Summer is moving in slowly. We have finally had some really hot days, but nothing unbearable. It cools down at night. There are supposed to be storms moving through, but they seem to skirt around the Paris area. We finally turned on the automatic sprinkling system. I know my friends in California must be outraged, but even if we, here, have not had a recent rain, we're nowhere near drought conditions; we can water our vegetable gardens. We've already had two zucchini from the garden and there are a few tomatoes already getting fatter. We've also eaten two artichokes. The birds did not get to the cherries before I did and I managed to make a clafoutis. With a few more cherries and the rhubarb I made a dessert I will not repeat. The raspberries are starting to come, but they seem smaller this year and there are not as many as there usually are. There are plums on the red plum tree and I think I saw a solitary plum on the green-gage plum tree.
Yesterday was our street's 25th street party. It was hot and sunny, which is so rare for the event it was remarked. The mayor came, as usual, as did a couple of council members, who are also regular visitors. When we started this, back in 1990, it was quite a novelty in France, unheard of, really. Since then, France has invented the national "fête des voisins", but our street still chooses its own date and ignores the mandated festivities. What surprised me, though, yesterday, was that most of the parents of the kids having fun were not there. Not only they were not helping P, who was organizing games and such, but they were not there to supervise their kids or just to converse. The "old" neighbors did show up. We don't have any kids any more, but we just like to hang out and catch up with some neighbors we don't see all the time. I must remember to alert my kids to the date for next year, so the grandkids can join in the fun. It was too late in the afternoon when I thought of it yesterday.
I was going to take S to the library for the story hour on Wednesday morning, but he's been reluctant to go to the American Library for several weeks and I didn't want to make a big thing of it, so we didn't go. He wanted to see the TGVs at the Gare Montparnasse, so we got on the bus and went to the train station. We saw several TGV arrivals and then there was a long break with no arrivals or departures, so we had time to walk along the platform all the way to the front of the train before the engineer even got there. He arrived; we waved; he waved. S was very impatient for the train to leave, and it was hard to explain that the engineer couldn't just start off because he was ready. Finally, the 2-minute-to-departure beeper started its horrible beeping and the whistle-blower blew her whistle to signal the doors closing. The engineer opened his side window and waved good-bye as the train slowly started. S was all smiles and waved back. Then, we walked all the way back and went to see other TGVs go off - and come in -- for almost 2 hours! (No pictures to share, nor full names -- if you know the family, you know who S is. S, 3, is old enough for the story hour and C, almost 1, has started going to the lapsit.)
A few weeks ago, we went to the Jean-Paul Gaultier exhibit at the Grand Palais with Anne. Very interesting, starting with the teddy bear he dressed up when still a small child. We had been to the Velasquez exhibit a few weeks before and this was definitely more refreshing! Velasquez was interesting, from a historical standpoint, but after a while the religious theme became a bit boring to me and then the royal family I found even more boring. Always the same poses, the same faces. With Gaultier, he goes through phases, but its never boring -- almost never anything a regular person would wear, either. I still want to get to the Tudor exhibit. And Bonnard. And Lascaux at the Porte de Versailles, which is not the same reproduction one sees at the Lascaux site; it's a different area of the original site no one is allowed to visit any more. Paul did visit the original before it was closed to the public. We've visited other sites: Cougnac and Pech'Merle and we're going back to Pech'Merle this summer with friends.
I've got the August activites as organized as I'm going to get them: hotel reservations for the traveling part, the reservation at Pech'Merle, the tourist office info for Cordes and Toulouse, maps. For the not-so-mini high school reunion: the dinner cruise on the Seine reservation; bus tour reservation; walking tours reserved; and the date on my calendar to get the dinner reservation. And I have an idea for A's 6th birthday.
Sunday, June 14, 2015
Sunday, May 24, 2015
Memorial Day weekend, 2015
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| End of ceremony -- all the flowers laid |
AARO did not present a flower piece this year; we made a contribution to the association for the restoration of the monument. Mr. Blumrosen, president of the association announced that this restoration will be completed by April, 2016, in time for the 100th anniversary of the Escadrille. Not only will the monument be cleaned up on the outside, the crypt will also have some work done on it. The Memorial is not just the monument; it's the whole park, and there will be other work done on the site. (For more on the history of the Escadrille, see wikipedia, in English, or in French.)
