Liberty and justice for all United States persons abroad

The Isaac Brock Society

Author Archives: Petros

Human rights trump money: Why We must say no to FATCA

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Why would the Canadian banks even consider selling out their “US citizen” clients?  The banks are aware of the privacy laws and the charter rights, are they not?  Well, they understand that their majority clients who are not US persons would be greatly inconvenienced if their banking institutions refused to become FATCA compliant.  Billions of dollars are at stake.  So I quite understand why they are playing fast and loose with Canadian privacy laws and our beloved charter rights.  It’s about money.  A lot of money.

But what is the price of an innocent man or woman who has committed no crime?  Are they worth one million dollars?  a billion?  a trillion?  If the entire economic system as we know it is at stake, is it right to hand over an innocent person?

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Happy Birthday Isaac Brock Society!

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Today is the one-year birthday of the Isaac Brock Society.

On December 12, 2011, this website began as a group project by six Canadian participants at the Expat Forum, which was getting very sick of their uppity attitudes and the incessant discussion of renunciation of United States citizenship.  Later, the Expat Forum showed utter disdain for that conversation by completely removing whole threads which had thousands of comments. Thus, our move to create this new forum where we may discuss these serious issues without censorship or censure-ship, displayed foresight and prudence.

As I write this post, the Isaac Brock Society has 1301 posts, and 33,865 comments; we have had approximately 1.4 million pageviews (a.k.a. “hits”): according to Google Analytics, 758,000 hits  for isaacbrocksociety.ca, in addition to wordpress.com, 660,000 hits for isaacbrocksociety.com (we switched over in June).  Google Analytics calculates that 52,542 unique visitors have graced our isaacbrocksociety.ca pages since the switchover in June.

This has been a group effort.  Many thanks to the writers and commenters who have kept us up to date with the latest happenings, finding resources in multiple languages, including English, Chinese, Russian, Korean, Portugese, French, Spanish, and the special gobbledygook which is another name of IRS-speak or Kafkaesque, the language of the bureaucracy of the evil empire.

Last but not least, several Brockers have made contributions to keep this site going.  I will be making a financial report soon, and I just want to thank everyone who has contributed.

A Fact Finding Forum on US Tax Grab in Canada: Official Press Release

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TO BE OR NOT TO BE

Editors note:  The Progressive Canadian Party has now sent out its official press release.  Let’s pull out the stops for this event–show the media and our politicians that they must not tolerate FATCA.  Email your MPs and the media.  Use your facebook and twitter accounts.  And above all, show up for the meeting if at all possible.  Speakers will include Jim Jatras of Squire Sanders and Professor Allison Christians, H. Heward Stikeman Chair in Tax Law at the McGill University Faculty of Law.  One fringe benefit will be that you can meet other brockers in the area (including Petros–yes, I will be participating). Thanks to everyone in advance.

__________________________________

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

A Fact Finding Forum on US Tax Grab in Canada

“The American government is attempting to tax permanent residents of Canada whom they deem to be U.S. citizens.” said Sinclair Stevens, Leader of the Progressive Canadian Party. “This contravenes Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms and must be challenged.”

The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) was signed into law by President Obama on March 18th, 2010.  Originally to come into effect the 1st of January, 2013, it has been postponed one year.  Briefly, it attempts to catch ‘U.S. persons’ (which includes, by their definition, a very large number of Canadian citizens) living abroad who are not paying income tax to the U.S.A.  It by-passes the usual inter-governmental agreements and imposes the reporting of income and personal information on financial institutions in all other countries directly to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service … and that for no remuneration.

“Financial institutions which refuse to cooperate in this gathering of personal financial information are threatened with an enormous penalty – a 30% with-holding tax on all income on investments coming from the US to their clients. Can you spell ‘extortion’?” Stevens continued, “This expands the impact of FATCA from just ‘US persons’ living here to all Canadians who have investments in the US and may well force Canadian banks to increase their banking charges for all their clients.”

“In addition, to recouping unpaid income tax back several years it imposes very large penalties for non-reporting on such deemed ‘U.S. persons’.” Mr. Stevens added.

Finance Canada has posted a notice on their website soliciting comments on FATCA.  The Progressive Canadian Party (PC Party on the ballot) will be making a submission.

So that the submission can be as complete as possible the PC Party is convening a fact finding forum at the University of Toronto on Saturday afternoon, December 15th – doors open at 10:00 for an 11:00am start. (see directions below).  We have invited ‘expert witnesses’ from the legal and financial fields to provide further details on this international “extortion” attempt and to discuss suggestions from the audience for possible corrective actions including legislation.

“All Canadians, even those who have only a bank account, should be concerned and are invited to attend and participate in the discussions with our ‘expert witnesses’, Mr. Stevens said. “The press are particularly welcome and should see this as a convenient opportunity to get comment from both experts and concerned Canadians.”

Further information on the forum, including the speakers who have accepted our invitation, will be available shortly on our website http://progressivecanadian.ca/ .

 

The forum will be held in Room VC115 of Victoria College, 91* Charles Street West,

[*accessed via a one-way street between 89 (Burwash Hall) and 93 (Isabel Bader Theatre) – drop off only].

For both parking and travelling by subway the target is Museum Station on Queen’s Park.  Parking is accessed on southbound Queen’s Park just after the subway station.  After parking you should cross Queen’s Park via the subway station.  On exiting the station you will be facing Emmanuel College and will have to go around either end to Victoria College which is exactly behind it.

FACT FINDING FORUM ON FACTA

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Saturday, December 15, 2012

11:00 noon – 6:00 p.m. (doors will open at 10:00 a.m.)

