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In an encouraging show of backbone, the Swiss People's Party called for sanctions against the U.S. today in retaliation for the IRS meddling in the affairs of UBS's private client accounts.
Among the proposed sanctions are the repatriation of Swiss gold held in the U.S. and banning the sale of U.S. funds in Switzerland.
That the American government used the economic downturn to bend an allied government to its will should give everyone of means and intellect pause. Big Brother is a reality folks.
Emboldened by this capitulation, the feds are now insisting the bank give them the identities of all 52,000 American account holders.
Originally posted by Jay-in-AR
We're talking about one of the most powerful countries in the world, at least in economic terms...
Originally posted by username371
Hard money is the only safe money.
UBS AG said in a U.S. court filing Friday that its employees would be forced to violate Swiss criminal law to comply with the U.S. government's demand for the identities of 52,000 private account holders as part of a massive tax-evasion inquiry.
Friday's filing threatens to draw both the U.S. and Swiss governments deeper into the already acrimonious showdown between the U.S. and UBS over the bank's private-banking practices. UBS argues in the filing that Swiss law "strictly prohibits UBS and its employees from disclosing to the [Internal Revenue Service] the account information located in Switzerland." Instead, the bank says, the U.S. government's petition "simply ignores the existence of Swiss law and sovereignty."
Originally posted by burntheships
"Instead, the bank says, the U.S. government's petition "simply ignores the existence of Swiss law and sovereignty."
UBS also argued in Friday's filing that the IRS's demand would require the rewriting of tax treaties between the two countries that dictate how and what information can be disclosed. "To the extent that the IRS is not satisfied with treaties that the U.S. government has negotiated, that concern should be remedied through diplomacy, not an enforcement action," UBS said in the court filing.
Originally posted by St Udio
Now why would UBS select 1/2 of 1% of the 'names' to give the IRS??
perhaps these are accounts by present member of congress,
or maybe accounts of Obama administration appointees...??
so, by answering the IRS request... the USA will be getting an international Slap-In-The-Face in return...
result; the IRS request will be the lastone ever made
Originally posted by Hastobemoretolife
About time the IRS is getting what they deserve.
Those jack boots have been running around for decades imprisoning people and taking peoples property or no reason at all.
I say good. Also because I believe in privacy rights.
This is going to be fun to watch the secretive US government get a taste of its own medicine.
Originally posted by Merriman Weir
Yet some Americans wonder why non-Americans perceive America - or at least the American government - as being arrogant?
If the world was a kindergarten, America is like the little kid who thinks all the toys are his for the taking and that the other children have to play the way he wants to play or it's somehow wrong.
U.S. Undersecretary of War Robert P. Patterson wrote of this trade, in a document recently uncovered at the National Archives: "Down to the fall of 1944, the Swiss produced and exported to Germany large quantities of ammunition, aircraft parts, radio equipment and other military supplies....They also furnished electric power to Germany, and their railroads carried a heavy traffic for the Germans between Germany and Italy. These activities were of substantial assistance to the Germans in waging war."
Originally posted by Pimpish
reply to post by burntheships
It's not entirely true that they remained neutral, at least during WWII. They helped manufacture weapons for the Nazi's, and helped keep their money/gold safe. If you do a quick google search you can find out some more information on that. They did a wonderful job though as many people do still think that they were truly neutral! Here is a good quote:
U.S. Undersecretary of War Robert P. Patterson wrote of this trade, in a document recently uncovered at the National Archives: "Down to the fall of 1944, the Swiss produced and exported to Germany large quantities of ammunition, aircraft parts, radio equipment and other military supplies....They also furnished electric power to Germany, and their railroads carried a heavy traffic for the Germans between Germany and Italy. These activities were of substantial assistance to the Germans in waging war."
Source: www.jcpa.org...
Here is a quick link I found, there is a lot more information available if you look around, at both of these links.
I guess sort of a side topic, but it relates. I don't think that they should have to give up their documents though, even though I would love to see some of the more prominent names on it, as I'm sure many people would.
www.switzerland.isyours.com...