As a child I heard my dad use this expression , “Everyone and his brother”–to say that a large amount of people will be at a certain store at a certain hour, so we were going to go at a different time.

I had to relinquish my US citizenship in 2011. I have told my sisters. One of my sisters is politically active. Neither give a rat’s tush about what has happened to me. Both are democrats. My brother doesn’t give a damn about politics and doesn’t vote. He gives less than a rodent’s hiney about my problems since he not infrequently has his own concerns with the IRS, as do all Homelanders.

Can we be surprised that the Senate Finance committee downplayed the 347 submissions regarding FATCA, most of which came from “US citizens” abroad? If we cannot get our brothers and our sisters to write to their representatives, Congress will dismiss our pleas out of hand. But how do we mobilize the members of our own family. My own experience, and what I’ve heard from others, is that our families care a little about our situation than Barack Obama cares for his own brother living in Kenyan poverty. So how do we mobilize people who think we are crazy or have their own problems and no time to put into lobbying their government on our behalf. I believe it can’t be done–but perhaps others have more empathetic brothers and sisters. I certainly don’t have siblings who empathize with my situation;  apparently, neither does George Obama.

Barack Obama’s ‘half-brother discovered in Kenya, living on a dollar a month’

This article on the need for funding U.S. highways shows just how far Congress will go to claim revenue neutrality while still spending money. Instead of raising the gas tax and charging people who use the roads for maintaining them it is easier for Congress to raise taxes on people who can’t fight back.

This is the same poor thought process that gave rise to F.A.T.C.A.. Instead of paying to help veterans by looking to savings in money that was being spent on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq it was decided that the money would come from a constituency that had nothing to do with rusbank.net the problem but conveniently also couldn’t fight back and who no one would defend, EXPATS.

Congress keeps finding increasingly absurd ways to avoid raising the gas tax

One buzzin’ Brocker, Bubblebustin, doesn’t give up easily.  Here’s the report I got by email.

There’s been a small development on the Canadian Bankers Association front that came about from a series of letters I initiated between Ms Drew-Lytle, their Director of Media Relations and Communications, and myself.

 

Brockers may remember Ms Drew-Lytle when she communicated with us here: https://isaacbrocksociety.ca/2012/07/16/canadian-bankers-association-maura-drew-lytle-responds-to-the-isaac-brock-society/.

 

I persuaded her to revise the CBA’s FATCA consumer info page (http://www.cba.ca/en/consumer-information/40-banking-basics/597-fatca-and-the-canada-us-intergovernmental-agreement-iga-information-for-clients-) to better reflect the options available to a Canadian banking customer should they fail to be in possession of a CLN or other documentation that might prove they are no longer a US citizen, OR, never were one.

 

My intention was to have the CBA include a direct reference to a “reasonable explanation” in their answer to FAQ “How do banks determine which accounts have to reported to the CRA?”, provided in the “Guidance on enhanced financial accounts reporting” (http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/nnrsdnts/nhncdrprtng/gdnc-eng.pdf).  Instead, she provided a link to the guidance itself and agreed to change the wording on their answer to no longer deny the possibility of a “reasonable explanation” in all cases. Her reason for doing so, she said, was so the CBA wouldn’t have to revise its info page should the IGA change.

 

I also hoped the CBA would take the important initiative in providing our banks with guidance to determine what a “reasonable explanation” is (instead of leaving it up to individual bank employees to decide) but she said that’s the CRA’s job, not theirs.

 

The old wording on up the CBA’s website read:

Canadian Bankers Association

How do banks determine which accounts have to be reported to the CRA?

Under the IGA, banks are required to review new and existing client accounts to look for any indication that an individual may be considered a U.S. person. Indicators that someone may be a U.S. person include U.S. identification used to open an account or a U.S. address associated with the account. Your financial institution may ask you to self-certify that you are not a U.S. person by providing additional documentation. If you choose not to provide this additional documentation upon request, your financial institution will be required to send your account information to the CRA which may share it with the IRS.

For more information on financial institution requirements under the IGA, visit the CRA website:

http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/nnrsdnts/nhncdrprtn

 

The new wording is:

How do banks determine which accounts have to be reported to the CRA?

Under the IGA, banks are required to review new and existing client accounts to look for any indication that an individual may be considered a U.S. person. Indicators that someone may be a U.S. person include U.S. identification used to open an account or a U.S. address associated with the account. Your financial institution may ask you to self-certify that you are not a U.S. person by providing additional documentation. Depending on the situation, if this additional documentation is not provided, your financial institution may be required to send your account information to the CRA which may share it with the IRS.

For more information on financial institution requirements under the IGA, visit the CRA website:

http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/nnrsdnts/nhncdrprtng/ndvdls-eng.html

http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/nnrsdnts/nhncdrprtng/gdnc-eng.pdf

 
Here’s a resonant paragraph from Kalí Tal’s Worlds of Hurt: Reading the Literatures of Trauma (1996) Cambridge University Press. A footnote suggests that the material has been summarized from another book. A heuristic for self-analysis?
 

