Bank Of America -- Thought To Be Wikileaks Next Target -- Suddenly Tries To Block Payments To Wikileaks
from the barn-door-back-there dept
This is pretty amusing. Back at the end of November, Wikileaks had indicated that its next leak involved a very large US bank that was apparently doing some bad things -- and many people zeroed in on Bank of America as the target. And then, just a few weeks later, Bank of America announces (late on a Friday night, in an attempt to hide it) that it will join Paypal, Visa and Mastercard in trying to block all payments to Wikileaks.Of course, I don't quite see how Bank of America does that. Is Bank of America really saying that it can block you from spending your money the way you want to? About the only thing it can really do is stop direct wire transfers, but I'd imagine not too many people are doing that. As for systems like Flattr, which is currently a way of supporting Wikileaks financially, I really don't see how any of the above firms can block people from using Flattr to support Wikileaks. All anyone knows with Flatter is that they're supporting Flattr, so you can use Visa or MasterCard via Paypal to pay Flattr, and then Flattr Wikileaks, and those financial firms won't know the difference.
It seems like all these financial firms are really doing is highlighting how they, too, don't quite understand the nature of a distributed internet, and a distributed payment infrastructure -- even if they think they power it.
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Filed Under: blocks, payment, wikileaks
Companies: bank of america, wikileaks
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They are pulling a Streisand!
Just look at this site, if BoA had not decided to block the direct transfers to Wikileaks (and I too don't see how they can do that), there wouldn't be the headline "Bank Of America -- Thought to be Wikileaks' Next Target..."
If these financial institutions were smarter (hah!), they'd have continued financial transactions with Wikileaks. And the story of the upcoming banking leaks wouldn't have had this much pre-release press.
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Re: They are pulling a Streisand!
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Re: Re: They are pulling a Streisand!
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Re: They are pulling a Streisand!
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Re: How they can do that
This is the reason individuals can't be paid by credit card, and need to use something like PayPal.
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Re: Re: How they can do that
Going offshore for credit card processing would probably work because most cards these days are cleared for international transactions.
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Re: They are pulling a Streisand!
Payment processors all have agreements that a business has to sign before they will process payments for them. So unless you agree to their rules of business, you don't get to play. Pr0n sites deal with it all the time. Same for online gambling.
There are plenty of restrictions on what you can do with your money. Sure you could pay them in cash, but that doesn't work in the internet world obviously. Financial institutions aren't going to put themselves on the line for sending money to [insert bad actor here], even if at the direction of me with my money.
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BoA Tax Shelters?
Also, wouldn't it be one of those ironically hilarious things if Bank of America's 59 subsidiaries in the Cayman Islands turned out to be tax shelters to prevent paying American Income Tax?
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Re: BoA Tax Shelters?
Though, it's pretty clear they've been knowingly aiding the Mexican Mafia in laundering drug money and paying for guns. Most people who aren't in the Mexican Mafia would probly find that to be a bad thing...
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Re: Re: BoA Tax Shelters?
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Re: Re: Re: BoA Tax Shelters?
"Following Bailout Money To Tax Havens" CBS Evening News, Feb 23, 2009
“Senate probes increase in offshore accounts,” by Martin Vaughan, Wall Street Journal, July 24, 2008, Page A12
Sheryl Adkins' CBS News podcast- CBS Weekend, Feb 27,2009
“Islands are tax haven for contractor,” by Richard Lardner, Associated Press, Dayton Daily News, May 8, 2008, Page A15
I'm just saying that if this is the new norm, the American banking system is doing a massive disservice by not offering these types of accounts to the general public. The first to bring them to the public will have a big leg up against their competitors.
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Re: Re: BoA Tax Shelters?
Indeed it is very popular. My only question is how can the common man open such an account at the corner Bank of America Branch, because all Americans should be banking with The Bank of America.
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Good
Also, their involvement in making it easy for ILLEGALs to send CASH to Mexico by way of their "SafeSend" program is another WONDERFUL program against the US.
This bank is not looking out for the best interests of the U.S.A., and not the shareholders either (just ask anyone who owns stock in it right now), but instead is only looking out for the wallets of the CEO and its upper buffoon management.
Screw BofA and I hope that company, as well as many other companies like it, collapses. There are plenty of other banks to sweep up that dust. It wouldnt be missed one bit.
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Re: Good
The simple fact of the matter is, if somebody in another country can do the same job for a better price than you're doing it (caveats include w/o destroying the planet with pollution, and w/o killing their workers w/ unsafe conditions. Wages, not so much), then you should be moving to that country and looking for work or finding another industry to work in.
Quit whining about how you're supposed to be entitled and follow the advice of Benjamin Franklin: "God helps those who help themselves."
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Re: Re: Re: Good
; P
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
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Re: Re: Re: Good
capitalism = America...
not taking a capitalist approach would be un-American...
Not that I agree with it, but it isn't capitalist to create jobs for people who's skill sets are unneeded too. So besides a few good commie good Samaritans trying to help out you are out in the cold alone. At least you will be getting health care soon... probably not soon enough.
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Re: Re: Re: Good
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
http://www.madeinusa.com has hundred of links to US-made goods - granted, some are dead links, but the vast majority still work.
