Whither The New Financial Capitols?

Well, Switzerland's looking pretty good. There shouldn't be much surprise in this. If Obama is going to European-ize America as seems to be his intent, business will look for the best places in Europe, or around the world, to do what they are supposed to do - make a profit.

The tidy towns and mountain vistas of Switzerland are an unlikely setting for an oil boom. Yet a wave of energy companies has in the last few months announced plans to move to Switzerland — mainly for its appeal as a low-tax corporate domicile that looks relatively likely to stay out of reach of Barack Obama’s tax-seeking administration.

Elections have consequences. Demagogy, when acted upon, does, too. By attacking capitalism as they are, today's crop of Democrats will do far more damage to a New York City than al Qaeda could ever hope to do, short of detonating a WMD.

So, have the terrorists won?

Comments

[seekeronos]

"--- Elections have consequences. Demagogy, when acted upon, does, too. By attacking capitalism as they are, today's crop of Democrats will do far more damage to a New York City than al Qaeda could ever hope to do, short of detonating a WMD.

So, have the terrorists won? ---"

No, not by the metric that the terrorists want.

They want us wiped out to the last man, woman, and child, except for those who convert to Islam, or pay the dhimmi tax.

Obama and his fellow partisans will simply wreck the nation, leaving us alive, but very miserable with high rates of inflation, permanent economic stagnation (think 1990s Japan, but worse by a factor of 20) and greatly increased class warfare.

[mark l.]

this is a big oops, for the admin.

we have the second highest corporate tax rate in the 1st world, EVEN charlie rangel was pushing for a corporate tax rate cut.

take exxon-
in 2007 it paid 30 billion in taxes to the federal govt, for a product that is sold on the world market and acquired outside the US. Why would it want to stay in the US?

the govt doesn't just lose the tax revenue, it also loses the income revenue from the executives who were working in america. Higher taxes are good?

obama is busy chasing out the most productive, in regard to federal revenue, and essential corporations.

top corporate rate switzerland?
25%

top corporate rate in the US?
39%, along with up to 12% state tax.

imagine being told that you can keep 26% more of your profits.

http://seekingalpha.com/article/63131-exxon-s-2007-tax-bill-30-billion

Exxon?
2006: profits 39.3 billion. taxes, 28 billion. rate paid-41.6%
2007: profits 40.6 billion, taxes, 30 billion. rate paid-42.5%

so they move to switzerland, and pay 25%...
they save 11.2 billion for 06, and 12.6 billion for 07.

no word if obama was figuring his budget for the coming years with or without corporate enrgy remaining in the US, but the effective result of a compnay like exxon, is like bleeding out 300 billion dollars, over ten years.

This is an abject disaster.

[mark l.]

thinnest skin ever...
obama skipping out on the gridiron dinner.

was it his idea, or his handlers?
I smell fear of being ridiculed. Strange that someone with so much confidence is compelled by fear.

[anon]

It doesn't matter whose idea it was, it matters that he's not coming. It shows that he is a coward and that he KNOWS he is a coward. He knows he could never stomach face to face criticism or make it though the night without making a fool of himself.

I wonder if anyone in the media is starting to wonder if he's everything they thought he was....

It also shows his huge arrogance that he's above and beyond tradition. The prognosis gets worse and worse as every day passes.

[mark l.]

it is funny to watch jon stewart carrying the messiah's water...
if jim cramer was endorsing the obama agenda, stewart wouldn't have any material.

"I wonder if anyone in the media is starting to wonder if he's everything they thought he was...."

the two canaries in the coal mine are gergen and buffet.

gergen,3/3/09-
"It isn’t popular to say right now but there is growing reason to question whether this is the wisest course in terms of our most urgent and pressing challenge: a collapsing world economy."

buffett, 3/10/09,
"I don't think anybody on December 7th would have said a `war is a terrible thing to waste, and therefore we're going to try and ram through a whole bunch of things and--but we expect to--expect the other party to unite behind us on the--on the big problem.' It's just a mistake, I think, when you've got one overriding objective, to try and muddle it up with a bunch of other things."