It's always a moving ceremony. Some parts are always the same: the military bands playing behind the monument where you can't see them; the same, excellent, master of ceremony; the flyover, which we could see this year since it wasn't raining and the cloud cover was high; many of the same speakers, including the mayor of Marnes-la-Coquette, who, each year, delivers a different speech in French and in English, and each one is pertinent and moving; the generals; the person from the US embassy, the Deputy Chief of Mission this year and who spoke in French. As much as it is always the same, it is not boring, at all; it's moving. This year, with current events in Africa and the Middle East being what they are, I found the speeches even more moving; the speakers brought together the motivations and actions of the volunteers of 1916 and those of our military forces today.
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| We could see the flyover this year -- 4 Mirage 2000N |
Sunday, May 3, 2015
Lost Potential
I started this post almost a month ago and then got sidetracked because I reread Phyllis's book then traveled a bit.
Many, many years ago, back in 1961, Phyllis Michaux and a group of friends founded the A.A.W.E. At the time, US citizenship was hard to come by. By marrying a foreigner and living in the foreign country, and subsequently giving birth abroad, meant that the children might not be American if they, themselves, did not live for a prescribed time in the US. These American Wives of Europeans (The group is much less restrictive in reality -- unmarried women, men with non-European partners are welcome. It is Paris-based.) were unhappy about that. They would lose their citizenship if they took the foreign nationality, and they did not wish to do that, and they were raising their children to love the American side of their families. They worked hard to change the citizenship rules.
Phyllis wrote a book, The Unknown Ambassadors, in which she discussed all the ways we contribute to the United States. At the time, of course, Americans were a rare curiosity. Even in the 70s, when I arrived, we were called upon to explain what the US was doing in Vietnam. Why were we bombing Cambodia? What was this shooting at Kent State? What kind of system is this electoral college? It didn't matter what our own political leanings were, we explained. We still do. What was the fuss over Watergate? What was the fuss over Clinton's sex life? What's the fuss over health care? We are, whether we want to be, or not, a window to our country.
In the 60s, many US companies sent executives abroad to expand their businesses. Those expats brought American goods to foreign countries. So did we permanent Americans abroad. Our little celebrations of Halloween, Thanksgiving, even the way we celebrated childrens' birthday parties seeped into the local culture, as did our breakfast cereals, cookies, and other home delicacies. On return trips, we no longer pack our suitcases full of things we can't find, because we can find almost everything, now. Ordering a turkey for the end of November is no longer a jaw-dropping request. There are chocolate Easter bunnies with the chocolate fish and chickens. Is this a good or bad thing? I'm not going to judge. All I know is that by doing some things the way I grew up influenced my neighbors who liked what they saw and started doing it, too.
In the 70s, a washing machine that could also dry came onto the market, here, in France. It was expensive, but we bought one, because dryers simply were not available. Later, in the early 80s, we got a separate washer and dryer. My neighbor couldn't see the need for a dryer. (Well, she did have a yard, and I was in an apartment and had four young children!) After her first trip abroad, to Canada, she came home and ordered a dryer. Of course, by this time, the US was no longer exporting appliances, so it was just the concept we were importing.
Back to the children. Back in the 1960s and 70s, when Phyllis and some others created AARO the battles were to have our children become American citizens and to be able to vote: "Totally ignorant of the actual workings of the legislative process, we really believed that if Congress could be made to recognize that these young people would grow up able to work and live with ease on both sides of the Atlantic, changes in the law would inevitably follow. Our government would recognize their potential value and, ceasing to reject them, welcome them as valuable elements of the postwar generation." (Phyllis Michaux, The Unknown Ambassadors: A Saga of Citizenship, Aletheia Publications, 1996)
We learned how Congress works. Today, a child born to an American parent abroad is an American. In order to get the child a US passport, one has to report the birth of a US citizen abroad at the embassy or consulate, but even if one neglects to register the birth, never gets the passport, never travels to the US, the child is still an American. Most of us, though, were quite happy to go to the Embassy and get that first passport. We were happy and even anxious to speak English and feeling very guilty if we didn't. We took the kids to AAWE parties for American-style festivities. Many of the children went on to college in the US. They took their other language and other culture to the States, thus enriching life, there. Some fell in love and or got a job in the US; they stayed on. One could almost see a cycle of coming and going.