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Re: Re: Re: Good
We need new rules that allow newer businesses to spring up to replace those that are moving.
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
We need to look at the competitive advantages that we have here and form businesses around those.
I don't see any reason to make people pay $11.00 for a good produced here that could be produced in China and transported here for a cost of $1.00.
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
We won't really have a true advantage until we have better laws that either repeal this view of large corporations dominating the landscape or make it so that more people can innovative in various fields.
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
1. Make non-compete agreements unenforceable. Or maybe even illegal.
2. Make "corporation owns your ideas" agreements illegal and/or unenforceable. You do it on your own time, it's yours.
Later, we should ditch long-term copyrights, maybe get rid of "copyright" all together. Copyright in and of itself may have some good effects, but it has lots of negative effects that are now holding us all back.
Repeal Dole-Bayh act, so that publicly funded research is available to the public to use.
Make it harder to get a patent. Make it easier to invalidate a patent.
Start to make "classified" work unclassified. Way too much gets squirreled away in SCIFs and so forth.
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Re: Re: Re: Good
Obviously the only reason that a company should be allowed to operate in the US is to employ US citizens. And if those companies who are in business to employ people are struggling, then clearly the US government must subsidize them!
-CF
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
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Re: Re: Re: Good
i think i'll be a joiner or a machinist next...
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Re: Re: Re: Good
and i still think that you cant just come up with blanket laws and rules to say 'no outsourcing allowed' as it really does hammer the economy as well.
if you dont like the fact that a company is outsourcing their labor, dont use them. its pretty simple that if people actually figured out how to make a statement with their wallets rather than crying to the gub'ment to just fix it with their magic wands, the landscape along various industries would be vastly different.
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
That is all it takes.
Living in Canada, I'll pay a few extra bucks to buy something "Made in Canada" whenever I can. I would expect the same from other individuals in their respective Countries.
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Re: Re: Good
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Re: Re: Re: Good
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
Bwahahahah. Credibility = shot.
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
Probably been told to eff themselves one too many times.
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
You do know that IP addresses don't correspond to individuals, don't you? That's the problem with those little address images: they make some people think that they mean more than they do. Lisa and Jason may simply be using the same proxy service or something.
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
Possibly. .....possibly...... .....maybe....
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BoA?
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
With the same email addresses as well? :) Seems unlikely...
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Good
And just where are their email addresses displayed?
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Re: Re: Good
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Re: Re: Good
That assumes that the other country will let foreigners just show up and start working there.
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Lobo Scrooge
Unfortunately your caveats are nowhere near being observed in the real world - untrammeled capitalism was tried in the UK 200 years ago. The result was so appalling that even the capitalists backed away from it after a while.
What you are really saying amounts to:
"``If they would rather die,'' said Scrooge, ``they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population. " (about 2- 3 minutes into the video.)
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Hmmm...
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Re: Hmmm...
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Re: Hmmm...
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Re: Re: Hmmm...
are you wondering if ANON-4Chan is targeting them?
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Re: Re: Re: Hmmm...
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Hmmm...
What bragging about how secure your system is? It would be seen as a challenge by some people.
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Hmmm...
Exactly. It's like Ubisoft and their DRM.
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Re:
So Banco De America has a total of 217 post-merger with Morgan Stanley.
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So the Morgan/Citi tie up created a presence of 248 subsidiaries in the Cayman Islands.
Maybe the rumored leaks will be about Citibank.
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Re: Re: Re: Re:
I'm sure there's some overlap.
The kicker is that if it turns out that it *isn't* BoA, there's going to be some scrutinizing going on.
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Last week it was Mastercard and Paypal that were going to get turned out, and now it is "thought to be" Bank of America. It is amusing to see the Wikileaks defender trying as hard as they can to backfill the story.
The real story? Wau Holland Foundation, the foundation that has been taking money for Wikileaks, is under investigation in Germany. They are perhaps not as tax exempt as they claim. Wikileaks has no direct income sources, rather, they are all filtered through third parties. The money that goes to Wikileaks appears to disappear, with no actual track. Ask yourself: where is Wikileaks actually incorporated or the company formed? Do they report? If they do exist as a company and report, why are they filtering money through third parties instead of taking it directly?
The money to help Manning fight in court? That is nowhere to be found. Even as donations are stronger than ever, there seems to be no money going anywhere important.
You want a real leak? Try to figure out where the Wikileaks money is going. That would be a real story!
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Re:
Uh, Wikileaks pledged $50k to help Manning in court. Problem is, he hasn't gone to court/tribunal yet. Where exactly do you want the money to be prior to the fact?
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Re: Re:
Of that, 50k was supposed to come from wikileaks, but for varied reasons, never got there.
As it is, it's nowhere near as sinister as AC makes it out to be, but in this case, you're actually wrong, DH.
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/12/manning-defens/
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Re: Re: Re:
http://cryptome.org/0003/wikileaks-renege.htm
So yeah, wikileaks did actually promise to pay that 50k.
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Re: Re: Re:
Interesting, though as you said, not sinister....
