Editors Note: Al Lewis has now written an excellent article telling the our side of the story. Thanks, Al (and welcome to the Isaac Brock Hall of Fame!).
Al Lewis tries to shame former Americans in this hit piece at marketwatch.com a subsidiary of the Wall Street Journal. Perhaps you should have spoke with at least one person who ever renounced his or her citizenship. Shame on YOU, Mr. Lewis and shame on your editor for allowing you to publish. That just makes you a bigot with a platform. It is to the shame of the brain-dead media that such pieces of journalistic refuse can even see the light of day. Please, next time you want to write a screed that punishes a class of people for their actions, do your homework, like the young, promising Reuter’s journalist, Atossa Abrahamian, who actually spoke with numerous people who had renounced or were planning to renounce their citizenship.
Here is sample of Lewis’ brilliance on display:
You and about 1,780 other expatriates did this last year, according to Andy Sundberg, secretary of Geneva’s Overseas American Academy, as quoted in a report this week by Bloomberg. That’s up from 235 in 2008, when the U.S. launched a major crackdown on UBS for helping ingrates like you illegally dodge their taxes.
Caught between your money and your country, you chose your money. You sold your American soul.
Thanks for making a separate thread on this ridiculous article. I have made this comment online in response… http://on.mktw.net/KxYB8P
and then got busy with a few tweets…..
Al Lewis hasn’t a clue http://on.mktw.net/LcPyze #Expats are neither tax-dodgers or non patriotic.They are responding to IRS jihad. #FATCA #OVDI
I have to strongly disagree with Al Lewis about Expats being tax dodgers! http://on.mktw.net/KxYB8P He really understands nothing. #FATCA #OVDI
@Davidvidu Sorry, but Al Lewis hasn’t a clue. It is the Tax Complexity, Stupid, IRS is unpatriotic in its treatment of US Expats. #FATCA
@BACFA @MarketWatch Sorry, but Al Lewis is engaging in demagogic rhetoric. He hasn’t a clue.#Expats #Americansabroad are not unpatriotic.
@bobrall I hate to tell you, but Al Lewis hasn’t a clue. He is engaging in demagogic rhetoric. #Americansabroad are not tax evaders!! #FATCA
Also, I received an email blast from a well known commentator who had this to say…
Journalism tends to degenerates as it gets further from the source. Reuters did a good story. Bloomberg did an okay follow-up of the story but let some monkey with a typewriter choose the headline. And now we’re getting the third-generation degraded copies written by random columnists from Denver who have been hired specifically to make inflammatory comments. Marketwatch doesn’t care what he writes as long as he drives traffic.
Incidentally, he’s getting savaged in the comments section, — by both the left-wing and the right-wing commenters. Not even 10% of the comments are supportive of him.
This is absurd. I can’t believe any editor would let this be published. I wish someone who lived closer to the US or made frequent trips to the US would sue this author, site, and parent company over this. I think most people on here just want the truth to be told:
@geez…
We may not like the speech, but there is still the freedom in America to say dumb things on the
WSJ web sites, so I wouldn’t take it away. There is no grounds for suing over stupidity! LOL I think he is already harming himself, if the comments are any indication.
I suppose if someone in late 1933 left Nazi Germany, the Nazi Al Lewis of his time would be right out their putting pen to paper writing the same dribble.
Most ex-pats do not hate the US. However, there is something basically flawed with a country that can’t allow its citizens to leave the county, with no “tax strings attached” and belligerence towards its ex-pats to make a life abroad without people like Al Lewis writing rubbish like the above.
Hey Al today in 2012 America is sick. It’s broken down infrastructure, crime ridden inner city streets, out of control gun lobby, overpriced medical system, and grid locked immature politicians who act more like school yard bullies are the overt symptoms to a diseased country on the way down. Mr Lewis take a good walk around the streets Zurich or London. Yes we do have some homeless people, and we do have social problems, but not on the same scale of America.
