--- crowd-funded eco-conscious hardware: https://www.crowdsupply.com/eoma68
On Thu, Aug 11, 2016 at 12:08 PM, Robert Wilkinson bob@fourtheye.org wrote:
I looked at https://www.crowdsupply.com/eoma68 and thought about pledging some money for the Practically Perfect Computer Card.
However, I am curious about the shipping costs - Free US Shipping / $10 Worldwide.
Is there a reason why the shipping to the US is free and I must pay for shipping to the UK.
because of totally different taxation and government setup. chris explained this to me in great detail as he has a UK-based distribution centre and, shockingly, the cost per item in bureaucracy and taxation is greater than the cost of a good proportion of the items that he sells.
whilst i really don't like the word because i had no idea, growing up in the UK, quite how "Socialist" the UK really is, the UK and other EU countries really ARE extremely "Socialist". "Free" health-care. "Free" dole money. "Free" state pensions... they're not... but they all have to be paid for.... and they're paid for by increasing taxation, and that means adding on import taxes and VAT.
by total contrast chris has to pay for and take direct responsibility for EVERYTHING himself.... but the advantage is: the cost of importing into the USA is a one-off $200 fee spread out across the entire consignment. as these are "components" and "kits" there isn't even any import duty (or, it's zero-rated).
it's radically different in other words.
I think that Rhombus Tech is a UK company,
it's not - and never will be. it was registered as a CIC a few years ago but my associates (who it turns out are pathologically only interested in profit - good thing i found that out eh?) shut it down without informing or consulting me.
i'll re-establish the CIC later. if you're not familiar with why Corporations are pathologically dangerous, look up the online documentary, "The Corporation". you need only listen to the premise which is covered in the first few minutes.
and I *guess* that the cards are made in Asia...
i'm an international traveller, i'm currently in Keene, NH. i'll go where i'm needed most. that means going to china and keeping an eye on things as they're manufactured. it'll be fun. i'll also be able to take pictures and videos and keep people posted.
l.