You’ve read and heard about the Panama Papers.
Now get the t-shirt.
Por si no vieron mi nueva remera. pic.twitter.com/XZ9CQ1DgIM
— Alejo Schapire (@aschapire) April 7, 2016
“If you haven’t seen my new shirt.”
“Poor people” in this instance means everyone who pays their fair share of taxes and isn’t wealthy enough to hire the legal and financial talent required to hide one’s income in another country.
Yes, I realize that most of those parking their wealth offshore are behaving entirely within the law. But someone has to make up for these missing billions in revenue. Or not.
Unlike the unvetted Snowden and Manning leaks– which damaged US national security and put lives at risk– the Panama Papers revelations are perfectly responsible and important journalism. The Vladimir Putin–Alex Jones nexus is trying to blame the Panama Papers leaks on malign forces like the CIA and George Soros.
(Ever notice how Soros is the go-to fall guy for so many on both the Left and the Right?)
There’s even a suggestion that because Putin was not directly implicated in the Papers (although friends and allies of his were), Russian sources may have been behind the leak. I don’t buy it.
Anyway, if you’re looking for a feel-good story coming out of this, consider how it brings together so many of the rich and powerful from otherwise hostile countries in a common purpose: Israelis, Syrians, Russians, Ukrainians, Indians, Pakistanis, and many more.
We are the world
We are the wealthy
We want to keep our money for ourselves
So let’s keep stashing…
Also consider how this is just a tiny fraction of the estimated $21 trillion hidden in secret offshore accounts worldwide.
The public radio program “On the Media” has some good reports on the Panama Papers. Listen here.
