Liberty and justice for all United States persons abroad

The Isaac Brock Society

Media and Blog Articles – Part 1 of 11 (to 26 May 2015)

You can access all years at this link:

http://isaacbrocksociety.ca/media-and-blog-articles-links-for-all-years/

EmBee suggested that it would be good if there was a thread for new articles, so that people would be aware of where to comment. So, I created this permanent page.  You could mention such articles in the comment stream for this page, or if I see one on another thread, I can copy the link to here. I’ll keep adding to the list, but not deleting, so we’ll end up having sort of a “bibliography” too.  [Note:  Some articles are not open for comments]

For more articles on FATCA, enter FATCA into Google then click on the link “more news for fatca” just below the most recent featured article.

Note also: JC suggests to see #FATCA on Twitter for latest breaking news. JC finds that is quite a good source and there even are some international articles that one may read using Google Translate.” Others may help certain tweets and articles remain in elevated position by retweeting them.

26 May 2015:  This thread is now closed.  It continues at Media and Blog Articles Open for Comment, Part 2 of 2.

2015.05.26

New Survey finds US expat voting could impact 2016 Presidential Election, Greenback Expat Tax Services, NASDAQ GlobeNewswire.

This congressional committee wants to hear all your FOIA gripes, Colby Itkowitz, Washington Post, US.

The black money recovery skills of IT department are nothing to write home about, Vivek Kaul, The Daily Reckoning.

2015.05.25

The Intersection of US Federal Tax Law with Collection of International Information- – Including Other  Federal Agencies, Patrick W. Martin, TaxExpatriaation, US.

2015.05.23

America the not so brave:  America has led the global assault on tax dodgers and their enablers.  But the reality still lags behind the rhetoric, The Economist, UK.

Cash Banned from Chase Safe Deposit Boxes, Matt Chilliak, Live and Invest News.

2015.05.22

US Steuergesetz hat unerwartete globale Konsequenzen, Colleen Graffy, Geopolitical Information Service.  Also at Consequences of US widening net to catch tax dodgers, Colleen Graffy, World Review.

The horse may have bolted … but, Angelo Venardos, Asia Asset Management.

Important Correction:  Passports Required to Enter and Leave US — but SSNs May be Optional, Patrick W. Martin, Tax Expatriation, US.

2015.05.21

Americans working abroad face unexpected financial issues, Sarah O’Brien, NBC, US.

Senate tax reform groups get more time, Bernie Becker, The Hill, US.

2015.05.20

Malaysia will defer FATCA reporting, FSI Tax Posts.

America’s Self-Inflicted Wound, Moises Naim, The Atlantic, US.

Janice Mays:  The Tax Guru Who Guides House Democrats, Alex Brown, National Journal, US.

Sen. Rand Paul Launches Filibuster in Protest of Patriot Act Renewal, C-SPAN, US.

Articles from earlier in 2015 are at this link

Articles from 2014 are at this link

Media and Blog Articles Open for Comment, Part 2, is at this link

Media and Blog Articles Open for Comment, Part 3, is at this link

3,971 thoughts on “Media and Blog Articles – Part 1 of 11 (to 26 May 2015)”

  1. Finally a small number worth a toast: 5

    Ready for Hillary – Verified account ‏@ReadyForHillary

    Supporters have organized 1,300+ events in all 50 states, DC, Guam, Puerto Rico & Americans Abroad in 5 countries.

  4. Eric, I think she means she can’t open a 401k or something like that, not that she wishes she could contribute to Social Security. And though it is kind of self-evident that other countries must be mulling over CBT, I wish people like her would keep such thoughts to herself and not encourage the buggers.

  5. Trapped in Yemen, Americans File Lawsuit Against US Government
    https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2015/04/10/trapped-yemen-americans-file-lawsuit-seeking-rescued/


    …
    Despite the ongoing danger to their lives, Awnallah says that his family has received no assistance from the U.S. government. “[My family] has tried to get in touch, but no one is helping them,” he said. “They are asking me all the time if they are going to die here.”
    …
    On April 9, the Council on American-Islamic Relations filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government on behalf of Awnallah’s family and dozens of other Yemeni-Americans trapped in the country. Citing Executive Order 12656, which obligates “protection or evacuation of U.S. Citizens and nationals abroad” in times of danger, the lawsuit further alleges that the U.S. government’s refusal so far to conduct evacuation operations in Yemen represents the continuation of longstanding policies that effectively deny full citizenship rights to Yemeni-Americans.
    …
    While countries such as China, Russia, India, Pakistan and even Somalia have all conducted operations to rescue their citizens still in Yemen, the United States has so far declined to launch similar efforts on behalf of Americans in the country. On April 3, State Department spokesperson Marie Harf announced that despite the deteriorating security situation in the country, there was “no plan” to develop efforts to evacuate American citizens there.
    …
    Lena Masri, another lawyer representing American citizens and their families trapped in the conflict, told The Intercept that threats to Americans have increased, with U.S. citizens specifically being threatened with violence by extremist groups. “The father of one my clients last week went into hiding after receiving a death threat from a member of ISIS,” he said. “They told him that they knew he was an American, and that they were going to kill him.”
    …
    For many Yemeni-Americans, their predicament is compounded by what they allege to be systematic denial of their citizenship and consular rights by the U.S. government. “A lot of Yemeni-Americans have been stranded like this since before the conflict even started; the U.S. embassy often declines to renew their passports or simply confiscates them when brought for renewal,” Masri said. “Many Yemeni-Americans have been subjected to extrajudicial exile. They’re not treated as full citizens.”
    …
    A 2010 State Department Office of the Inspector General report stated that “a large number of Yemeni-Americans reflect local standards of illiteracy and lack of education,” while characterizing Yemeni-Americans as having a tenuous or incomplete connection with the United States, despite their citizenship there. It has long been alleged that Americans living in Yemen are at risk of having their citizenship documents confiscated by American officials while seeking consular services, so much so that in 2013, the American Civil Liberties Union released a pamphlet advising Yemeni-Americans to be cautious when attempting to obtain such services while abroad.
    …

