The deceptive business practices of your government

[hebner20]

If you had a business and did this you would be in jail.

See link below for full story.

http://ir.spirit.com/releasedetail.cfm?releaseid=642003

January 24, 2012
Spirit Airlines Warns Consumers of USDOT's New Mandate to HIDE Taxes in Airfares
MIRAMAR, Fla., Jan. 24, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Spirit Airlines has a launched a campaign to warn consumers about the U.S. Department of Transportation's latest fare rules that go into effect this week. Spirit and other airlines are now mandated to HIDE the government's taxes and fees in fares.

"We believe that the better form of transparency is to break out costs so customers know exactly what they are buying," says Spirit's President and CEO Ben Baldanza. "Spirit believes customers have a right to know how much of their fare goes toward government taxes and fees rather than hiding it in the fare."

"If the government can hide taxes in consumer's airfares — which they are mandating us to do starting this week — then they can quietly carry out their hidden agenda and increase the taxes consumers bear," adds Baldanza.

They can't stop the spending so they will steal it from consumers. Maybe the New Consumer Protection Agency can go after the Feds.(sarcasm) Have we gone past the point of no return? Maybe.

[GodHatesClevelandSport]

Or it could actually be the opposite, and Spirit is mad it can't trick people into thinking it actually has lower fares:

http://moneyland.time.com/2012/01/27/ne ... et-prices/

[FUDU]

Spirit says the new rules are unfair: Why should airlines have to include taxes and fees in their advertised prices when other purchases are under no such obligation?

They make a valid point, but ultimately this regulation seems to be in favor of the consumer. Although transparency in airline pricing was pretty far down the list of things we need to be transparent on.

[hebner20]

Or it could actually be the opposite, and Spirit is mad it can't trick people into thinking it actually has lower fares:

http://moneyland.time.com/2012/01/27/ne ... et-prices/

If the government wanted to stop spirits practices of showing their cost only without taxes/fees they should have mandated it to be shown with all fees included not to bury the federal taxes in the price and forbid them to disclose the taxes. i want full disclosure and accountability on what my government does with taxes they levy. What purpose does it serve to bury the taxes and forbid their disclosure? I can't think of one good reason. YMMV.

[GodHatesClevelandSport]

Or it could actually be the opposite, and Spirit is mad it can't trick people into thinking it actually has lower fares:

http://moneyland.time.com/2012/01/27/ne ... et-prices/

If the government wanted to stop spirits practices of showing their cost only without taxes/fees they should have mandated it to be shown with all fees included not to bury the federal taxes in the price and forbid them to disclose the taxes. i want full disclosure and accountability on what my government does with taxes they levy. What purpose does it serve to bury the taxes and forbid their disclosure? I can't think of one good reason. YMMV.

Good thing none of that is happening:

Still, there’s nothing preventing any airline from breaking out those taxes and fees for consumers, either in its ads or when consumers pay their airfare. In fact, Baldanza says that Spirit is planning on breaking out a 7.5% excise tax that was initially included in the base fare, something he said was illegal to separate out until now. “We’ll see if the DOT wants to fine us on that,” he says.

Read more: http://moneyland.time.com/2012/01/27/ne ... z1ksTS1mfe

[hebner20]

Also from the article...

“Nothing in our rule will prohibit a carrier from informing consumers that the fare includes a specified amount of taxes and government fees, as long as the stated fare includes those taxes and fees,” said DOT spokesman Bill Mosley. “The carrier can then break out taxes and fees if it wishes.”

If this is true then I am ok with this and apprently Baldanza from Spirit is stirring up things up with no basis in fact. I first heard this Tuesday on CNBC when he was on with Carl Quintanilla and Baldanza was not challenged or rebutted by Quintanilla so i thought he was correct in what he was stating. I then went to the press release to read more and it confirmed what I had heard (on XM radio). I guess it is unprepared or bad reporting by CNBC. Something doesn't add up but based on what the DOT spokesman says i am fine with the rule.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

I'm not sure who I despise more, airlines or the government. Both only seem to employ the absolute bottom of the barrel.

Dear airlines, take your fees, your security bullshit, and the retards you employ and just tick them right up your incompetent asses.