When riding the Underground in London you don’t see homeless people with plastic bags hauling their worldly possessions around to their next destination or walking into a fastfood place being hit with body odour stench by the person in front of me because a charity gave them a gift certificate to buy a BigMac. Shame on you Mr Lewis – you should be attacking America’s politicians not middle class ex-pats who feel its wrong for the IRS to tax people abroad while at the same time not using any of America’s remaining public services.
Even the beggars in Prague have more pride (and dressed better as well) than average US tramp in of front of CVS or Dunkin Donuts rattling his coffee cup day in and day out mumbling “dime, quarter” or shouting abuse at other people because of frustration of trying to re-intergrate into Al Lewis’s America that has left them behind. See the link attached for the people who have never visited Prague –
http://morecreativelife.com/begging-with-style/
Most Americans are in denial about this and living in the world of 1950s America when the US was riding high after WWII being the only surviving major economy. The deck was stacked in America’s favour. American of a certain age 45 years+ remember an America where the middle class could get by on a “middle class job.” Younger Americans don’t know the difference as today’s America is now “normal” – they grew up with it.
Al why don’t you concentrate on writing about fixing America’s problems before sending out the IRS in front of a European Starbucks with its coffee cup trying to collect a few pennies from middle class ex-pats that won’t solve America’s problems.
Most ex-pats left not hating America and planning on returning but once abroad realised America has changed and not for the better.
Perhaps Al Lewis is some kind of Gov’t plant.
Nobody could be that stupid by accident.
Well, Mr. Lewis. You are a poster-child for why we left the US to begin with. We are not slaves, and do not owe our very existence to it. America doles out it’s citizenship too easily anyway; maybe it should take a more modern view on this subject and let those who do American things (i.e., live in the country, etc.) be the Americans instead of dowsing babies with a title for which they can hardly defend themselves from for at least 18+ years after the fact.
Here’s my situation: I don’t have any “foreign” (non-US) bank accounts with high balances. I just have a simple savings account so I don’t pay any fees and I can pay a few bills. This morning, I was looking at the packages that have the perks, like never waiting in line, resolving problems over the phone, etc.. But high balances are required. Therefore, I would have to declare them to the IRS or I could face penalities, or liens on US assets.
So here I am, perfectly legal living in South America with my family and US laws make me act as if/feel like an illegal alien where I live. I can’t benefit from the same services that I am entitled to due to having been born in the US.
If any US person, (stateside American) thinks that someone can survive and thrive abroad under these current American rules, AND be 100% compliant, needs to get a reality check.
Notice – I fear reprisals on US assets. What’s the difference between the US and Eritrea?
What an unpleasant way to wake up this morning. And if you want to read something really scary, be sure to check-out the linked Daily Beast article by Stephen King. Who knew that this man could write so badly when he puts his mind to it?
Neither of these gentlemen will be receiving Pulitzer prizes for such uninformed drivel.
Geeez wrote: “Notice – I fear reprisals on US assets. What’s the difference between the US and Eritrea?”
The difference is one of degree not of quality. The US has for now much greater influence in the world, but that will soon wane.
Its possibly the worst article that I’ve ever seen on the subject as well. I think it is still valuable though, because his jingoistic nonsense has proven to have convinced hardly any of those commenting, whatever their political spectrum. He is definitely the epitome of the “Ugly American” for me at least…
I just came across the below piece from Business Insider:
“Man tries to relinquish US citizenship. Application Denied.”
http://www.businessinsider.com/man-tries-to-relinquish-us-citizenship-application-denied-2012-4
I never heard of anyone being denied a CLN unless they made a mistake in their application or indicated their intent to continue residing in the US.
@ Joe I don’t know the details of this incident. But as I commented at Sovereign Man, it is usually because the person tries to escape the tax net of the United States, but still plans to benefit from privileges related to US citizenship. This is usually related, I believe, to cases where the person renounces but is still living and/or working in the United States. This doesn’t affect people like myself who are already long-term residents of other countries. My relinquishment, thus, was a slam-dunk, and it makes me wonder why it took them a year to decide my case in Washington. Perhaps the functionary who was supposed to decide my case died at his desk and it was few months before anyone noticed.
