Ron Paul and his son Rand Paul have been newsworthy items. On Friday March 7, 2013, Ron Paul spoke at the Manning Conference in Ottawa. Last week, Rand Paul of #STANDFORRAND fame was conducting a filibuster in the Senate protesting the appointment of Mr. Drone – John Brennan – to the head of the CIA. Both Paul’s believe that government is out of control and that liberty is under attack. Rand Paul was protesting the conduct of the Obama administration – specifically the Obama drone kills on U.S. citizens. He was opposing his government. Is Rand Paul’s opposition to the Obama administration unpatriotic? Have we reached the point where to support freedom is construed to be NOT supporting the government? Have we reached the point where to support freedom is unpatriotic? Looking at America today, one wonders.
What about renouncing US citizenship? Is it either unpatriotic or an act of disloyalty? Is the renunciation of U.S. citizenship necessary as an act of self defense? (A recent poll suggests a large number of U.S. citizens abroad feel they must renounce to defend themselves from a government turned predator.)
https://twitter.com/LibertarianCiti/status/310267079905390592
Fascinating comment thread: What kind of person would renounce US citizenship? Disloyal, unpatriotic or ? http://t.co/EID5uBhiDF #FATCA
— U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) March 10, 2013
Loyalty and renunciation: The Loyalist: Brave Jim in Houston vs. The Renunciant: A former citizen now exiled http://t.co/mt8RS9AcUx
— U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) March 10, 2013
The most reasonable, vocal, articulate, justified and marketable – “Anti-Americanism” comes from U.S. citizens abroad http://t.co/6Al1Z77U
— U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) June 16, 2012
Please remember that a renunciation is not necessarily a denunciation. I will always hold a deep affection for America. I will always be American even if I’m no longer a U.S. citizen.
I also have discussed all this in great detail with my family and have their blessing. I can accept the idea that I will never be able to get my citizenship back but to not even be allowed to visit my aging parents is way over the top and am pleased you understand that!
On the one hand we seem to have the group who believe that Patriotism and Loyalty mean subservience to government. This seems to imply one believes the citizen is owned by and the property of the state. How else can citizenship-based taxation be justified? Were the slaves in the deep south unpatriotic because they wanted their freedom? Were they disloyal? An interesting Mark Twain quote:
“Loyalty to country ALWAYS. Loyalty to government, when it deserves it.”
― Mark Twain http://t.co/NqGkcopJTl— U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) March 10, 2013
On the other hand we have the group who think that if Patriotism and Loyalty are relevant at all, it does NOT mean loyalty to a government. The thoughts of Thomas Paine:
“The duty of a patriot is to protect his country from its government.”
― Thomas Paine http://t.co/NqGkcopJTl— U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) March 10, 2013
Are the concepts of renouncing US citizenship, Patriotism and loyalty related?
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@Ryan from Sydney
It won’t be long before a USP’s sanity will be called into question if they don’t renounce. As far as I can determine, US citizenship is a handicap when living outside the confines of the US.
from the CBC radio show “the debaters” a quote from Pierre Trudeau “hatred springs from a society that promotes uniformity” from the president on down are any politicians or members of the chattering classes making positive statements about US citizens who live out side of the US? It is difficult to feel positive about a place where the public discourse uniformly describes us as traitors, tax cheats etc.
@Patricia, there is one minor flaw with your argument, and that is that most stateside Americans don’t recognize that we exist unless we have $100 million+ in our bank accounts. From the latest US news on the topic:
http://www.advisorone.com/2013/03/13/tax-weary-us-millionaires-cayman-islandshong-kong
http://www.thenewamerican.com/economy/sectors/item/14765-major-u-s-companies-park-money-overseas-to-save-on-taxes
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