LibertySpan

Liberty for Capital Migration by Americans.

Does this exist? If so, to what degree?

Is the USA at risk of becoming another USSR, where citizens had to be “locked into” the country?

(Yes, younger folk. This did happen. Google it.)

I recently went to the 2009 Freedomfest in Las Vegas, pretty much a combination political, economic and financial event, mostly for Libertarian types.

One of the more popular speakers there was Marshall Langer, an attorney specializing in international law and taxation. He held a few different sessions.

In one of the sessions, he asked for a show of hands, among the 100+ people in the meeting, as to how many people were actually interested in moving to a foreign country partly for taxation reasons.

Almost all of the hands shot up. And, when I say “shot up”, I mean “shot up”! There was much energy there was around this.

Taxation is a subject I know very little about. Apparently, the general understanding is that politicians like Obama are aware of this “capital flight” possibility. This is why Democrats are working to better control offshore investing, and beefing up IRS reporting and currency exchange requirements. (This is not just a national security / anti-terrorism issue.)

Apparently, also there are forces at work to deprive Americans of some of their property (via taxation) if and when then seek to actually move abroad and rescind their American citizenship.
Apparently, the USA is perhaps the only that taxes its citizens no mater where they are living in the world. Anybody know the definite answer to this?

You can’t blame people for wanting to live in places that best suit their needs, especially to the extent 401(k) balances are diminished and Social Security benefit amounts are threatened by fiscal problems?

Presumably, potential capital migration should be an incentive for superior political management of a nation. Obviously, we know what the Communist Russia had to do to keep its population stable.

Presumably, micro-management of a society, and oppressive taxation (to pay for all of those bureaucrats), along with, possibly, a declining economy, should only entice more Americans to migrate. We are already seeing some flow south and to Asia.

Its so easy to get on the internet and, with pictures and videos, actually witness more the quality of life abroad.

I will post it later, but there is a very good tool called, something like, the “Freedom Index” that offers a more objective assessment of various nations, using criteria important to freedom-seeking persons.

This post is not necessarily an argument against all taxation. It’s just good to note that this possible reaction exists.

What can, or what would the country do if too if there were some significant degree of a net capital flight?