In a social system that supports the systematic oppression and persecution of a particular minority group (such as Jews in Nazi Germany), the victims of persecution have a limited set of available options. They may capitulate, which will result in continued suffering and perhaps the eventual death of all members of the targeted group if the intent of the oppressor is genocide. They may resist by appealing to existing legal, moral, or ethical structures in the dominant society (i.e., litigation, religious arguments) and use tactics such as passive resistance or nonviolence. They may respond with force — intending to change the power structure. Or they may attempt to escape the confines of the oppressive social structure, either by relocating to a less hostile environment or by “passing” as a member of a nontargeted group.  (p. 8-9)

(Adapted from Emerson – “Concord Hymn”)
 
 

JC asks that the following be highlighted and discussed in its own post here at Brock.

@8888 Makes this interesting point about Citizenship Based Taxation

http://disq.us/8o0buo on the Washington Times article.

What is a tax? A tax is a government imposed LEVY on the Treasury account holdings of those who receive benefits and or compensation denominated in the none interest bearing debt instruments of the government’s treasury. This means that although all residents pay taxes not all tax payers are citizens. The only common denominator that obligates both citizen and non-citizen to pay taxes is, residency which gives both direct access to the treasury.

Expats have no such access to the U.S. Treasury because they receive their benefits and/or compensation under the jurisdiction of another Treasury and therefore are not under the taxation supervision authority of the I.R.S. Citizenship taxation is a fiction that exist only in the minds if those who don’t understand this basic principle of taxation. The U.S. is really taxing the Treasuries of other nations. This is something that is illegal under international law because all nations are equally sovereign. And no nation can tax another because that would subjugate one nation to another.If the U.S. cannot tax it’s nonresidents on their foreign account holdings with another treasury then the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion is equally fictitious as is any credit or liability that is connected to the income of nonresidents.In the end all taxation is residency based.

Perhaps we are doing some disservice to the cause by reinforcing the name “U.S. Citizenship-Based Taxation” as that name may get wrapped in the flag by patriotic *Homelanders* – the name including “U.S. Citizenship” triggers a patriotic response.

@8888 points out that in the U.S., anyone resident is taxed and you don’t have to be a citizen. So this “Citizenship-Based Taxation” does not describe what is going on. Something like this may be more descriptive and a better presentation:

America like all other nations of the world practices Residence-Based Taxation – they tax all residents whether citizens or not.

A key difference between America and all other developed countries is that America taxes its “persons” (including citizens and green card holders) resident in other countries as if they live in the U.S.

Makes sense to me — I have benefited from the wisdom of *8888* for several years now. I can add this to my list, the reason our *foreign financial institutions* are searching for *U.S. Persons* (not just *U.S. citizens*).

 
via Keith Redmond:

It is not about being Republican, Democrat, or unaffiliated, it is about OUR RIGHTS as US citizens living overseas!

“Republicans Overseas Action just filed FATCA/FBAR Complaint and Motion for preliminary injunction against Obama regime and the IRS with eight counts constitutional violations in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio at Dayton on behalf of 8.7 million overseas Americans. In addition, we want the federal court to stop Obama’s IRS by immediately issuing a preliminary injunction that will protect Americans overseas from FATCA and FBAR until a trial can be held by the court. Please see ROA Press Release, Ten Detailed Points, and Description of Each Plaintiff below.”

This is SO exciting! And incredibly satisfying for me personally as the suit will be heard in my hometown! Shared with non other than Douglas Shulman…the Gem City’s own favourite son…..Ironically enough, a statement by Mrs. Obama describes our situation very well:

Washington Times
“Rand Paul sues Obama over foreign banking law
FACTA blamed for causing overseas Americans to renounce citizenship

UPDATED: Complaint, Exhibit, Memo, & Motion
D. 1 – Complaint
D.1-1 – Exhbit 1
D.2-1 – PI Memo
D.2 – Motion for PI
 
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Victoria’s idea given form by Shadow Raider.

Will you join in to phone members of the Senate Finance Committee, details below?

Operation Mosquito

Following Victoria’s idea that we should be like mosquitos and make some noise to make ourselves noticed, I’m organizing a campaign to call the Senate Finance Committee every hour for one week. If you are still a US citizen and want to join, please follow the steps below.

1. Open this link and type your name, nickname or initials on one available time slot. The spreadsheet should save automatically. The times correspond to 9am-5pm in Washington, DC, Monday to Friday next week. The other locations and time zones are only for your reference, feel free to add yours if it’s not already listed. Times in bold are on the following day.

2. On your selected time, call the Senate Finance Committee at +1 202-224-4515. If it’s busy or no one answers, please try again in a few minutes. But you don’t have to call if it’s already time for someone else.

3. I suggest saying something like this: “Hi, my name is ___, I’m a US citizen living in ___. I’d like to urge the Senate Finance Committee to overhaul the taxation of individual Americans living abroad, as soon as possible, as the committee indicated in a report it recently released. Could you please pass this message to the rest of the committee?”. Of course, you can modify this as you wish, but please be polite, and try not to take too long. Thanks!