University of Toronto – Victoria College – Victoria College Building – Room 115

Here are the details:

  • The Progressive Canadian Party is sponsoring this event.
  • The Fact Finding Conference has been convened in response to the November 8, 2012 announcement from the Department of Finance that they are seeking input on FATCA.
  • The Progressive Canadian Party is seeking the views, experiences and contributions of Canadians for the purposes of its submission.
  • Speakers will include Jim Jatras of Squire Sanders;
  • and Professor Allison Christians, H. Heward Stikeman Chair in Tax Law at the McGill University Faculty of Law.

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Miscellany: Fact Finding Forum in Toronto and American Citizens Abroad on Goldstein on Gelt

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A Fact Findg Forum on FATCA will be held in Toronto.  Everyone nearby should consider attending this rally.  Here is the announcement:

The Federal PC Party (Progressive Canadian) of Canada is calling ALL CANADIANS (Liberals, NDP, Conservatives, ordinary citizens, et al) to stand on guard for Canada and Canadian sovereignty!
Unprincipled and unconscionable
Plan to attend a Fact Finding Forum to preserve Canadian sovereignty and keep Canada a free and independent nation!
 
Who: The Honourable Sinclair Stevens, Federal PC Party leader, Party President Dorian Baxter and others
Where: University of  Toronto – Room TBA (click for updates)
When: Saturday December 15, 2012 – 9:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

The US abolition of all rights of inheritence

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Friedrich Engel and Karl Marx

In The Communist Manifesto, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engel called for the “Abolition of all rights of inheritance.”  Simon Black reports that the United States inheritance tax will go up from 35% on the everything after the first $5,000,000 to 55% on everything over $1,000,000.

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American Citizens Abroad welcomes small concession from Treasury

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Received via email from ACA:

American Citizens Abroad (ACA) Welcomes Treasury Department’s Latest Step on FATCA

In its ongoing efforts to implement the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), the U.S. Treasury Department has just released an updated version of the Model Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA), on November 14th. FATCA requires foreign financial institutions to report the accounts of American citizens and those considered US persons, to the U.S. government, or risk incurring a withholding tax of 30% on all U.S. transactions. This new version of the Intergovernmental Agreement contains provisions that require a Foreign Financial Institution (FFI) that wishes to take advantage of certain favorable provisions to avoid policies or practices that discriminate against opening or maintaining accounts for Americans residing in the foreign country covered by the IGA. This “loosener” is aimed at small financial institutions with essentially a local client base.

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The Wolf and the Lamb revised for our times

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Here is the original fable according to Aesop:

Once upon a time a Wolf was lapping at a spring on a hillside, when, looking up, what should he see but a Lamb just beginning to drink a little lower down. “There’s my supper,” thought he, “if only I can find some excuse to seize it.” Then he called out to the Lamb, “How dare you muddle the water from which I am drinking?”

“Nay, master, nay,” said Lambikin; “if the water be muddy up there, I cannot be the cause of it, for it runs down from you to me.”

“Well, then,” said the Wolf, “why did you call me bad names this time last year?”

“That cannot be,” said the Lamb; “I am only six months old.”

“I don’t care,” snarled the Wolf; “if it was not you it was your father;” and with that he rushed upon the poor little Lamb and ate her all up. But before she died she gasped out:

“Any excuse will serve a tyrant.”

Now, the contemporary version:

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STOP an Impending Massive Handover of Canadian Sovereignty to the United States!

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UPDATE 2:  This post has been upgraded to a press release at newswire.ca and digitjournal.com.  Thanks go to Jim Jatras.

 

UPDATE:  Jim Jatras has provided an revised Word Version of the text below for mass distribution.

Canada appeal

The following is a message from Jim Jatras:

Friends

Please review that following and submit comments. I hope it’s more or less self-explanatory.

As indicated in a previous comment, it’s in effect a kind of ad or statement inviting people to contact Harper, Flaherty, MPs and oppose FATCA/IGA. Ideally, it’s the kind of thing that would be posted online or even in print publications as an ad, if there were money for that. (If Canadian industry weren’t spending money trying to get the “best deal possible” from the Americans under an IGA instead of fighting.) Certainly individual comment letters to the Finance Department should be sent, but let’s not kid ourselves they will pay much attention them. What we need is a groundswell of outraged Canadians to contact Harper, Flaherty, and MPs as soon as possible with a simple message: NO!

I realize that it’s always risky to hang a draft out where anyone can take a whack at it, but feel free. Also, any ideas on where and how it can be posted and distributed are welcome.

BTW, this is the kind of thing that routinely gets placed in DC in publications like Politico, The Hill, Roll Call, and other pubs aimed at Congress. Picture a similar message aimed at Congress but making an American argument against FATCA, as this makes a Canadian one. That’s how we get things done – if we had someone with money and willing to fight.

Best

Jim

Call or email Stephen Harper, Jim Flaherty, and Your MP Today!

Call or email Stephen Harper, Jim Flaherty, and Your MP Today!

STOP an Impending Massive Handover of Canadian Sovereignty to the United States!

 Tell the Government: Canada Must Say NO

to the United States on ‘FATCA’

Recently the Department of Finance invited comments on what was characterized as “an agreement to improve cross-border tax compliance through . . . the provisions enacted by the United States commonly known as the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).”  This eleventh-hour invitation came as sources in both Ottawa and Washington announced that they were close to finalizing an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) that would, in effect, deputize the Canadian government to enforce this American law in Canada.

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