Our Boss Will Call Your Boss
cepr.shorthandstories.com
cepr.shorthandstories.com
No single citizen in the United States respects any foreign government's judicial system. The entire nation state concept is a joke and an administrative nuance at BEST to anyone here.
The whole story is about how a random autonomous federal agency in the US was either about to cause a regime change, or help the current regime destroy documents in a fake Central Bank heist gone wrong, and people are worried whether we would waste time with an irrelevent judicial trial that we were going to undermine anyway?
haha, okay. well if it wasn't obvious before it should be obvious now from me writing it out. The US provides financial support to everyone to maintain relationships, it has nothing to do with respect for an institution.
USA almost certainly sent them, directly or indirectly (i.e., closed both ears and eyes) in an illegal operation. Illegal in a lot of ways. So why would US let them face a judge?
Context:
>Jack Valentine: Are you crazy? Or just plain delusional? I don't think you fully appreciate the seriousness of your situation! You are gonna spend the next ten years of your life going from a cell to a courtroom before you even start serving your time!
> Yuri Orlov: [Quietly] My family has disowned me. My wife and son have left me. And my brother's dead. I can assure you I appreciate the seriousness of my situation. But I promise you- I won't spend a single second in a courtroom.
> Jack Valentine: [Scoffs] You are delusional.
> Yuri Orlov: I like you, Jack. [Considers] Well, maybe not, but- I understand you. Let me tell you what's gonna happen. This way you can prepare yourself. Okay. Soon there's gonna be a knock on that door and you will be called outside. In the hall there will be a man who outranks you. First, he'll compliment you on the fine job you've done, that you're making the world a safer place, that you're to receive a commendation and a promotion. And then he's going to tell you that I am to be released. You're going to protest... you'll probably threaten to resign. But in the end, I will be released. The reason I'll be released is the same reason you think I'll be convicted. I do rub shoulders with some of the most vile, sadistic men calling themselves leaders today. But some of those men are the enemies of your enemies. And while the biggest arms dealer in the world is your boss, the President of the United States, who ships more merchandise in a day than I do in a year... sometimes it's embarrassing to have his fingerprints on the guns. Sometimes he needs a freelancer like me to supply forces he can't be seen supplying. So ... you call me evil. But unfortunately for you, I'm a necessary evil.
[Valentine now looks very grim, realizing Orlov is right. There is a knock at the door just as Yuri promised.]
> Jack Valentine: [Getting up] I would tell you to go to Hell, but I think you're already there.
The reason I'll be released is the same reason you think I'll be convicted. I do rub shoulders with some of the most vile, sadistic men calling themselves leaders today. But some of these men are the enemies of your enemies. And while the biggest arms dealer in the world is your boss - the President of the United States, who ships more merchandise in a day than I do in a year - sometimes it's embarrassing to have his fingerprints on the guns. Sometimes he needs a freelancer like me to supply forces he can't be seen supplying. So. You call me evil, but unfortunately for you, I'm a necessary evil."
Definitely one of my favorites! (Both movies are)
All the theories about motivation make the whole operation seems kinda clumsy and weird.
I'm not sure this op was clumsy though. They are probably used to operating in regions where the police force is less effective.
This is all very weird.
The US ultimately negotiated a payment to the families of the men Davis killed and secured his release.
0. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_Allen_Davis_incident
-- So someone high in the Government hired them.
Beyond that it's really really hard to know what is up here.
It has nothing to do with starving. It has everything to do with having all their personal firearms confiscated by the government a few years ago.
And yet, as soon as the USSR stopped guaranteeing the security of the Warsaw pact states, their regimes fell like dominoes.
Back when that wasn't the case, things worked like this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novocherkassk_massacre
So basically US foreign intelligence in the 80's? :)
Don't mean to claim it's not, I just feel wary of believing stories that sound incredible lately....
I am of Haitian descent, my parents both immigrated to the US in the 70s and 80s and just this past holiday my aunt told me a story about how she paid hundreds of dollars for a fake passport to obtain passage in the US.
Ever since Columbus arrived Haiti has been a semi-lawless zone where something shady is probably going on facilitated by foreign powers (usually the French and Americans). The amount of corruption in this country is so great it's hard to imagine. Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and if you were to cumulatively rank all Western Hemisphere countries governments we'd probably be at the bottom as well.
It's tough to see because Haiti has some potential. The northern port of Labadee is a tourist destination and other parts of the island could be too with the correct investments and stability in government. It's one of the largest nations by population and land in Central America / Caribbean and labor is so cheap that it could be a great spot for American multi-nationals to set up shop. I always wonder when Haiti will get on it's feet and experience growth like Vietnam or Bangladesh. I guess the answer is still: 'not any time soon'.
Theoreis abound because there were a guns, several magazines (clips), and sat phones found but nobody is talking. All higher-ups/agencies involved are staying tight lipped. It seems like a professionally-run, clandestine op that was botched by a security guard that prob makes hourly pay.
The rest of the article goes on to highlight the suspicious aspects of the whole case, but the reason for it all is speculative. The most suspicious thing is how it went sour and how they were freed from orders from very high up - yet nobody can figure out what was going on.
Rember Bosnia, Croatia, Kosovo and the '99 bombing? That's a lot of experience gathered in ways more useful than a regular soldier would have. Those wars were full of improvisation, asymetric warfare, lack of logistics and what not. Count in members of paramilitary and covert government agencies, people leaving the country to make a living from crime during the '90s, and a mentality that you don't have too much to lose, and you've got a nice pool of people you can hire for some funky business. Besides, those Serbs are in general good with English, look westerly (Caucasian, not raising suspicion), not overly hindered by religion, cheap...
Don't get me wrong, I'm a Serb, but this isn't anything new.
Like this one?
Also interesting for American citizens living and working overseas: if you work overseas, even for a completely foreign entity with zero US operations, you are expected to pay Uncle Sam taxes on that income. Only Liberia and the US engage in this shenanigans. It makes it hard to get ahead if you want to work overseas for awhile.
I once worked with an American guy who served 5 years in the French Foreign Legion. This poor guy played hell when he returned to the US after an almost 5.5 year absence. The Legion gave him a new name during his service and French citizenship upon completion of his tour, and when he returned to the US, he said they treated him like a pariah. The IRS audited him, yet did not assess him any levies. It was a nightmare for him that took over 6 months to sort out--with help from a tax attorney.
We live in NL and definitely don't get/need any benefits from the US.
"Because I don't want to pay US taxes" is one of the few reasons your application to renounce your citizenship can be denied.
You would need to lie on a federal form, which for some people is not a "small fee".
It’s a money-grab, pure and simple.