
If you kept two sets of books showing how much money you were making and a second set tinted for the IRS…you could behind bars. “Enjoying” jail compliments of the government.
However that is the standard procedure for corporate America. Strange however the US law requires corporations maintain one set of books for the stock holders and another for the IRS!! As a result many companies inform the investors they incur millions in income taxes, while the financial records supplied to the IRS show they owe nothing and in many cases due a “refund”.
Corporations “cook” the books. by using tax shelters, offsetting income with losses from years past, etc etc. that makes them resemble they are broke, indebted, at the same time they are money machines to investors. The New York Times revealed that GIANT GE not only avoided income taxes but is taking a refund “benefit” of 3 billion…THAT IS BILLION. “This amazing procedure is due to the extraordinary success on an aggressive strategy that mixes fierce lobbying for tax breaks and innovative accounting that enables GE to concentrate its profits offshore.”
GE has lots of “relatives” doing the same thanks to their lobbying Congress and lots of legal “fancy” bookkeeping.
GOOGLE Pre tax profit (2010) $10.8 BILLION
To avoid paying US tax…Google reports income in overseas tax havens and then reports its costs in the USA. (according to MSNBC) They then patent all their products in other countries, licenses its technology from its overseas subsidiaries back to itself and then writes off the costs of the license. Google CEO Eric Schmidt, a member of the ONE PER CENT CLUB has a net worth of 6.3 BILLION (Forbes)
NEWS CORP FOX NEWS - Pre tax profit 3.3 BILLION
The US Government Accounting Office reported that News Corp. had the most subsidiaries in OFFSHORE tax-havens….in 2008 was 150 around the world. FOX NEWS CEO Rupert Murdoch ranked 53rd ( Forbes) of highest paid CEOs..he is 117th richest person in world….ONE PERCENT CLUB!!!
BOEING Pre Tax profit 4.5 BILLION
Boing has avoided paying US taxes for the past three years thanks to a host of their foreign subsidiaries, tax havens. This is that same BOEING that is awared numerous costly government and Pentagon favored contracts like the F-15 fighter and fuel tanker, helping to keep the US Military Funding Machine larger than all other countries in the world combined. CEO W James McNerney (Forbes) is the 101 highest paid CEO – making $58 MILLION in the last 5 years….certainly a member of the ONE PERCENT CLUB
PFIZER Pre tax profit 9.4 BILLION
To avoid paying US taxes Pfizer uses a process called “transfer pricing” to record “phantom” “fake” profits in low-tax countries based on sales in other countries!!! The CEO is new and no news of Ian Read’s membership ranking in the ONE PERCENT CLUB.
ORACLE Pre tax profit 8.2 BILLION
Oracle avoids paying US taxes through “transfer pricing”. This is the same company the then Bush Attorney General Ashcroft sued to block an acquisition on anti-trust grounds. And now, Ashcroft’s lobbying shop in Washington enjoys ORACLE as his biggest client!!!! AMAZING – CEO Lawrence Ellison (Forbes) ranked 6th richest person in the world with a 28 TWENTY EIGHT BILLION DOLLAR fortune…….ONE PERCENT CLUB MEMBER …for sure!
ALTRIA or PHILIP MORRIS Pre tax profit 5.7 BILLION
Altria avoids paying taxes (MSNBC analysis) …between 2001 and 2003, the cigarette maker took advantage of 3.3 BILLION in tax breaks…which managed to cut its taxes by one third…..BUSH TAX CUTS!! Not to be forgotten, Philip Morris, came in second for dollars lavished in congress on lobbying from 1996 to 2004, showing the politicians with over 100 ONE HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS! CEO Michael Szymanczyk, is ranked 176 (Forbes) earing 6.35 million in 2010 and member of the ONE PERCENT CLUB.
IBM Pre tax profit 19.7 BILLION
IBM avoids paying US taxes by a host of tax breaks from the Bush administration. Over three years from 2001, IBM was allowed to slash its taxes by 95%…THAT’S NINETY FIVE PERCENT!!! How do the 99% get same “break”? CEO Sam Palmisano who also is on Exxon Mobile board, ranked 21st (Forbes) list at over $25 MILLION, ONE PERCENT CLUB MEMBER.
TIME WARNER Pre Tax Profits 3.9 BILLION
Avoids paying US taxes (according to MSNBC) through some “swift” accounting, using its merger with AOL in 2000 to leave it with almost no tax to pay – between 2001 and 2004 TIME WARNER claimed tax breaks that lowered its taxes by 121% ONE HUNDRED TWENTY ONE PERCENT. CEO Jeffrey Bewkes was paid $48 MILLION over the past 5 years making him 56th on Forbes list and a sure MEMBER OF THE ONE PERCENT CLUB.
MORGAN STANLEY Pre Tax profit 6.2 BILLION
Morgan Stanley avoids paying US taxes by taking full advantage of offshore tax havens…in 2004 (Bush) under a law repatriated much of their money for a super super low tax rate of just over 5%. REMEMBER THE GOVERNMENT TAX PAYER’S HAND OUT? This is the same MORGAN STANLEY who was a STAR PLAYER in the CRASHING of the global economy… a further note they are the largest servicer for FOOD STAMPS in the US..MS is paid per customer which means when the number of food stamps users go up, so do JP Morgan profits!!!! CEO James Borman took home 5.7 MILLION – making him a MEMBER OF THE ONE PERCENT CLUB – and not a user of his company’s rewarding FOOD STAMP service.
MICROSOFT Pre tax profits 25 BILLION
Microsoft is a king at shifting income through numerous foreign countries…which allows it to limit domestic income which is subject to taxes. To add to Microsoft luck, Representative Ross Hunter (17 year manager at Microsoft before congress) pushed through two gifts for his “former” employer….a $100 million annual tax cut and an estimated 1.25 BILLION amnesty in a previous Microsoft “tax dodge”. CEO Steve Ballmer enjoys a fortune of $14.5 BILLION making him the 33rd richest person in the world (Forbes), and a SENIOR MEMBER OF THE ONE PERCENT CLUB
REMEMBER EVERY DOLLAR THESE MONSTER HERCULEAN CORPORATIONS AVOID PAYING IN TAXES IS JUST ONE MORE BUCK THAT WILL COME OUT OF THE POCKETS AND PAYCHECKS OF THE WORKING…….THAT’S THE 99%!!!!!! WE THE PEOPLE.(99%)………OR IS IT NOW…….. WE THE CORPORATIONS (1%)?