Um governo de mentirosos? Obama na berlinda - Bob Bauman

A Congregation of Liars

By Bob Bauman JD, Asset Protection and Offshore Editor

Dear Paulo Roberto,

Parliament of Whores is the title of P.J. O’Rourke’s 1991 classic political humor book. Subtitled A Lone Humorist Attempts to Explain the Entire U.S. Government, it is a scathing critique of the American system of government from a conservative perspective.

If O’Rourke wrote a companion volume describing the current administration, I think an apt title might be A Congregation of Liars.

Rarely, in so short a span of time, have so many officials of an American administration engaged in so many blatant deceptions, distortions, fables, falsehoods, outright fraudulence … and even perjury.

Prevarication seems endemic in this administration, from the president and the attorney general down to the White House press secretary and national security officials.

And the sheer audacity of the deception on display is breathtaking…

Asked during a U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee hearing in March whether the National Security Agency (NSA) collected data on millions of Americans, James Clapper, the director of National Intelligence, replied: “No, sir.”

This blatant falsehood was committed in front of one of the congressional committees charged with oversight of surveillance programs — oversight President Obama and other NSA defenders falsely claim is one of the “safeguards” against NSA abuse.

So obvious was his lie after the revelations of NSA domestic-snooping whistleblower Edward Snowden, Clapper was forced to admit that his statement was, in his words, "clearly erroneous" and he apologized.

As Glen Greenwald of The Guardian points out: “Intentionally deceiving Congress is a felony, punishable by up to five years in prison for each offense. Reagan administration officials were convicted of misleading Congress as part of the Iran-contra scandal and other controversies, and sports stars have been prosecuted by the Obama DOJ based on allegations they have [lied]”.

Yet, put aside for a moment that this massive, secret surveillance of all of our emails, phone calls and financial records violates our constitutional rights. I have commented about that before.

I want you to consider what a government of lies means to each of us, and to America’s future, when our government officials, led by the president of the United States, routinely lie to us, intentionally and repeatedly. At worst, this destroys whatever trust we have in a government that now controls much of our lives. It engenders fear, disrupting our personal ability to plan our lives, our businesses and to move forward. Living under lies means we can never be certain about our future and what the government will do to us.

But We Are Not Naïve

Now, I’m not naïve enough to believe that outrageous statements and charges made during presidential and other election campaigns haven’t become standard fare. Many of us have recognized these are phony and meant to mislead.

What I am referring to are the repeated false or evasive statements over the last five years by President Obama and officials of his administration about critical national and foreign policy issues. To wit:

• “What I can say unequivocally is that if you are a U.S. person, the NSA cannot listen to your telephone calls and the NSA cannot target your e-mails,” Obama said in a June 17 interview on PBS’s Charlie Rose Show.” That was a lie.
  
• Such lies are not new. A Washington Post article by Greg Miller states: "Details that have emerged from the exposure of hundreds of pages of previously classified NSA documents indicate that public assertions about these programs by senior US officials have also often been misleading, erroneous or simply false."
  
• And what about the pack of official lies concerning ObamaCare and the terrorist attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi? And don’t forget about the fast and furious gun running in Mexico by the Justice Department and Attorney General Holder’s lies to Congress about his role in wiretapping members of the press.

We, no doubt, like to think that we are superior to the Depression-ravaged Germans who were duped by Adolf Hitler and his “Big Lie” technique. We won’t fall for the Big Lie, we think. But ask yourself this: Aren’t most Americans being deceived by this multitude of government lies, unwitting victims of planned deception in which a lazy media is complicit? When we knowingly or in ignorance accept a government of falsehood, we allow those who lie to expand their power over our lives, to consolidate that power and expand their control. Unless we have the truth, we are unable to challenge the deceivers and end their domination – something we must do to reassert our freedoms and save our country.

As chairman of the Freedom Alliance, I have been consistently providing my readers with reliable, hard facts they can use to make personal and financial decisions in the midst of this cauldron of lies. Based on my public service and research, as well as my travels and contacts worldwide, I have endeavored to provide unvarnished truth in my essays, monthly reports, special alerts and interviews.

There was a time when a government official habitually lying to constituents about matters of great import was unthinkable. Times have changed. I not only truly believe in the old saying “the truth will not only set you free,” but also that it will keep you free. And the need for it has never been greater.

The hour is late for America. We must all do whatever is in our power to resist the Big Lie.