I was actually pleasantly surprised by the number of comments on his drivel that took him to task for his inaccuracy. As mentioned, there are some of the biarre, ridiculous variety, but many are very supportive of the situation, and show some understanding of the real issues. I couldn’t resist putting in my two cents worth.
Thanks for finding and posting this.
@Deckard, I was actually pretty shocked at the Stephen King article, to the point of wondering if he really wrote it or if someone wrote under his name. I know, not practical, but holy cow, that was that extremely poor writing. It’s just about equivalent to what I would expect someone to rant in a comment on someone’s post, except much longer. I don’t think it rates the word ‘article. I guess I thought if someone was smart enough to write entertaining stories they’d be smarter than what he showed in that rant.
Joe Expat – in your link, they are referring to Ken O’Keefe. His name has been discussed on here before and it looks like he was denied because of his political & conspiracy theory outbursts that he made publically. He doesn’t live in the US, nor want to benefit from US services, but he apparently upset the wrong people.
Nonetheless, if the US State doesn’t like him, I don’t know why they don’t set him free, or get rid of him in their eyes.
@ geeez; how did you learn it was O’keefe?
@Just Me, I should have posted this here rather than on your “ACA has just issued the April 2012 News Update.” It really should be here, sorry for the duplication everyone:
@JustMe, your response to Al Lewis’s vomit is appreciated. Another commenter-Gavrikon-wrote: Tax-dodgers are proudly un-American
“Yep. I got a letter from my bank in Zurich telling me they were not willing to do the required paperwork and reporting to the US IRS so they are closing my account. It only had a couple thousand Swiss Francs in it, but I had that account since 1997 when I lived there. And this is even though I dutifully reported the account to the IRS every year. I live in Germany now, but it was sort of nice to have that account in case I am every transferred back to Switzerland. Of course, that isn’t likely to happen because I’d need another “B” visa. Unless, I were to become a German. Hmmm . . .
BTW, Al, you are a Dick. I DREAM of making a 6-figure income. But there are lots of reasons besides money to renounce, you pompous prik.”
Just me, since you have an account with Market Watch, I was going to suggest you link him to the Dems Abroad survey that asked about Americans and banking services, but they seem to have closed it. Would you let him know that he can tell his banking story at http://www.expattaxstory.us/ ?
PS did you catch the comment involving lighter fluid?
If only it was so easy to shed ones U.S. citizenship. I would definitely be one of the first to let the door smack me on the arse on the way out!
@Laura
Check out renunciationguide.com:
http://www.renunciationguide.com/Renunciation-Process-Step-By-Step.html
Peter:
I read this too fast:
“Despite all the forms, the bureaucracy, and the intimidation tactics, I had never heard of a case where someone’s properly submitted ’application’ to surrender citizenship has been denied (bar Ken O’Keefe). Until now.”
I had to look up “bar” in the dictionary for this, which means “except”. I’m forgetting English. I wish the author had put more details in the article.
With thousands of people giving up US citizenship, I don’t doubt for a skinny minute that they will start denying people for whatever reason they can conjure up.
@ Geeez, It’s very cool to be so immersed in your new language that you forget English. It has happened to me where I can only think of how to say something in French, but not to the point where I forget the meaning of an English phrase. I admit that I envy you.
Ken O’Keefe (passionate supporter of the Palestinian cause) is a hero to me and the USA with its outrageous obeisance to Israel has enough pettiness and hatred towards this man to make his life as miserable as it possibly can. The thing that Ken O’Keefe wants least in his life is American citizenship so it is no surprise to me that the USA would deny him the right to surrender that very thing.
@ Em Well, we had this debate about O’keefe where a bunch a people wanted me to take down his video. My response was not an endorsement of O’keefe but rather a defense of Isaac Brock Society’s freedom to cover the issue of renunciation, and therefore O’keefe’s video was relevant. Where were you during that debate? http://isaacbrocksociety.com/2012/03/19/consulate-visit-reports-organised-by-location/
@ Petros
I came late to IBS so I think I might have missed that thread. I tried to catch up with hours of reading but obviously I wasn’t successful. The first couple of weeks I was in information overload and in a state of shock regarding not just my dilemma but others too.