Switzerland Says F U to the IRS

[Pericles]

http://news.yahoo.com/swiss-lawmakers-reject-deal-end-us-tax-spat-100515908.html

(http://news.yahoo.com/swiss-lawmakers-reject-deal-end-us-tax-spat-100515908.html)By 126-67 with two abstentions, Switzerland's National Council voted not to discuss the measure, which is intended to let Swiss banks sidestep secrecy laws so that they can pursue settlements with U.S. prosecutors. It instead sent the plan back to the upper house for reconsideration.

[Red Green]

Let's hope the Swiss stick to their guns. It might be the last sane country on the face of the earth.

[kahless]

The vote was a blow to the Swiss Cabinet — the group of seven ministers and president that run the country

The leadership however proves to be a bunch of pussies afraid to stand up for their own sovereignty against US fascism.

[nbruno322]

The leadership however proves to be a bunch of pussies afraid to stand up for their own sovereignty against US fascism.

The reason they are panicking is because the US has threatened to criminally charge a number of other Swiss banks, as they did to Bank Wegelin, the oldest Swiss bank that was forced to shut down amid US charges.

Below is from:

http://www.internationalman.com/78-global-perspectives/890-a-bad-week-for-switzerland-weekly-update

"It has not been a good week for Switzerland, a country that has unfortunately seen its strong traditions of privacy and independence steadily chipped away.

Last week saw the criminal sentencing in the US of Bank Wegelin, Switzerland's oldest bank, founded in 1741. The sentencing marks one of the final chapters of the bank's 272 year history, which will have to shut down as a result of the case.

Wegelin was the first foreign bank in history to be indicted for assisting US citizens to evade taxes, the first to plead guilty, and then the first to be sentenced. Wegelin incorrectly assumed that since it did not have any branches outside of Switzerland and complied with Swiss law, it was in the clear and out of the reach of the long arm of Uncle Sam.

Wegelin was wrong.

To illustrate the brazen overreach of this case, it helps to see it from another perspective.

Imagine if China were the world's dominant financial power instead of the US, enabling it to enforce its will and trample over the sovereignty of everyone else. Imagine that there were a group of Chinese citizens who banked with BNY Mellon (Bank of New York is the oldest bank in the US), that the bank had no branches outside of the US, and that it complied with all US laws. Suppose that through their business with BNY Mellon this group of Chinese citizens were breaking some draconian financial laws in China, but again complied with all US laws. In reaction to this, imagine if the Chinese government were to then seize BNY Mellon's assets, criminally indict the bank and its employees, and effectively shutdown the oldest bank in the United States.

How would Americans react in such a scenario?

More importantly, how does the US government get away with such an obscene violation of another country's sovereignty?

It's simple: they control the world's premier reserve currency. And as long as that is the case, they will continue to get away with similar measures.

The chilling effects of the Wegelin saga will no doubt ripple throughout the world.

If Switzerland's oldest bank, which had no foreign branches and abided by all local laws, is able to effectively be shut down by the US government, then who is safe from the whims of this desperate and out-of-control government?

The Wegelin case will serve as a sobering example to business owners around the world of the consequences that can occur if you do not comply with the onerous and costly regulations concerning American clients.

We should expect the trend of foreign financial institutions and businesses shunning American clients and partners to accelerate.

The writing is on the wall.

The window for Americans to get their savings out of dodge gets narrower each passing week. It seems the US government is just a hop, skip, and a jump away from imposing de facto or de jure capital controls."

[DamianTV]

Let's hope the Swiss stick to their guns. It might be the last sane country on the face of the earth.

None the less, they are still controlled by Banks. Only difference is the biggest spenders hide their money in Swiss Bank Accts. I long for the day when Banks in general do not think they own the world because they tricked people into being able to print up money.

[WhistlinDave]

The leadership however proves to be a bunch of pussies afraid to stand up for their own sovereignty against US fascism.

Besides the financial control the US has with the dollar as the world's reserve currency for now... Could it be they've also noticed what our basically unstoppable military might has done in some other countries over the last, say, 40 years? Not saying it's right, I'm just saying, I don't know if it's exactly fair to call any nation's leaders "pussies" for trying to avoid outright pissing off the U.S. Federal govt. either.

If they do stick to their guns--and I hope they do too!--then I hope we don't have a marathon bombing done by Swiss exchange students soon after, which leads to revelations of Al Queda cells rampant throughout Switzerland....

[kahless]

Besides the financial control the US has with the dollar as the world's reserve currency for now... Could it be they've also noticed what our basically unstoppable military might has done in some other countries over the last, say, 40 years? Not saying it's right, I'm just saying, I don't know if it's exactly fair to call any nation's leaders "pussies" for trying to avoid outright pissing off the U.S. Federal govt. either.

If they were not a Western European nation then I would agree. I doubt the thought you described ever crossed their minds. It is more likely that they agree with US policy simply because it advances the globalist agenda.

[Occam's Banana]

I doubt the thought you described ever crossed their minds. It is more likely that they agree with US policy simply because it advances the globalist agenda.

Exactly. They know perfectly well upon which side their bread is buttered ...