Faithfully yours,

Bob Bauman, J.D.
Chairman, Freedom Alliance

Uruguai: um paraíso financeiro? - Bob Bauman (Sovereign Investor)

Os EUA estão "apertando" -- para usar um termo moderado -- a Suíça, em razão de suas regras laxistas em matéria fiscal e tributária e, sobretudo, por causa de seu regime bancário, baseado no segredo bancário e no anonimato das contas individuais dos estrangeiros. Ou seja, a Suíça já não é mais o que era...
Os investidores americanos se voltam, assim para o Uruguai, um recurso já conhecido de evasores argentinos, brasileiros e vários outros na região, com muitas facilidades financeiras e total segredo de valores e transações envolvidas.
A matéria abaixo, de um consultor que quer uma comissão sobre o seu dinheiro, pretende ensinar os americanos a recorrer aos bancos uruguaios, em lugar dos suíços. Sorte deles...
 Paulo Roberto de Almeida

As Swiss Banks Close Their Doors, Look to Uruguay
By Bob Bauman JD, Offshore and Asset Protection Editor

The “Switzerland of Latin America” – that’s the phrase I used six months ago when I wrote to you from Punta del Este, Uruguay. I was referring to the delightful South American country I was visiting for the first time.

But that catchy phrase was not mine: 61 years ago, in the shattered wake of World War II, Uruguay was described as the "Switzerland of the Americas" in a 1951 New York Times article.

Uruguay earned that unusual name because of its popularity as a safe haven for capital and precious metals fleeing Europe at the time, and for its adoption of careful, Swiss-inspired banking laws and customs.

When I wrote about Uruguay back in March, I got some serious grief from good friends in Switzerland, claiming I had abandoned their country, which I had always called the world’s leading offshore financial center. Well, my friends, I still say that … but Switzerland and the Swiss have got some major problems of their own making – and anyone planning personal financial activities has to keep them in mind.

Money Taking Flight

In the three years since the tawdry UBS-American tax evasion scandal was exposed, Swiss government politicians have tried to shield UBS and other threatened Swiss banks by capitulating to U.S. IRS pressures, too often at the expense of American clients. Thousands of U.S. names have been turned over to the IRS.

In effect, this has all but repealed the 1934 Bank Secrecy Law, ironically even as Swiss courts have upheld that law. As a self-serving byproduct of this, thousands of innocent Americans with Swiss bank accounts suddenly found themselves dumped in a wave of unjustified financial ethnic cleansing by nervous Swiss banks.

The truth is, there are still very solid Swiss banks that do welcome American clients. We know who they are, and we can arrange accounts with very little trouble for our Sovereign Society members.

But Swiss banking experts themselves openly now say that Swiss banks must lure affluent clients from emerging markets or face a slow death as the pursuit of tax dodgers by the U.S. IRS and European tax-collection hounds results in more fleeing assets.

Western Europeans may pull as much as US$139 billion, or 15% of their holdings, from Swiss banks, claims Herbert Hensle of Cap Gemini SA. Bank Sarasin & Cie AG reported last week that private clients withdrew US$308 billion from Swiss locations in the 12 months leading up to June 2012.

Switzerland built the world’s biggest offshore wealth center during an era of “black money” that ended when the U.S. sued UBS three years ago. Many of the highest fee-generating European and U.S. customers are withdrawing funds as the hunt for tax evaders widens.

As many as 100 Swiss banks will vanish, according to Vontobel Chief Executive Officer Zeno Staub. (Vontobel is one of the cooperative Swiss banks with which we work).

Solid and Confidential

By comparison, Uruguay’s banking system is solid, appealing to investors and depositors from around the world who seek a safe haven that also offers tax advantages. Since January 1, 2008, almost 400 banks have failed in the United States … meanwhile, Uruguay’s banks have operated without problems. While the U.S. GDP has shrunk, Uruguay’s continues to grow.

Unlike too many other offshore banks around the world, banks in Uruguay welcome American clients. Most banks offer e-banking, but a personal visit is required to open an account.

Uruguay’s financial reputation has made it an important regional financial center for all Latin America. There are 11 private banks, plus the government central bank, Banco de la República (BROU), that strictly supervises all banks in the country.

The private banks are totally or partially owned by leading American or European financial institutions. Banco Itaú and Lloyds TSB in Montevideo usually accept non-resident American clients in their retail banking branches. In addition, attesting to its regional banking role, there are over 30 representative offices of foreign banks.

Financial Privacy Guaranteed By Law

Unlike the United States, where the PATRIOT Act has destroyed financial privacy, Uruguay’s protection is based on a bank secrecy statute (Law #15,322, 1982) that forbids banks to share information with anyone – including the government of Uruguay and foreign governments.

The only exceptions allowed are in cases involving issues of alimony, child support, or alleged crimes such as foreign tax evasion and fraud. Even then, information can be shared only after obtaining a local court order.

The country does not automatically exchange tax or bank account information with the U.S., Canada or any other government. Uruguay does comply with Article 26 of the Organization for Economic and Community Development’s (OECD) model standards for tax information exchange requests. That is, banks may exchange information upon proof of foreign tax evasion or tax fraud.

In keeping with current international “political correctness,” Uruguay’s government does not want the country labeled as a “tax haven.” Nevertheless, Uruguay is, in fact, an offshore tax haven that imposes very few taxes on foreign residents living here.