Newsletter ArchiveSUBJECTs:Tax Rebate - Privacy Protection The Internet 800 Directory - http://www.inter800.com The Internet 800 Directory Newsletter This issue is for Friday, August 03, 2001 Table of Contents 01. Privacy Protection 02. Tax Rebate *01 Privacy Protection Welcome to The Internet 800 Directory Newsletter. This week has not been one of my best; on Tuesday one of our web servers had a problem that created, 12 hours of extra, must-complete work. Then Wednesday morning at 6:15, during my daily tennis match, I ran full speed into a fence. It was a foolish thing to do, but I was totally focused on getting to the ball. As I was lying on the ground, unable to get up, my first thought was, “I’m done playing today” and my next was, “I have to go to work today”. It was not easy, but I made it into work and completed one of those no break, single-mindedness type days. Facing a demanding task can do funny things to you. Physically I was a wreck (I still am) but mentally I felt better than I have in couple of months. Several weeks ago I covered Cookies, the web type not the ones you eat. Many of you had concerns about your privacy in regards to how cookies are used. Dan Armstrong sent me information about a free program that scans your system for cookies and programs that spy on your surfing habits. After identifying the spyware, it helps you remove it from your computer. The site doesn’t look very good, but the software seems to work and it’s free. You can find this program at http://www.lavasoft.de/ Another development that should help with your privacy concerns is, the World Wide Web Consortium is building a standard, called the Privacy Preferences Project (P3P), that will let Web sites communicate their privacy practices directly into browsers and other Internet applications. This will give you more control over whom you release information to and whom you don’ t. You can find out more about P3P at http://www.w3.org/TR/P3P/ If you are wondering if privacy guidelines stated by the web sites will be followed, then what’s happening to Toysmart.com should be of inertest. The FTC filed suit against Toysmart.com Inc. to block the company from selling its customer data as part of its assets. The lawsuit stems from the privacy policy that promised "personal information voluntarily submitted by visitors to our site, such as name, address, billing information, and shopping preferences, is never shared with a third party." The FTC thinks Toysmart.com should live up to its promise. This suit makes the FTC the enforcer of Toysmart.com privacy policy, a clear warning to all of us who run web businesses. If you have any thoughts on this subject or any ideas that could be helpful to the others in this group send them to me (Chuck Arning) at chuck@inter800.com *02 Tax Rebate A couple of months ago, my wife asked me about the National Tax Rebate we should be receiving from the government. Having not yet heard about the whole thing, I viewed it with the same skepticism I usually save for pyramid schemes. Upon further research, I found, as we all now know, we ARE to be receiving a check for $600 from the federal government. What I hadn't figured out is, why? I went to the Internet to search for the reasoning behind this impending boon. I found virtually nothing related in any of the search engines when I searched for "National Tax Rebate", so I went directly to the IRS web site (http://www.irs.gov). I found that I'm a little late covering this topic, as checks started going out on July 23rd. What I have discovered is, this check is not a gift, but rather an advanced payment on a tax credit for next year. This is not taxable income and does not have to be filed as such on your tax return. We don't have to do anything to receive our money, just sit tight and wait. I also discovered, in addition to the rebate check, the amount of paycheck withholdings has also decreased. While this answered questions about the validity of the rebate and detailed information regarding the procedures to be used to distribute the checks, it tells me little about WHY. Here is the official explanation from the IRS web site: "Why is IRS giving out these special payments? We are administering the new tax law recently signed by President Bush, which provides for these advance payment checks to be sent to taxpayers." So, the question actually is, why did Congress pass this tax act? To uncover this, let's examine the official name of the Act that is causing all of this: The Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001. Ah. That helps. It seems the purpose of this rebate is to stimulate the economy. The thought process here is, with an extra 60 million dollars of disposable income, many will go out and spend it, thus boosting economic growth. This is a nice thought, but hasn't this been done before? In the recession of 1974, Gerald Ford authorized a similar rebate, with taxpayers receiving from $100 - $200 each. Unfortunately, many used the rebate to pay down existing debt or they simply saved it, thus limiting the actual economic stimulus. So, it seems the patriotic thing to do is spend this money as soon as it arrives. While this doesn't jibe with the wisdom my mother tried to impart to me, I will do my best to help my country by blowing our check as quickly as possible. For married couples, the amount you'll receive ($600) is, coincedentally, about the same as the cost of an Enhanced Listing in the Internet 800 Directory ($598). I recommend stimulating our economy, while helping your country and your own business by purchasing an ad as soon as your check arrives. Thank you. That is all. – George (george@inter800.com) Thanks for taking to time to review our newsletter for this week. If you know of anyone that might benefit from receiving this newsletter, send them to (http://www.inter800.com/news800/ ) where they can subscribe. All Contents Copyright ©1995-2001 The Internet 800 Directory Subscribe To The Newsletter: |