You suck at everything, especially making money, they love bailouts, because they suck and I hope there is reincarnation and they all come back as ditches for cum.

Fuck off.

[peeker643]

I'm not sure who I despise more, airlines or the government. Both only seem to employ the absolute bottom of the barrel.

Dear airlines, take your fees, your security bullshit, and the retards you employ and just tick them right up your incompetent asses.

You suck at everything, especially making money, they love bailouts, because they suck and I hope there is reincarnation and they all come back as ditches for cum.

Fuck off.

That's beautiful.

You're a 21st century poet, man.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

I am not.

Fuck you, Johnny Cash.

Troll 2 FTW.

[idoctribefan]

The last 30 days I've been putting up with all sorts of government bullshit. My wife applied for a passport 2 months ago to attend a conference in Toronto this past week. The post office lost the passport on its way here. So we paid $19 to overnight a renewal application to the State Dept a few weeks ago after they told us we shoulda had had the passport weeks ago. We called them and told them the overnight package was coming. Been calling them for 2 weeks multiple times each day to see if they got the renewal application. No answer. No return calls. Got a call today from the State Dept asking why we never sent the overnight package in. "um, we did. We spent $19 to overnight it. We've been calling you for 2 weeks asking if you got it".

"well we never got it. Guess it got lost in the mail. We've been calling you for two weeks asking you if you sent it. you haven't been answering."

What am I gonna do, go into the local post office and melt down because they lost her passport and the re-application for the passport? It's not like going to a private business where they'll do everything in their power to keep you happy. The post office has been operating in the red for decades and the bums running it from the top-down don't give two drops of horse piss about the fact. And those MF'ers at the State Dept lying about trying to call us? Fuck that place.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

What am I gonna do, go into the local post office and melt down because they lost her passport and the re-application for the passport?

Yeah you should do that, postal workers are known for how well they handle bad situations.

The post office has been operating in the red for decades

The post office isn't supposed to make money, fucko. That's the shitbrained Republicunt logic for you. If it doesn't make them money it shouldn't exist.

This the next Republican big idea, get rid of the post office. They been muttering about it for a while now, like a bunch of cum drunk whores.

[Orenthal]

LMAO not supposed to make money? 7 billion in the red and never any hope of breaking even unless uh, the control their benefits and compensation.

From the GAO Report
"Congress should consider providing financial relief, such as revising USPS retiree health benefit funding and requiring any binding arbitration to take USPS’s financial condition into account."

When has fuckface liberal ever cared about "taking the financial condition into account"? Just bail them out, tax the rich, and let joe middle class feel he got some victory.

http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d10455.pdf

[idoctribefan]

The post office has been operating in the red for decades

The post office isn't supposed to make money, fucko.

you should apply for the position of Postmaster General. That opinion unfortunately is all too popular in D.C. If they don't care about making a profit, they should've just lost our express mail for free instead of charging us $18.30. And it probably cost them $25 in overhead and manpower to lose it.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Yeah.... I gotta admit it, the post office sucks. But i've had just as shitty experiences with UPS and FedEx. I'm pretty sure FedEx sent some books I mailed to the Falkland Islands, and some asshole with big purple fingerprints handled the fuck out it before my friend got the fucking thing. The customer service was not exactly helpful, or least what you would expect from the godly private sector.

I'm not saying the service was DMV bad, there was no morbidly obese woman that owns 17 cats and hates you as much as her life behind the counter. The general impression I got was that there was some kind of weird weather disturbance hovering in the exact same location as my package, but my recourse was limited since these people had my money and I was in no position to control weather of any kind.

Science just needs to get the fuck on with the particle transporters. That'll show 'em.

[idoctribefan]

The post office has been operating in the red for decades

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/ ... 9-09-40-07

just a sampling...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The U.S. Postal Service said Thursday that its quarterly loss widened to $3.3 billion amid declining mail volume and mounting costs for future retiree health benefits as it struggles to stave off bankruptcy.

From October through December 2011, losses were $3 billion more than the same period a year ago, even though that quarter is typically the strongest due to increased holiday shipping. The mail agency said that at this rate, it will run out of money by October.