What is happening, now? The United States has a most unique tax system: citizenship-based taxation. That means that even if you don't live there, you must file your US tax return every year and include your worldwide income and report all foreign (non-US) accounts to the Treasury. Many non-US residents misunderstood or didn't even know about it. Some in the US conjectured that the US was missing out on a lot of income tax from overseas income, so they came up with FATCA, the foreign account tax compliance act, even though most who do file from abroad owe no tax. This requires financial institutions to ferret out all their US customers and report on them. The banks are doing it and either shutting the accounts held by the US customers or requesting them to fill out forms and such. This has alerted many who were unaware of their obligations that they do have such obligations. The penalties for non-filing are very severe, whether tax is due, or not. For many, the solution is to not be an American, to renounce. Renunciation comes at a price (a $2300 renunciation fee plus the cost of doing several years back tax returns and account reports if one hadn't done them plus a lawyer or qualified C.P.A. to help out). The ones most likely to renounce are the American children born abroad and the accidental Americans, the ones born in the US to foreign parents and who never really lived in the US. The US only sees their potential as taxpayers, none other, so the country will lose them as potential ambassadors. In addition, the country will lose those of us who followed our hearts and chose to live and work almost our entire adult lives elsewhere.
Many, many years ago, back in 1961, Phyllis Michaux and a group of friends founded the A.A.W.E. At the time, US citizenship was hard to come by. By marrying a foreigner and living in the foreign country, and subsequently giving birth abroad, meant that the children might not be American if they, themselves, did not live for a prescribed time in the US. These American Wives of Europeans (The group is much less restrictive in reality -- unmarried women, men with non-European partners are welcome. It is Paris-based.) were unhappy about that. They would lose their citizenship if they took the foreign nationality, and they did not wish to do that, and they were raising their children to love the American side of their families. They worked hard to change the citizenship rules.
Phyllis wrote a book, The Unknown Ambassadors, in which she discussed all the ways we contribute to the United States. At the time, of course, Americans were a rare curiosity. Even in the 70s, when I arrived, we were called upon to explain what the US was doing in Vietnam. Why were we bombing Cambodia? What was this shooting at Kent State? What kind of system is this electoral college? It didn't matter what our own political leanings were, we explained. We still do. What was the fuss over Watergate? What was the fuss over Clinton's sex life? What's the fuss over health care? We are, whether we want to be, or not, a window to our country.
In the 60s, many US companies sent executives abroad to expand their businesses. Those expats brought American goods to foreign countries. So did we permanent Americans abroad. Our little celebrations of Halloween, Thanksgiving, even the way we celebrated childrens' birthday parties seeped into the local culture, as did our breakfast cereals, cookies, and other home delicacies. On return trips, we no longer pack our suitcases full of things we can't find, because we can find almost everything, now. Ordering a turkey for the end of November is no longer a jaw-dropping request. There are chocolate Easter bunnies with the chocolate fish and chickens. Is this a good or bad thing? I'm not going to judge. All I know is that by doing some things the way I grew up influenced my neighbors who liked what they saw and started doing it, too.
In the 70s, a washing machine that could also dry came onto the market, here, in France. It was expensive, but we bought one, because dryers simply were not available. Later, in the early 80s, we got a separate washer and dryer. My neighbor couldn't see the need for a dryer. (Well, she did have a yard, and I was in an apartment and had four young children!) After her first trip abroad, to Canada, she came home and ordered a dryer. Of course, by this time, the US was no longer exporting appliances, so it was just the concept we were importing.
