-> If one prefers that the taxes be included in the price, then one condones th 
-> practice of "hiding" taxes from the consumer.  According to
my reckoning, on 
-> a politician would favor this strategy.  I can't imagine a consumer preferin 
-> this strategy as a matter of convenience.  What he is doing, in effect, is 
-> making it convenient for the politicians to hide the fact that he is being 
-> taxed. 
  
Here, politicians *claim* that not including taxes in the sticker price 
makes the taxes more visible to consumers. When you have to pay an 
extra dollar, above the sticker price, you become painfully aware that 
the dollar is going in tax. 
  
I just got back from a trip to Alberta, where there is no provincial 
sales tax, since monstrous oil revenues keep the provincial coffers 
bulging. At present, the province is running a budgetary surplus of 
about $2000 per inhabitant of the province, per year. You might think 
that the absence of tax would make prices lower. Not so. Prices there 
are substantially higher there than here in Ontario, even with the 
sales tax. Even petroleum products are far more expensive. A litre of 
gasoline costs about $1.10 (Canadian) there. Here in Toronto, it's only 
75 cents, including all taxes! Go figure... 
  
                          dow 
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