> Laws don't describe reality though. Severance is compensation for past labor in the real world, just not from a legal standpoint in the US.

Ah, the "I'm right, it's the world that's wrong!" argument.

> In the same vein, I didn't purchase psychedelic mushrooms; I merely made a donation to the institution that subsequently dispensed them to me as a religious sacrament. From a legal standpoint, it wasn't a sale.

There's actually some pretty strict laws surrounding donations and gifts to prevent exactly this. You haven't found some legal loophole, you've just reinvented tax evasion and fraud.

You're at least consistent in the amount you know about sales law and severance pay.