dreamdancer 0 #1 March 29, 2009 these white, blue eyed guys are getting desperate QuoteHome to 160 powerful US Congressmen, Rayburn House on Capitol Hill in Washington DC was the venue last Monday for a desperate resistance movement at its darkest hour. In the basement of the sprawling whitewashed classical complex, 70 senior politicians and their advisers heard that prising open to increased scrutiny the secretive and corrupt world of tax havens - where trillions of dollars are stashed far from the reaches of the tax man - was akin to an evil Big Brother conspiracy that would smash civil liberties and hamper world economic growth. It was organised by Dan Mitchell, co-founder of the right-wing Center for Freedom and Prosperity, and Richard Rahn, a senior fellow at influential libertarian Washington think-tank, the Cato Institute, a former board member of the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority and a regular Washington Post columnist. They told the high-powered audience that moves to force so-called secrecy jurisdictions to share information with tax authorities were "hypocritical", "racist" and would destroy "defenceless" island economies. Mitchell, a high priest of light tax, small state libertarianism, argued that current moves to encourage information exchange between secretive tax havens and the international community would see unscrupulous government officials sell highly sensitive information about the world's richest companies and individuals to drug cartels and warlords. Tax transparency would lead to kidnapping and murder. http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/mar/29/tax-havensstay away from moving propellers - they bite blue skies from thai sky adventures good solid response-provoking keyboarding Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Capt.Slog 0 #2 March 29, 2009 Quote these white, blue eyed guys are getting desperate Quote Home to 160 powerful US Congressmen, Rayburn House on Capitol Hill in Washington DC was the venue last Monday for a desperate resistance movement at its darkest hour. In the basement of the sprawling whitewashed classical complex, 70 senior politicians and their advisers heard that prising open to increased scrutiny the secretive and corrupt world of tax havens - where trillions of dollars are stashed far from the reaches of the tax man - was akin to an evil Big Brother conspiracy that would smash civil liberties and hamper world economic growth. It was organised by Dan Mitchell, co-founder of the right-wing Center for Freedom and Prosperity, and Richard Rahn, a senior fellow at influential libertarian Washington think-tank, the Cato Institute, a former board member of the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority and a regular Washington Post columnist. They told the high-powered audience that moves to force so-called secrecy jurisdictions to share information with tax authorities were "hypocritical", "racist" and would destroy "defenceless" island economies. Mitchell, a high priest of light tax, small state libertarianism, argued that current moves to encourage information exchange between secretive tax havens and the international community would see unscrupulous government officials sell highly sensitive information about the world's richest companies and individuals to drug cartels and warlords. Tax transparency would lead to kidnapping and murder. http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/mar/29/tax-havens Is this an official endorsement of tax cheating by the right? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dreamdancer 0 #3 March 29, 2009 sounds to me like they're blackmailing governments with 'kidnapping and murder' if they go ahead with a tax haven squeeze stay away from moving propellers - they bite blue skies from thai sky adventures good solid response-provoking keyboarding Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dreamdancer 0 #4 March 29, 2009 meanwhile... QuoteTwo million corporations and limited liability companies are formed every year in the US with no one knowing who the beneficial owners are. "Right now, a person forming a US corporation or limited liability company (LLC) provides less information to the state than is required to open a bank account or obtain a driver's licence," admitted senior US senator Carl Levin last year. Welcome to America's dirty little secret: the states of Wyoming, Nevada and in particular Delaware, where financial disclosure requirements minimal. Delaware, where U2 singer Bono's private equity firm, Elevation Partners, is registered, has come under scrutiny from Swiss bankers, who argue it provides the same levels of secrecy as they do. Washington insiders say that while there are problems with Delaware's business disclosure laws, they are expected to be addressed soon. And they argue that, unlike Switzerland, Delaware does not have a history of touting for overseas business using its facility to avoid tax as a selling point. But while President Obama leads the fight to combat tax evasion in offshore centres, recent studies indicate he should be looking closer to home. Jason Sharman, professor of the centre for governance and public policy at Griffith University in Australia, tried to set up shell companies in 22 countries. Surprisingly, the easiest places to retain secrecy were the US and Britain. http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/mar/29/taxavoidancestay away from moving propellers - they bite blue skies from thai sky adventures good solid response-provoking keyboarding Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
