The Spark

the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist

“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx

Apple Skips Town on the IRS

May 27, 2013

Apple, the most profitable high tech company in the world, avoids paying billions in taxes by claiming to be officially located in Ireland and other places outside the U.S.

Congress is holding hearings where they talk about tax avoidance (being careful to say Apple hasn’t broken any laws) and bemoan the fact that the U.S. government should have gotten taxes on 74 billion dollars for the years between 2009 and 2012.

Apple’s chief executive, Timothy Cook, said Apple had no choice because the tax codes in the U.S. are “so complicated.” As if the corporate legal beagles have trouble figuring out a tax code! And politicians, Republicans and Democrats, agreed! So the whole thing flipped around to focus on the “need for corporate tax reform”–in other words, lower taxes for corporations!

So let the games go on, Mr. Congressmen: Keep pretending to go after Apple. Maybe if you ask them nice, they’ll give you an iPad!