What does the newly-leaked information printed about some world leaders and their private monitary accounts mean to the rest of the world?

Interested to see if any Americans are on there, which I am expecting, mostly due to the fact the American media is not even mentioning this anywhere. Expect a big distraction this week in the media.

Who cares?

I suppose this will be in the news for a couple of days, but in the end, all it does is confirmed something that has been known (or at least suspected) for years and years. Now we have documents – big deal.

Politicians are corrupt. Always have been, always will be. This ‘revelation’ doesn’t change that, Russians are hypocrites. Always have been, always will be…. and so on.

If you compare these news stories to the Snowden ones… no comparison. Snowden’s were meaningful and earth shaking. This is a big “meh”.

What this means is best summed up by a well recognized quote: “Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

Not exactly a newsflash. This has been the case for centuries.

We’ll in Australia it will mean the tax office will be looking closely at the Australian individuals and companies that have been manipulating the tax rules to avoid paying tax. If they’re found to have under-reported earnings, in ways that contravene legislation, they’ll hopefully cop a fucking huge tax bill.

The news just said 100 Aussies are on the list.

Edit – How did that apostrophe get in that Well above? And apparently 800 Australians are named.

There’s fallout already:
Panama Papers: Iceland’s PM may dissolve parliament, call elections

Don’t expect Putin and his contemporaries to be too ruffled. Who is there to call them on it?

Panama Papers probes opened, China limits access to news on leaks

“France, Australia, New Zealand, Austria, Sweden and the Netherlands are among nations that have commenced investigations, and some other countries, including the United States, said they were looking into the matter.”

Iceland’s Prime Minister Steps Down Amid Panama Papers Scandal?

Personally, that makes me want to move from the US to Iceland.

This is all so far-reaching.
I don’t think the surface has been scratched yet.
The Titanic’s Iceberg for some.
Most think- glad the US isn’t involved.
The question should be: why not?
So.
Why not?

What they were doing is not illegal, @msh. There are plenty of US companies in the US that provide the same service. It only makes sense the the majority of American money is handled by American sources using American banking regulations.

It was my understanding that the Panamanian company uses British banking regulations.

I too think that whether it’s a problem depends on the tax regulations in the country the person is from. I mentioned there are over 800 Australian’s involved. If they have followed the tax regulations in Australia, then it’s none of my business where they have their money. If they’re avoiding paying tax, it is my business because they aren’t paying their fair share.

If they’re a politician and they’re hiding money in offshore accounts and aren’t following the tax regulations, then they should follow the Icelandic Prime Minister’s lead and resign. If they are following the laws and regulations in their country, then it’s not our business.

How do you know nobody in the US is involved? Perhaps they are? I have no idea.

If you think Panama is bad, wait until you hear about Delaware.

Ah my dears- I found this article a bit…yet not….surprising.
See if it gives you a moment of “huhn”, as it did me.
Enjoy.

Why few Americans in Panama Papers? Lawyer doesn’t want them – The Washington Post – www.washingtonpost.com https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/why-few-americans-in-panama-papers-lawyer-doesnt-want-them/2016/04/08/2398ea76-fd3f-11e5-813a-90ab563f0dde_story.html