[Still seeking Witnesses for Canadian FATCA IGA lawsuit. If interested contact me at Stephen.Kish.Chair@adcs-adsc.ca
FOR THOSE CANADIANS WHO ALREADY VOLUNTEERED: Unless you have already been informed by me or by our legal team that you will not be a witness, there is still the possibility — or likelihood — that you will be asked to be a witness. I’m sorry but I cannot estimate the time it will take for our legal team to get back to you with their decision. This is because they need to “mesh” the characteristics of all of the necessary witnesses and testimonies with the actual detailed submission that contains the entirety of their evidence. Please be patient in our getting back to you with a decision. Thank you for your help.]
Today I listened to yet another story from a Canadian volunteering to be a Witness in our lawsuit.
— Here is the ending of her story — which shows what we are fighting against (posted with permission):
“I am a senior age 70 and this is not how I had hoped to spend my “golden years” – in fear of a bully who is totally unreasonable — and angry that my Canadian government would allow the IRS to “bully” old, honest, hardworking Canadian citizens first and foremost.”
As someone who could almost exactly ditto the words of this brave lady, I salute her for coming forward to volunteer herself as a witness. If she is accepted, her testimony will speak for a vast number of people who have been silenced. She has my deepest gratitude.
As Canadian taxpayers our Canadian taxes are being mis/used to fund and defend the ab/use of our fellow Canadians such as the witness described above – making us in a way accomplices to the Canadian government’s abhorrent actions – though we oppose those actions, we’re paying to fund them:
After all, the CRA admits to receiving from us a;
“…. $29 million increase to implement and administer measures announced in Budget 2014, of which $25 million is for improving the integrity of the tax system and strengthening tax compliance and $4 million pertains to tax measures, including the implementation of the intergovernmental agreement between Canada and the United States to enhance the exchange of tax information; ….”
from;
Canada Revenue Agency
Quarterly Financial Report
For the quarter ended June 30, 2015
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/gncy/fnncl/r150828-eng.html
and also;
“One of the most far-reaching and complex changes in 2014-2015 was the implementation of an agreement between the governments of Canada and the United States to improve international tax compliance through better reporting of financial account information (FATCA). Beginning in 2015, Canadian financial institutions have to give the CRA information of account holders who are United States citizens or residents. To assist financial institutions and respect privacy laws, the CRA became the intermediary, receiving the information and relaying it to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) rather than having Canadian financial institutions report directly to the IRS.
During 2014-2015, the CRA completed a number of significant steps in implementing this agreement. Key steps included making sure financial institutions had all of the information they need to meet their reporting obligations, putting in place the information return financial institutions will use, and setting up the IT systems needed to allow the electronic exchange of information with the IRS……..”
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/gncy/nnnl/2014-2015/p1-eng.html
As a Canadian taxpayer, I attest that I am being abused as a taxpayer and citizen to fund actions by the Canadian government that I find repugnant and abhorrent and unjust against my fellow taxpayers, citizens and legal residents.
now you know why Britain and other countries are leaving the EU. govt., including canadian, are a bunch of bully boys behaving badly. they will continue to bully you until you smash them.
I’m watching Obama in Parliament live on CBC. He just got a standing ovation and cheers from both sides of the House.
Obama is now speaking about the deep friendship between the two countries. Who knew friends bully friends and get a standing ovation.
He just said “We could not ask for a better friend and ally than Canada.”
Sickening.
Cannot watch!
Obama makes me want to puke; Trump is even worse. I am so glad I am no longer a citizen of such an abominable country. I hope the lawsuit kicks the shit out of our own government for knuckling under to those bastards.
I was on Amateur radio this afternoon and told over 500 Americans about what the USA is doing to our families over here with their tax overreach. They could not believe their ears. They asked why in the hell would Canada sign such a deal? I replied that we were given a choice….either sign it or the USA would cripple our banking system and financially harm us through sanctions. They were totally apalled and hate Obama as much as we do. I told them that the USA has lost ALL MORALS in their quest for money to bail out their mis-managed government that they would harm Canada. The people of the USA are finally awakening to the fact that they, as us here, need to get their country back and out of the hands of corrupt government control and fast.
@maz57 I was seriously nauseous as I watched.
MPs on both sides of the House were wildly applauding. The huge smiles on the faces of the Liberals were astounding. Canada’s Justice Minister seemed enraptured by Obama in her tweets.
The Revenue Minister tweeted what an honour it was to welcome Obama to Parliament.
The Prime Minister continues his Obama bromance.
Why do our elected Canadian representatives of all parties grovel to a foreign President but are so contemptuous of one million Canadians?
Unfortunately, the photos that accompanied those tweets did not embed. @Maz57: They would definitely make you puke!
the elites, i.e. the boys/girls in the elite club (career politicians & bankers), which regular citizens are not in, cheer for their own. This is the huge disconnect between our ‘masters’ and us, the regular citizens. Now you know how they feel about you.
In addition to all the fawning by MPs, Sophie Gregoire-Trudeau was beaming at Obama from her seat in the front row of the House. Since when does the Prime Minister’s wife have a seat on the floor of the House of Commons?!?
Oh wait. Because it’s 2016.
I really didn’t follow Obama’s speech today but I thought CBC’s At Issue panel had a halfway decent analysis of it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ob8w0RYaX_k
To make it short Obama wouldn’t dare the speech he made in Ottawa back, he himself has not necessarily always been a friend of Canada something we all know.
