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To summarize the following letter from Apple to its customers: The FBI has ordered Apple to design a "backdoor" for iPhones that would allow the government to access iPhones without a password. Apple rejected the order, and explained their reasoning in a public letter: http://www.apple.com/customer-letter/ Donald Trump denounced Apple's rejection, calling for a boycott of Apple's products until they submit to the FBI: https://youtu.be/oe9ydy_zwe8 Although his rationale was vague, and I am not personally convinced he understands what the FBI is asking for based on the video ("they should hand over the access code to that phone"), he explicitly took the stance that the FBI ought to have access to any iPhone at their discretion. What do you think? Is this something that Trump just does not understand (the media certainly is not portraying it as such: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2016/02/19/donald-trump-apple-boycott/80626758/) ? Has he thought through this stance? Does he understand its implications? Is it enough to sway your vote? Should the FBI be given that power in the first place?

Why should big businesses like Apple pay income tax in a country where they sell their products but do not produce them there or have offices there? This is a question I have tried to ask many times recently, but the person I am debating this about is heavily on the left, so the answers are in the lines of "so you want poor people to starve to death" or "Apple is taking advantage of the poor helpless citizens of X". The question and the answer always make me loose my "balance" in the conversation and/or the red thread of my thought, and usually ends with the goal post moved 10 million miles away, so I turn to the educated folk here to help me out! In particular, I would appreciate if someone would explain these kind of taxes to me from a non-leftist point of view or refer to a source where I could read a more neutral explanation of this than the left/democrats are providing. Also, I do not see the logical sequence of thought behind these taxes, but I cannot completely point out the illogicality either. If someone can clarify either the logic or the lack of it, that would be highly appreciated! As to my thoughts around this issue, I am thinking and arguing that big businesses are already paying quite a lot in taxes in VAT, in employee salaries who then pay taxes and social security, and do not consume that much of the infrastructure. Thanks a ton for any help! -Tweety-