Dear friends:
This morning, I received the following message from the Expat Forum:
As you can see here, I spent the last hours of my life, poking fun at the censorship of the Expat Forum moderators. My last visitor message, that I put up while Europe slept, was this:
This was after a series of visitor messages (all deleted). I take pride, though, in only having one infraction, for putting up a French post (in the Nanaimo Cookie thread) which is a violation of Rule #6. Moderators can’t read foreign languages so they have a strict zero tolerance for them.
Here are the admittedly abusive messages that I wrote in my visitor messages (as you know, the Tax Forum where I was a frequent contributer is now closed), all of which were deleted by JoJo or siobhanwf :
“A stitch in time saves nine.”
“Give me liberty or give me death.” Patrick Henry
In Canada a knit cap is called a tuque; an Eskimo is called an “Inuit”.
“How do you catch a squirrel? Climb a tree and act like a nut.”
Once there was an Expat Forum Moderator whose husband, on his way to work, said, “Look, over there is a can of paint, please paint the living room.” She said, “I don’t know how to paint.” So he says, “Look, just follow the instructions on the side of the can.” So he comes home and she is painting away, but he notices that she has her parka and her fur coat on, sweating and getting paint all over her beautiful coat. So her husband says, “Why are you wearing your parka and your fur coat.” “Because,” she says, “The paint can says ‘best if applied with two coats’”.
Why did the Expat Forum Moderator cross the road? An Expat Forum Moderator doesn’t have to explain her actions.
How many Expat Forum Moderators does it take to change a light bulb? THAT’S NOT FUNNY!
We started a Nainamo cookie recipe thread, but it was smothered in a heavy helping of censorship. They took down that thread. Meanwhile, I think the last straw was my complaints in private messages to siobhanwf about the ban of French language. Sure they have rule #6, but I am Canadien writing in Canada, don’t I have the right to write in French? No, said he. You agreed to rule #6 when you signed up to the Expat Forum. So I responded thus,
HI Mr. siobhanwf: It may be true that the Expat Forum has a rule #6, but I am writing from Canada. Therefore, je crois (I believe) that French language rights trump your rule. I suggest if you want to do further business in Canada that you realize that it is improper to sanction a person in Canada who choses to use the French language. It can lead to bad dreams in which Pierre Trudeau visits you and speaks only French.
In any case, I was wondering how many points I can actually get before my account is suspended. I mean, if I get points on against my drivers license I could lose the privilege to drive. It seems that I have no longer any right to put up visitor messages, because all my visitor messages have been erased by either you or JoJokins. Just let me know.
Thanks,
PetrosResearch
I don’t know whether they feared the Trudeau curse, or whether they didn’t like my affectionate name for JoJo. Perhaps it was my company name, my old ID at the Expat Forum, which was subject to ban after two months, because it violated Rule #11. Apparently my flaunting of Rule #11 in a private message is the straw that broke the camel’s back.
Hey folks, I’m cut up about this. Really. Please light a candle for me when you say your prayers.
Hi all,
Nope. They mean business. My post disappeared within two minutes. I don’t get it – Just get rid of the tax forum if you can’t actually discuss anything in it 🙁
i have closed my account on the expat forum. I will not be associated with a site that can tell me what I can talk about.
How do they think that a discussion on ‘renunciation’ is an avenue to evade taxation??
An indication of how extreme the problems for Americans abroad has become is the fact that many Americans are left with no other options other than renunciation.
How did you close it? I want to as well but I can’t find out how to do it. I imagine that several other people would like to know as well! Thank You
You know what, that would make sense. Since this is a commercial site, my first thought would be to really milk it for all its worth and bring in a ton of tax firms to advertise and generate a lot of income. I wouldn’t be surprised if they came under US Govt pressure, especially since it was far and away the largest forum on the issue on the internet. Where are the servers located? Anyone know?
someone needs to tell them that “renunciation” doesn’t have anything to do with tax evation, because you have to be “tax compliant” in order to renounce and receive the CLN.
I’m also shocked but cynical enough not to be surprised. I suspect that the owner got paranoid, especially as it is a felony to renounce in order to avoid tax. I also wouldn’t put it past the fbi or CIA to investigate active posters’ IPs in order to find our their true identiities.
Mona: It is not felony, but a tax liability to renounce for tax purposes, but only in the United States. Bob Sheth’s business is chez toi in UK.
As for true identities, IP addresses are public information, so there is only limited anonymity on the internet.
I set up a forum site this morning, to be used in conjunction with this site. I set it up because this blog-commenting doesn’t work well because you can comment on another comment at the top, while people are paying more attention to comments at the bottom. I think people are missing out, at least I am! Whereas with a forum, all of the posts are sequential in nature. It’s much more organized.
The good thing is that if it’s one of us who is in control, it’s better. It’s commercial-free, so there would be no “undue influence” affecting free speech. Those rules at that expatforum are just plain ludicrous. Renunciation has nothing to do with tax evasion.
My domain is set to finalize soon, but if Petros is interested in establishing a different hosting account, I’ll be more than happy to configure everything for him. I like helping whereever I can.
so I guess what I’m saying too, is that if you would like to see a “Issac Brock Society Forum” then let Petros know.
Deckard, Bev’s new rules remind me of Dolores Umbridge forcing Harry Potter to write on his hand, “I will not lie.” Fiction meets the real world.
