Lancaster Local Tax: Fill & Download for Free

A short list:Dealers facilitate cost competition in all aspects of the car buying and ownership processDealers will remain long after brands shut down (Saturn dealers, Saab dealers, etc. are still around today), thus ensuring vehicle owners aren't "stranded" when a brand goes out of businessDealers support the local community in ways that major corporations do notDealers generate local tax revenue, while corporations like to "play games" with their income to avoid paying taxesDealers provide local service and support to car buyers that some automakers (like Tesla) can't provide with their limited operationsand a few others...I'm not necessarily defending these reasons, but I do believe they have merit.However, we need franchised dealers...I've laid out my reasoning here: Jason Lancaster's answer to Should major car manufacturers be legally allowed to sell their cars directly to consumers in all 50 states?

A few things I’ve seen or heard over the 40 years I’ve lived in Switzerland:A Tunisian once told me, unsurprisingly, that he found the number of fountains in Switzerland deeply shocking. ‘So much wasted water…’Some people don’t believe how expensive Switzerland is until they get here. Swiss salaries are higher too, of course, but that doesn’t make prices any friendlier to foreign visitors.Swiss salaries seem indecently high to foreigners, of course. Many Swiss people I know, including myself, carefully avoid the subject in conversations with non-residents.Swiss petrol is, ironically, cheap. In 1979 I remember paying 1.20 Swiss francs per litre. Today, four decades later, the price is a ridiculously low 1.70. A Swiss franc is worth about one US dollar.I’ve spoken to several French doctors who’ve been astonished at the high quality of the equipment and facilities in Swiss hospitals. The Swiss complain bitterly about the price of their health insurance but they forget what they get in return.Many Swiss people buy their food abroad. Border guards focus on catching people importing more than the legal limits for meat, which is eye-poppingly expensive in Switzerland. My point here is that Swiss people are not all stinking rich, far from it. Many need to penny-pinch, which is why German discounters such as Aldi and Lidl do so well here.It comes as a shock to foreigners that poverty exists in this beautiful, well organized country. So do alcoholism, drug abuse and suicide. Loneliness is a major problem, especially among the elderly, but it’s carefully hidden, as all Swiss problems are. The Swiss care obsessively about appearances.The Swiss are quick to deflect criticism by pointing to neighbouring countries’ inferior performance in comparable areas. It’s as if this alone could dilute or excuse Swiss guilt or sloppiness. Switzerland’s neighbours tend to criticise themselves before pointing fingers elsewhere.The Swiss work long hours to get things just right and take care of every last detail. This is to their legendary credit. Note however that while his approach makes the Swiss effective and reliable, it does not automatically make them efficient.Swiss banks are no different these days from other banks around the world. Responding to relentless international pressure, Switzerland has made its anonymous accounts and infamous secrecy provisions things of the past.Most Swiss people I know, especially the young, are relieved. Yet many still keep their accounts away from the large Swiss banks in favour of smaller, more local, less scandal-tainted ones (e.g. Raiffeisen).In the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s things were different. I often heard Swiss people justifying their banks’ impeccable hospitality towards criminal money by claiming that if Swiss banks refused to launder it, other countries’ banks would. So why, they reasoned, ignore such a business opportunity?Important: the ordinary Swiss citizens making such claims back then were NOT dishonest themselves. Indeed a huge majority of Swiss people were (and still are) honest and caring to a fault. They were simply displaying a trait the Swiss often display towards foreign business dealings: ice-cold cynicism.Today dictators are no longer immune to having their Swiss accounts frozen and criminals can expect the origin of their money to be challenged, if not investigated.Switzerland now automatically swaps data with other countries, especially E.U. ones, to fight tax evasion.One black cloud: the USA has made operating conditions so difficult for Swiss banks following repeated scandals where the banks were caught luring American tax dodgers that American customers are no longer made to feel welcome. The paperwork the banks must provide to the USA is too tedious.The Swiss vote a lot. By gathering the right number of signatures, any citizen can trigger a referendum to let the people have the final say on a law. The downside of this is voting fatigue. Participation tends to be low except in decisions related to foreigners.No, Switzerland is not a member of the European Union. Never has been. Doesn’t want to be. But because Switzerland exports a lot of stuff to the Union, it applies E.U. standards to its products and services without taking part in the definition of those standards… So much for independence.Switzerland is not Sweden. They’re not neighbors either.Switzerland has an army even though it’s ‘neutral’. Neutrality has to be defended.

What was the strangest purchase you have made?I have numerous items that I have purchased throughout my lifetime, but I will only show a few of them.Look at this color green, doesn’t it make you think of spring? I bought this wig back in 2007 for St. Patrick’s Day. I saw it at Walmart and I just had to buy it. I wore it when I worked at the pretzel store in our local mall. I also wore it as part of my halloween costume at my last job back in 2011. I had a long green robe to go with it. (I took this picture without my glasses on).It was my weekend to work and it was Halloween. On Sundays we usually order takeout food. I was elected to go to the pub/restaurant to pick up the food. I went inside and everyone sitting there got a big kick out of my costume, especially the green wig. There was a costume contest going on and one of the locals pointed at me and said “I vote for her. Anyone that has the balls to go out in public dressed like that deserves to win”. We all laughed and I told him thanks, but I can't stay. I have to get back to work with everyone's food.I bought this statue at Dollar Tree Redirect Notice last October (2016) for $1.00, hence why it is called Dollar Tree. Everything is a dollar or less. I love shopping at this store.This little guy is the poop emoji pillow. He is soft and cuddly. I bought him at Walmart back in March of this year. I only paid $3 for it. My son was upset because I didn't get him one. I informed him it was the last one. I assured him that when they get more in, I would get him one. He settled for a chocolate chip pillow instead. LolMy husband and I saw this in a pawn shop. It's a light that uses 3 christmas tree bulbs to light up the saber. Who wouldn't want Darth Vader watching over them? I originally bought it for my son because he loves Star Wars. He said NO, it was too creepy! I kept the light for myself. I think it's really cool. Definitely strange!Oh yeah, this thing! It's a 6 foot telescoping gutter brush. I bought it through Publishers Clearing House last fall. Why oh why? Ladies and Gentlemen, may I present to you the oversized toilet bowl brush that doubles as a gutter brush. Just imagine, it's portable, it's convenient and no more getting your face close to that stinky toilet bowl to clean it. Yes folks, this is the only brush you will ever need! LolFor those of you wondering why it still looks clean. Wonder no more, it doesn't work worth a damn! I wasted $11.96 plus tax, shipping and handling. Total cost altogether $24.96 pfffft.As you can see, I like buying strange and weird things.Chances are, if it's strange or weird, I'll buy it.Thanks for the A2A Jay Sapinsky*sorry it took so long to answer this question**