queen

I nearly just got robbed in a broad daylight in Manhattan

I was ordering a coffee in a Starbucks on Fifth Avenue

Menu at the counter said $4.90

I handed the barista a $5 bill

She said "umm sir that'll be $5.91"

I raised my eyebrow

Did that blue-haired, weirdly looking obese woman try to scam me?

"The menu says $4.90" I said

"Yes, plus tax"

I felt my blood pressure rising

"So the price on the menu isn't the actual price?"

"It is but there is also a sales tax--"

I couldn't believe what I was hearing

I pulled out my phone to call the Federal Trade Commission to report false advertising

Unfortunately I did not purchase roaming feature in my German-made Android phone, so the call did not go through

Suddenly a Wall Street guy in a Patagonia vest pushed past me, tossed a $20 on the counter

"I got this loser's coffee, keep the change"

Now I was even more disturbed

I legally just received a gift

Personal donations over €50 require reporting in the EU

I asked the barista for the guy's name for my tax filing

She said "bro I don't know who that was just go away"

I took a photo of the receipt as documentation

I called my representative at the German tax authority who said I must declare this coffee right after I'm back in Europe

I got on the Lufthansa flight to Munich the same day

Americans have normalized financial deception so deeply they think transparency is confusing

Europeans, as usual, lead the global civilization

eurofounder / 𝕏