] [email protected] 31 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Did you know it doesn’t even have cocaine in it anymore? What a ripoff!

[–] [email protected] 17 points 2 months ago (3 children)

Coca Cola ensured that international drug laws grant them an exception to use real coca leaves (with the cocaine extracted from them first). Oddly enough, they could still make their cola taste the same without the leaves. The reason they still use them is because they likely wouldn't be allowed to call it "coca" cola it it had no coca leaves. The name was so recognizable that they asked for an exception to drug laws rather than change the name of their drink.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 2 months ago

The other reason is they make a good profit selling medical cocaine.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 2 months ago

Branding is one helluva drug

[–] [email protected] 6 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Sounds like an excuse to extract cocaine to me

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 months ago

Eh, works for me. BRB, making a new product called coca tea, for the... uh... tea.

[–] [email protected] 24 points 2 months ago

Now do Cargill, Tyson, etc al.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 2 months ago (1 children)

https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyphillipserb/2024/08/06/coca-cola-could-face-16-billion-irs-bill-after-its-tax-court-arguments-fall-flat

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 months ago

Thank you friend

[–] [email protected] 14 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Good.

How many people have diabetes because of their Coca-Cola addiction? How many people are overweight and hate their bodies because of all of the non-nutritious sugars they have drank?

And they have the audacity to not only charge several dollars a pop for their sodas, but to also bottle water in the exact same plant and charge the exact same price for the water they have bottled that they do for their sodas.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 2 months ago

Externalities with no direct impact on the company? No way! Milton Friedman assured me that capitalism was perfectly balanced with 0 exploits!

[–] [email protected] 8 points 2 months ago

But the IRS will come after meeee! /s

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 months ago

Is this part of the pay off to Biden's IRS funding increase?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 months ago

Nail them to the wall.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 months ago

Which works out to around $29,200,000.00 / DAY in profits, not even total revenue but actual in the pocket profits, for selling sugar water with some flavor additives...