  7. You guys see this?

    https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2015/04/10/trapped-yemen-americans-file-lawsuit-seeking-rescued/

    “A 2010 State Department Office of the Inspector General report stated that “a large number of Yemeni-Americans reflect local standards of illiteracy and lack of education,” while characterizing Yemeni-Americans as having a tenuous or incomplete connection with the United States, despite their citizenship there. It has long been alleged that Americans living in Yemen are at risk of having their citizenship documents confiscated by American officials while seeking consular services, so much so that in 2013, the American Civil Liberties Union released a pamphlet advising Yemeni-Americans to be cautious when attempting to obtain such services while abroad.”

    Seems to me that if you have no real rights as a citizen, you have no real duties either.

  8. The Intercept article references a 2010 U.S. State Department Inspection Report of the Sana’a, Yemen Embassy, which says:

    “As a consequence of generations of immigration to the United States, and the subsequent return of thousands of U.S. citizens, there is a large (at least 55,000) U.S.-Yemeni community. Many of the U.S. citizens have no connection to the United States except their U.S. passport. Indeed, a large number of the Yemeni-Americans reflect local standards of illiteracy and lack of education.”

    “One complication of the illiteracy and ignorance is that consular clients usually arrive at the embassy missing the required documents. Another complication is that the applicants often cannot show that the U.S. citizen parent has remained in the United States for the requisite five years in order to transmit citizenship to their children.”

    “The section correctly believes that only a small percentage of the Yemeni-Americans would leave in an emergency. There is a growing population of true expatriates, including many Islamic converts who have come to Yemen for religious studies.”

    Reading between the lines, the State Department does not consider Yemeni-Americans living in Yemen, who have U.S. citizenship through inheritance or through briefly living in the U.S. and legally naturalizing, to be real Americans. Of course, that doesn’t mean that the Mark Mazur, Robert Stack and IRS see it that way.

    https://oig.state.gov/system/files/145254.pdf

  9. The State Department can just declare Yemeni-Americans to not be Americans – problem solved! Try explaining that to your bank, a terrorist or the IRS though.

  11. @Bublebustin
    The worst thing about that piece is that they conclude that the IRS budget was cut out of spite and anger. It was cut due to the national debt!!!!

  12. Yeah, Polly, that part did put a damper on the video’s hilarity. Increasing the IRS’s budget seems like throwing good money after bad. The system is broken and corrupt.

  13. @BUBBLEBUSTIN
    And what about the part that the rules change by about 259 every day. EACH DAY. How is anybody able to keep up? It is just ridiculous. Tax reform is an emergency.

  14. @ Bubblebustin
    We just finished watching John and Michael’s “tribute” to the IRS. Funny stuff. Now Michael Bolton is a powerful singer but I’m going to post Johnny Paycheck’s “tribute” here too …
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07_bGSzHN54

    @ Polly
    I think it was 579 changes last year. That’s more than 1 per day. I loved Nina Olson’s bit.

  15. @Embee
    Oops! My bad. I meant thats more than 1 each day. But really- how can anybody keep up with 579 changes in tax laws yearly? HOW? How does anybody in their right mind even know what is going on? Add the fact that FATCA was slipped in with another bill and people are just not taking their responsibilities very seriously.

  16. @Polly

    There is no way in heck any sane person can keep up with this… unless u have a person on your payroll to keep up with this crap… its basically… damned if u do… damned if u don’t… u can never stay on top of all this nonsense… last thing I think of when we go from country to country… hmm… taxes… yep… got to learn the tax codes… never even crossed my mind…

  17. Trapped in Yemen, Americans File Lawsuit Against US Government

    ”
    For many Yemeni-Americans, their predicament is compounded by what they allege to be systematic denial of their citizenship and consular rights by the U.S. government. “A lot of Yemeni-Americans have been stranded like this since before the conflict even started; the U.S. embassy often declines to renew their passports or simply confiscates them when brought for renewal,” Masri said. “Many Yemeni-Americans have been subjected to extrajudicial exile. They’re not treated as full citizens.”
    ”

    https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2015/04/10/trapped-yemen-americans-file-lawsuit-seeking-rescued/

  19. @Barbara
    The DA and ACA are useless and will not challenge the DNC. If you wonder over to their FB pages many complaints have been lodged to which they NEVER respond. They are just handing over the expat vote to the Republicans.

  20. Allison Christians plans an upcoming presentation:

    “I plan to focus on the international implications of the US approach to delivering benefits through the tax code from the perspective of a specific group of “end users” whose financial situations would make them eligible for benefits delivery but who are nevertheless systematically denied these benefits.

    “This group is the globally dispersed population of “US persons” who are deemed to be permanently resident in the United States for tax compliance and financial reporting purposes but are not so deemed for purposes of benefits delivered through the tax code, notably, the earned income tax credit.

    “The premise I am studying: The inclusion of all US persons in the tax base regardless of domicile, juxtaposed with the blanket denial of eligibility for income support based solely on domicile, reveals the manifest injustice of citizenship-based taxation.”

    http://taxpol.blogspot.ca/2015/04/upcoming-event-on-delivering-tax.html

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