If this was a guy going to college, and his parents were worried he was taking too many classes or spreading himself thin, there is little effects of poor judgment that couldn't be resolved.

If this was a heart surgeon, who was trying to do too much or not focusing on the singular biggest problem, the stakes are higher, and the room for error shrinks.

when people who have supported obama are starting to question his ability, agenda, and judgment they very likely have stronger misgivings, that they keep private. The admin is completely rudderless. Less than 60 days in, and somme of his most important supportrs are planning their escape routes.

[anon]

Ya know, I always said that other than the core nut jobs who will support him to the bitter end and if he fails will chalk it up to racism and media bias [you do know that the Kos Kids think that the media has always been AGAINST Obama?!?]....that most of his support was about an inch deep.

A lot of people are going to have a tough time admitting they were wrong, look how long it took most Republicans to admit what a disaster Bush was and the Iraq War was and some still cannot do it.

But, a lot of people it appears voted for Obama in the belief that what he said he would do..expand government, raise taxes on the rich, and all the other programs he said he supported that would necessitate raising more taxes...wasn't what he was really going to do.

They voted for a guy who went to a radical church, whose spiritual mentor was a radical, who worked with and socialized with a radical terrorist, who has in the past stated flatly that he agrees with wealth redistribution, who was supported by radicals...and they somehow believed he was a CENTRIST.

I agree the admin is rudderless, when I saw today or yesterday that he announced some kind of freaking white house advisory panel on women's issues....I mean? Women's issues? Are you kidding me? The guy has time for some kind of jacked up photo opp on yet another meaningless advisory panel with all kinds of rhetoric but no goals or activities outlined....

This is the sign of the incompetant person who cannot and will not be responsible for making any decisions. So, all he does is comission reports and write reports and talk bs and play a waiting game hoping that fate will deliver him.

That is what and whom we have elected president. A report writer. May the god that I don't believe in have mercy on our souls.

[mark l.]

hmmm...
david ignatius unloads on obama-
"A 'Phony War' On the Crisis" / "Neville Chamberlain Phase of Economic Crisis"

ditto Times(UK)
"It's an emergency: get your act together, Obama"

the problem for obama is that he has painted himself in the corner over class warfare, and he is wating for the paint to dry, while rahm and the house just keep slapping down more paint.

The european press is going to ruthlessly unload on obama.

so far buffet, gergen, and now ignatius have seen fit to suggest that the admin doesn't have a clue.

the greatest econmic crisis of our time, and the only option that will NEVER be considered is a reduction in taxes. Everytime I hear obama suggest all option are on the table, I want to slap him in the face with a big asterisk stamp. only democratic options are on the menu, and the menu is from 70 years ago.

[JustOneMan]

As time goes on its all very clear how the economy tanked...

When Rep. Barney Frank was looking to aid a Boston-based lender last fall, the Massachusetts Democrat urged Maxine Waters, a colleague on the House Financial Services Committee, to "stay out of it," he says.

The reason: Ms. Waters, a longtime congresswoman from California, had close ties to the minority-owned institution, OneUnited Bank.

Ms. Waters and her husband have both held financial stakes in the bank. Until recently, her husband was a director. At the same time, Ms. Waters has publicly boosted OneUnited's executives and criticized its government regulators during congressional hearings. Last fall, she helped secure the bank a meeting with Treasury officials.

Gee...doesnt this make Maxine one of those "Greedy Wall Street Bankers"?

[WBestPresidentEver]

All of congress are greedy whores. They are all corrupt liars and tax cheats.
WE NEED TERM LIMITS TO STOP IT.
How to get that passed is beyond me but if it was done. our country would be a hell of a lot better off.

[seekeronos]

"--- How to get that passed is beyond me but if it was done. our country would be a hell of a lot better off. ---"

The only way possible would be a constitutional convention, called for by 2/3 of all the statehouses in the USA.

Because the only other route would be to have 2/3 of both houses of Congress call for it, and no career congressworm in its right mind would ever cut his own "job security" like that.

In short, it is unlikely to ever happen.