Back to the children. Back in the 1960s and 70s, when Phyllis and some others created AARO the battles were to have our children become American citizens and to be able to vote: "Totally ignorant of the actual workings of the legislative process, we really believed that if Congress could be made to recognize that these young people would grow up able to work and live with ease on both sides of the Atlantic, changes in the law would inevitably follow. Our government would recognize their potential value and, ceasing to reject them, welcome them as valuable elements of the postwar generation." (Phyllis Michaux, The Unknown Ambassadors: A Saga of Citizenship, Aletheia Publications, 1996)
We learned how Congress works. Today, a child born to an American parent abroad is an American. In order to get the child a US passport, one has to report the birth of a US citizen abroad at the embassy or consulate, but even if one neglects to register the birth, never gets the passport, never travels to the US, the child is still an American. Most of us, though, were quite happy to go to the Embassy and get that first passport. We were happy and even anxious to speak English and feeling very guilty if we didn't. We took the kids to AAWE parties for American-style festivities. Many of the children went on to college in the US. They took their other language and other culture to the States, thus enriching life, there. Some fell in love and or got a job in the US; they stayed on. One could almost see a cycle of coming and going.
What is happening, now? The United States has a most unique tax system: citizenship-based taxation. That means that even if you don't live there, you must file your US tax return every year and include your worldwide income and report all foreign (non-US) accounts to the Treasury. Many non-US residents misunderstood or didn't even know about it. Some in the US conjectured that the US was missing out on a lot of income tax from overseas income, so they came up with FATCA, the foreign account tax compliance act, even though most who do file from abroad owe no tax. This requires financial institutions to ferret out all their US customers and report on them. The banks are doing it and either shutting the accounts held by the US customers or requesting them to fill out forms and such. This has alerted many who were unaware of their obligations that they do have such obligations. The penalties for non-filing are very severe, whether tax is due, or not. For many, the solution is to not be an American, to renounce. Renunciation comes at a price (a $2300 renunciation fee plus the cost of doing several years back tax returns and account reports if one hadn't done them plus a lawyer or qualified C.P.A. to help out). The ones most likely to renounce are the American children born abroad and the accidental Americans, the ones born in the US to foreign parents and who never really lived in the US. The US only sees their potential as taxpayers, none other, so the country will lose them as potential ambassadors. In addition, the country will lose those of us who followed our hearts and chose to live and work almost our entire adult lives elsewhere.
Sunday, March 8, 2015
OAW - Some personal thoughts
Here we are, the week has flown. It's really time to write an update. Aside from seeing our own Representatives' and Senators' offices, most of our meetings were concentrated on the tax and banking staffers of the tax, finance, and banking committees. We have also seen the National Taxpayer Advocate's staff, the Joint Committee on Taxation, Treasury, and two of the Senate Banking Committee staff.
Will there be comprehensive tax reform soon? Unlikely. Just as residence-based-taxation is a concept that certain offices find attractive, the consensus is that its time has not come, yet. It seems ingrained in American exceptional-ism.
Will FATCA be repealed? Well, Senator Rand Paul introduced a bill on Wednesday that would repeal at least some sections of FATCA, the sections that are an invasion of privacy. John and Lucy met with Rand Paul's FATCA expert on Tuesday and were very impressed by him. In any event, as John says, the train has left the station. Many other countries have jumped on the FATCA bandwagon, so whether you call it FATCA or something else, automatic exchange of financial information will happen worldwide and, according to the people at Treasury, the discrimination will stop.
Could FATCA be tweaked to allow the “same country exclusion”? For the first time since we started talking about this idea (this is my third year and it was on the agenda before I started coming to DC on these OAW campaigns), it has been suggested that our local banks might not agree with it as it puts a burden on them to certify our “bona fide residence”. We need to find out.
Can the threshold of the FBAR be raised? Who would be responsible for that? Treasury? Congress? It's a hot potato.
We are visiting the right offices. They appreciate our positions. They want us not to give up.
And what about bank discrimination on the part of US banks and brokerages against Americans with foreign addresses. Is it FATCA related? Does it have something to do with Dodd-Frank? The S.E.C.? We have never gotten an answer from the banks and brokerages. Can the Congressional offices get answers?
We do sometimes manage to slip in some of our other issues: raising the threshold of exclusion for social security income, for example, but this year is really dedicated to the tax and banking concerns.
What's next for AARO? We need to collect documentation that FATCA is the cause of discrimination against Americans with foreign accounts and we need to get documentation explaining the reason for US financial institutions discriminating against Americans with foreign addresses. We have the documents that show the discrimination, but very few say why. Send documents to banking@aaro.org.
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