We can have here comments that are merely sequential (by shutting off the reply function–which allows on tier of reply threads. But it can become confusing, so that perhaps it would be superior to just have people reply with a @ sign. Then all replies would just be “sequential” in one straight line.
I am supportive as you know but am admittedly very nervous about discussing my personal situation so openly, especially as I’m still only in the early stages of the period they could examine me. My situation is unfortunately fairly complex so am probably at a bigger risk than average of being audited; I wouldn’t put it past the powers that be to make examples of anomalous minnows like myself if we get too bolshie.
I want a quiet life and am pragmatic enough to conclude that I will only be slaughtered if I defied the system. But I admire those of you who are prepared to be sacrificial lambs.
Images of that small man facing the tanks at Trianon Square (or whatever it was called) comes to mind. There can be powers in numbers but I genuinely fear that people who are defiant and don’t cow their heads are going to be mowed down.
I fear that Britain has become the UsA’s poodle.
I’m not proud to admit that I am governed by fear but the truth is that I am genuinely terrified of what might happen.
geeeez: I will start a new post soon asking this question. Thanks very much for setting up a forum. Whether people will want to do that remains to be seen. I will not be making a decision about this but asking for people’s input–I will implement what I can. If I do not have the technical knowledge, we will need to depend on the abilities of others to take us to the next step. Cheers.
Thanks for sharing your fears. I wish it was otherwise, but there are a lot of people in your same position. This morning, Roger Conklin told me to avoid going to the United States. Sad, that the US has made this nightmare. I read the stories, and I feel like weeping.
I am going next month to see my folks and don’t anticipate any problems because I have become compliant and plan to stay so forever. I don’t like the system but feel resigned to it.
But I really do sympathize with why people are pissed off with some even renouncing. However, I still fear there could be nasty repurcussions, especially for ringleaders like Petros. I’m just being brutally honest here.
I’ve been called a hero, a general, Paul Revere and few other names, but this is the first time, “ringleader”: Thanks, I love the sound of that the best! 🙂
Mona, it sounds like the majority of people in here are compliant. If you don’t owe, you don’t owe. What’s wrong with that? Last time I checked, renunciation wasn’t a crime. But from watching some of these conversation with ex-Americans crossing into Canada, I am a little nervous to show a CLN at the border.
I think for the American customs people looking at it, since they are unfamiliar with the rules, it would look suspicious to them.
Maybe someone reading this could comment.. who has travelled to the US and shown a CLN? What was the response?
I owed thousands in US taxes due to how I’d invested my UK assets and had unintentionally not reported the passive income to the IRS because had thought with the tax treaties that it was sufficient to declare it on my UK tax return, but was gravely mistaken.
You have to contact the the admin to delete your profile on “expat”.
Go to “contacts” at the top and it will lead you thru the process.
On another note…..do you think the IRS has been monitoring that site and targeting some of us who are asking specific questions? Leading to the added scrutiny on the forum?
We have talked about a lot of things for a long time….and why do they pick this time to censor us??? did we hit a nerve somewhere?, or where they “told” by there advertisers to cut the cord??
If the IRS is monitoring ….then would they not allow the banter to continue in an effort to gain more information?……(Maybe I am overthinking this(?)
I mean it…please…someone tell me I am paranoid..
On the same thread….is Bob’s expat forum located on a UK server or US server……….????
Mach7, it really doesn’t matter what server is. In just about every country, if a judge says “pull it”, they have to take it down.
After having some time to think about it, I think I understand what was going on. I think they were afraid of being prosecuted by the IRS for allowing dissemination of “illegal” activities or encouraging it by having the forum. That’s partly out of their own ignorance because there is nothing illegal or wrong with renouncing or reliquishing citizenship. If they had threads saying “How to avoid paying taxes.” — that’s just wrong and would probably get them in trouble. But renouncing, at least for now the USG may not like it, but there’s not much they can do about it.
There have been a big handful of prosecutions of accountants and lawyers who give advice on how to dodge taxes. I wouldn’t think it any different for a forum or website. ** My opinion too, is that the IRS stance is probably “Whoever doesn’t have the same message as we have, is aiding people to evade tax.” ** I seriously wouldn’t doubt it, given the amount of silence.
At the end of the day, I can’t figure out why someone would stuff a bunch of money in a bank account anywhere right now, especially American residents. The interest rates are too low. You get about $1 in interest per ever 100k in principle. From what I’ve been told, rents are high due to so many people foreclosed on. I would take the same money, buy property, and then write-off all of the expenses legally. It’s much safer, and better than living in fear.
I’ve been thinking the same thing, geeeez, the safest thing to do with money is buy something that lasts and holds its value. Land is probably the best.
Well, that’s appreciated, peg11. What is the link?
I’m pretty sure my questions were answered in the original thread – kids are not U.S. citizens.
I even found some info that the U.S. does recognize common-law marriages, if they’re recognized in the place where they took place (and yup, Canada certainly recognizes our marriage). But if there’s more info I’d be curious to see it.
(and: this wasn’t an attempt to avoid taxation. I just want to KNOW what this all means for my kids).
I posted a reply on the expat forum to the thread that the moderators started. I’ll check in a minute to see if it’s still there. They have a way of crossing out the link to Isaac Brock in my signature. But if you read the old threads, there are posts that link to The Isaac Brock Society in the body of the message, that haven’t (yet) been blocked out.