Also my own personal opinion is while from a classical liberal perspective Canada today like a pretty attractive country compared to Farage’s England or Trump’s America one must always remember the past battles of Patriation, Meech Lake, Charlotteown, the PC/Reform split, and the 95 referendum all which have had enormous influence on modern day Canada. If these past battles did not quite turn out the way they eventually did Canada might not be the country it is today or even a country at all. While Obama’s is “great” orator he is not nearly the straight brawler Trudeau Sr or Jean Chretien were. Put it simply Jean Chretien’s solution to Donald Trump would be to give him a “Shawinigan Handshake” something I don’t think Obama would ever dare do.
What a sickening farce.
The Sunny Lib minions cheering on their extraterritorial TaxMaster. They say they’ll take the US on over softwood lumber http://business.financialpost.com/news/economy/u-s-canada-lumber-talks-stalled-litigation-looms-sources?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+FP_TopStories+%28Financial+Post+-+Top+Stories%29 but not to protect the Charter rights and personal and financial data of Canadian citizens, legal residents and Canadian families from the extraterritorial reach of a foreign country.
They’ll posture posing with the US Master – who they’ve traded away Canadian citizens and families to in order to appease the US.
No wonder Obama said;
“”The enduring partnership between Canada and the United States is as strong as it has ever been and we are more closely aligned than ever before.””
Translation;
Your US Master is pleased that your side of the border is going to be manned by our US police on your soil, your Charter and constitution were subverted to enforce US law on your soil, your Revenue agency and the Canadian made and sited assets and data of any Canadian we claim as a US taxpayer are ours to command on your soil – collected and remitted to the US Treasury at your taxpayers’ expense: you’ve subverted your own national laws and interests to suit our aims and put them above that of your own society: our countries are “much more closely aligned than ever before”.
There is no ‘partnership’. There is Master and fawning subordinate.
Obama and Trudeau;
bread and circuses
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bread_and_circuses
Thumbs down to Canada being ‘more closely aligned than ever before” with the US
http://www.cbc.ca/news/trending/social-media-border-security-1.3655426
The CEOs of Scotiabank and RBC are throwing a hissy fit in Trinidad & Tobago over Parliament being slow to pass the FATCA IGA.
http://www.cnc3.co.tt/business-watch/banks-call-government-make-tt-fatca-compliant
Just a bunch of thugs and gangster along with CBA president Terry Campbell.
Here’s the full text of Obama’s address. I was sickened along with the rest of you. I’m about to start writing a rebuttal. Maybe several of us should do the same and send them all off to various journalists (Elizabeth Thompson?) so we can set the record straight.
http://www.macleans.ca/politics/ottawa/president-obamas-speech-to-house-of-commons-the-full-text/
A survey of what the Canadian person on the street thinks, at least in Ottawa. This ain’t CBC or PR sunny content generated by our Canadian government *leaders*.
Good question — Is THIS an indication of the North American Union being set in motion, realizing there are more NA countries than those of the *Three Amigos*?
@ calgary411
Yay for the 93% but I wish there had been protesters . OTOH, would I want to witness the Canadian police state in action … again? I can never forgive or forget Toronto G8/G20, 2010. I was not there but it chilled me to the bones.
How soon we forget! Remember how we reviled Harper.
We are blinkered by our issues with FATCA and CBT. In the greater scheme, Trudeau is vastly better than Harper and Obama / Hillary than Trump. The GOP has been bought, lock stock and barrel by the .01%. Read ‘Dark Money’ to see how..
@Duke: I agree that generally JT is better than Harper.
However, on FATCA, the Lib Cons betrayal is worse than the Con Cons.
Except for Flaherty in the early stages, Con Cons never pretended to care about Canadian citizens, residents, laws, rights, constitution, Charter, or sovereignty. Lib Cons spoke out and wrote against FATCA. Scott Brison introduced the amendment (as did NDP’s Murray Rannkin) to protect Canadian citizens and residents.
JT sent me a letter declaring “The Government of Canada has a responsibility to stand up for its citizens when foreign governments are encroaching on their rights.” He insisted “A Canadian is a Canadian is a Canadian” during the election.
Then Lib Cons were elected. Then came silence. Then came Lib Cons fighting us in court. Then came the FATCA Flip Flop. Then came the Bromance of the Century. Then came Lib Cons using us as scapegoats for the Panama Papers. Then came yesterday’s adulation of King Obama.
Check out Sandbox tomorrow for a Canada Day message to JT and the Lib Con Gang,
Getting closer, call it what you may, the North American Caucus at this point.
The US press release: FACT SHEET: United States Key Deliverables for the 2016 North American Leaders’ Summit (which includes a section on Human Rights). Perhaps we who are *US Citizens who happen to abide in Canada* will one day all be *North American Persons*.
@ Blaze
Something tells me you won’t be mincing words on the Second Anniversary of the Start of the Gross Canadian FATCA Roundup. I’ll be watching the Sandbox.
@calgary411 says
I enjoyed this bit in the fact sheet. Replace “human trafficking” with “citizen based taxation”.
” Trafficking in Persons
Leaders committed to develop a North American approach to combat human trafficking, a form of modern-day slavery. By the end of the year, our three countries will implement public awareness campaigns with the private sector to educate the public to recognize human trafficking and report suspected instances. In addition, the United States commits to review our procurement laws to determine potential vulnerabilities to abuse by human traffickers.”