Bad Humor and Taxes

[EmilyRose1982]

This creepy looking guy comes in the store yesterday. He wasn't scary looking, just creepy weird (rather than fun weird). Nonetheless, I smile and greet him.

Me: Hi, what can I get for you today?
CG: (after a long silence, staring open-mouthed at the menu): Uhhh... five whole chickens, a Coke and a side of white toast, hahahaha.
Me: (I hear smartass answers all the time, but his one was really strange, even for me!) Ummmm... you're in the wrong establishment....
CG: Oh, damn.... Um.... I'll have like a medium iced latte... with chocolate!
Me: Ok... so you want an iced mocha?
CG: Well what's that?
Me: .............An iced latte with chocolate in it.
CG: Oh! Ok, yeah, but only half the chocolate!
Me: Ok, that will be $4.39.
CG: (points at the menu with a witchy-poo finger): $4.39?!?!? That's for a large, I want a medium! It says $4.09 for a medium!!!
Me: Yes, that is the price for a medium, after tax is included. The large is $4.39 BEFORE tax.
CG: 30 cents in tax! Holy shit! What the hell is the tax rate in this county!
Me: I'm not sure, but--
CG: That's too much tax blarghhhhh!
Me: Ok....

He paid, we made his drink and he left, still muttering about taxes.

This is the second time I've had someone freak out at me about tax on our products. I CAN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT YOU FREAKS!!! Last time this happened, the SC blamed ME for the "outlandish taxes." I told him that we, the company, had no control over it. After demanding something be done, I snapped and said, "Well, sir, the election is coming up later this year, so keep these outlandish taxes in mind." He left without another word.

It's guys like these that really make me hate humanity.

[Der Cute]

Tell him "The Blues Brothers WAS a good movie. You're here now. Want a latte?"

[XCashier]

Me: Hi, what can I get for you today?
CG: (after a long silence, staring open-mouthed at the menu): Uhhh... five whole chickens, a Coke and a side of white toast, hahahaha.

Dude, you are not even remotely cool enough to be one of the Blues Brothers. And Jake ordered four chickens.

[PepperElf]

Exactly!

I had a customer bitch at me once over the price on his computer (the add ons). I was able to get those taken off cos it was the last model but then... then he questioned the extra $30 charge...

So I showed him the readout on the screen... Sales tax. I think the 9.5% rate kinda hit him in the gut a bit hard, but ain't anything I can do about that. Hell I'm not even a state resident; I lived in the next state over so I *really* couldn't do anything about it.

Although ... I once compared prices from <my store> locally to the one where my Mom lived... Our prices were lower. I'm somewhat wondering if that was to make up for the taxes.

[AmbrosiaWriter]

People have two choices - sales tax or higher property tax. DECIDE AND THEN BE HAPPY!

I had someone complain to me while working at the big bullseye about the sales tax. She was from a state that had none.

"OMG How do you DEAL with that?"
Me: Well, I like having roads in safe conditions, police, firemen, and public education. So I'm pretty good with the sales tax.
"BLARHAGLAGA"

That woman was very rage-y, especially when I pointed out that the property taxes in her state were higher than the ones in mine - with a big smile. (I was leaving in about a week anyway so I didn't care that customers complained about me. My boss enjoyed the complaints because there were always about me pointing out something stupid.)

Raging at the lowest icon on the totem pole, especially when they aren't even on the political totem pole, is just rude and ego-bending. They probably just wanted to be able to tell themselves, "Yeah, the tax is ridiculous and I certainly gave the man what for about it!"

[auntiem]

So he was ordering for Jake and Elwood and then complained about 30 cents?
Way to go from kinda goofy to PITA in a heartbeat. Maybe he was embarrased because his "joke" failed.

[fish3k1]

Wow, I have no idea how taxes work in other countries, but 9.5% doesn't seem like much. In the UK we have VAT (Value Added Tax) which is applicable to the majority of retail purchases which is 20%. In fairness, most places in the UK show prices with VAT included, so there's no shock at the checkout (and purchases made for business purposes can reclaim VAT) but damn... 9.5% sounds pretty fuckken sweet.

[AmbrosiaWriter]

Wow, I have no idea how taxes work in other countries, but 9.5% doesn't seem like much. In the UK we have VAT (Value Added Tax) which is applicable to the majority of retail purchases which is 20%. *snip* but damn... 9.5% sounds pretty fuckken sweet.

Remember! You guys have universal healthcare. We do not, and we don't have several other things which cause our taxes to run between 5-12% depending.

So the difference in government projects often causes a different tax rate.

[mharbourgirl]

Wow, I have no idea how taxes work in other countries, but 9.5% doesn't seem like much. In the UK we have VAT (Value Added Tax) which is applicable to the majority of retail purchases which is 20%. In fairness, most places in the UK show prices with VAT included, so there's no shock at the checkout (and purchases made for business purposes can reclaim VAT) but damn... 9.5% sounds pretty fuckken sweet.

Yeesh. And here I was thinking that 9.5 was pretty sweet, because it's 15% here in this backwater province. Most places don't show it in the sticker, sticker is the price before tax. Only place I know that includes the tax in the shelf tag is the liquor store.

[smfrazier]

In our state, right before school starts, they have a special tax free weekend, where people don't have to pay sales tax on most school supplies. This is something the state does and has been going on for several years. A couple of years ago the state decided not to do it for some reason. It was not the store's decision. But people still hollered that the store was "ripping them off" and didn't believe that the store had nothing to do with it.

[Aethian]

Our state is 6% with some areas having a hospitality tax of a additional 6%.

[bubblelittlepally]

This guy was obviously old enough to know you have to pay taxes, it happens, it's part of life. People bitch and cry all the time about tax, I tell them "fine, don't buy it then." You include tax in the price, they cry. I guess people thing because the shop I work at is a small business, they can come in and make threats to go to big box retailers over petty things like paying freaking 7%. If we're going to go out of business, we'll do it either way.

Where I live it's 5% state plus the city's 2%.

[Gurndigarn]

Or, of course, you could be in a place where you have federal income tax, state income tax, village income tax, property tax, school tax, school fees (if you have children in school), and sales tax. Plus special taxes on various things.

Of course, then you get into exemptions and various other absurdities. Last year, I paid no federal taxes, but between EIC, child tax credit, and additional child tax credit, the federal government paid me enough to cover all the other taxes combined, and have a bunch left over*. Yes, we have a very messed up system.

* At least until you throw sales tax into the mix. Then I probably came out behind.

[Oniontears]

Out of curiosity, why aren't sales etc. taxes included in the item price for you U.S-ians? It's included in the sticker/list price of EVERYTHING in Australia. Usually it's listed on the receipt how much of what you paid is GST (10%) but not always - I just checked my wallet and found 2 receipts without GST listed.

[Aethian]

Because that would make sense?