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Re: Re: Re: Re:
Assange's continued refusal to discuss the rape case in the media (he ran away in the middle of another internet this week, refering to the reporter as a "tabloid schmuck") makes you wonder what the hell is going on. I am thinking that in the end, they authorities are going to find that Assange has been living large off the Wikileaks "donations", and avoiding tax by moving country to country.
It's getting out of control pretty fast.
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I suspect that perhaps he called someone a tabloid schmuck because they were, in fact, a tabloid schmuck.
I mean heck, being charged with rape because the condom broke? I'll wait till the trial to make any judgements, but everything I've heard thus far indicates the charge is bullshit.
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Yes, the reporter was being a tabloid schmuck.
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And I'll agree with you & madjo. Loaded question, tabloid schmuck.
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the interviewer asked him such a loaded question, any answer would have been wrong.
it was close to asking: "when did you stop beating your wife?"
besides, the case is still under investigation, would be suicide to comment on it in the press.
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
His correct answer would be "that is before the courts, so I cannot comment". If he really want to be take seriously, he needs to grow some thicker skin.
But back to the main point: Do you think the headline on this TD article is honest? It seems that every time someone does something that is harmful to Wikileaks, suddenly the rumors are that they did it because they are "next to be outed". Isn't this getting slightly childish?
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Not answering a loaded question doesn't make you look like you have something to hide if the viewers have any ounce of critical thinking.
And also, how is the title misleading? BoA did block payments, that ARE thought to be the next target.
What has TD done but honest reporting?
What isn't wrong with a company blocking payment to one of its customers because it disagrees with free speech?
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...FOLLOW THE MONEY...
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
Many think that he stayed mostly classy there, and the journo did indeed seem tabloid schmuck. He had a valid question and if he didn't go too graphic he would have had an answer, or at least he wouldn't have had Assange walk away.
The journo just had to dig too deep.
And I think the headline on this article is okay... it's stating the current rumours. Might be a bit click-bait-ish, but nothing out of line with that. There are worse headlines on the web to be found.
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This isn't the first time he has done the same time, limited only by the wires keeping him place, otherwise he would have tossed all the toys out of his pram.
The classy answer is "I cannot comment, that is before the courts", and no matter how tabloidy the question, the answer is the same. A nice smile and a curt answer fixes the issue. Seriously, if he cannot handle what is a very simple situation, I have to wonder if the rumors about him are true (impossible to work with).
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"But such is the irresistible nature of truth, that all it asks, and all it wants is the liberty of appearing." ~ Thomas Paine
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May as well be me.
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Re:
There's a small propblem with that - the terrorists are In The House.
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Re:
I'am into that buisness and it's clearly nothing unusual.
As a matter of fact it happens all the time. just the normal, "Please send your report to us" government message. The medias just overreacting about a buisness as usual statement.
You don't loose your foundation status so easily.
If they have a clever team of lawyers. They can defend their foundations status for years, even if they do something wrong.
Wikileaks has strong supporters in the german government.
Social democratic party and green party supporting it. Even the strong left "social" party. So don't panic. There must happen quiete a lot more before things go ugly for Wikileaks in germany.
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How do morons like you get media time
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Re: How do morons like you get media time
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Re: How do morons like you get media time
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BoA Blocks
I don't think that they can block paper checks presented via the banking system for ANY reason other than NSF. BUT it's possible that they would DELAY their processing to the legal limits which I believe is 10 days or something like that.
Of course they would also be blocking direct Wire Transfers...
BUT BoA and many other banks are screwing a number of thier customers non stop, and noone seems to be doing anything about that. The banking industry in general has strayed away from century old accounting practices of posting transactions as they are received. Some banks post transactions as they are received UNLESS you are going to go negative, then they process largest to smallest to maximize the over draft fees. Then others just post largest to smallest every time in hopes of maximizing OD fees.
Anyone that does a large number of transactions daily can look at their statements and see what I am talking about BBVA Compass Bank does it all the time. There is no way that my transactions ALWAY get to the bank largest to smallest. So how is it that EVERY statement processes it that way?????
As for BoA, I banked with them in the 90's, and after they spend 3 months "investigating" a $2800 lost cash deposit and determined that they never got it even though I had their receipt, and they had me on film walking into the bank to make the deposit at the time of the deposit receipt, they could not produce film of me at the teller even though there was a camera directly pointing at the teller...
Needless to say after taking a $2800 loss along with the associated fees involved, I will NEVER bank BoA or any bank that they aquire in the future... No matter how many times I have to change banks.
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Re: BoA Blocks
i too have moved away and will never go back.
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Part of the plan?
This could be, the most masterfull use of the "Streisand effect", ever seen.... and the politicians, industry shills, and the BoA's of the world, are falling right into their trap..... muhahahahhaha
This is starting to sound like a bad pinky and the brain episode.....
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Re: Part of the plan?
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In the past, manufacturing was off shored and the argument was it would make companies more competitive and would create jobs elsewhere, that off shoring would create more jobs than it eliminated. Then back office positions were off shored. More and more positions were eliminated, new companies that sprout up implement lean hiring practices and off shore many positions themselves. By doing this, the creation of jobs never materalizes. Tax credits and bailouts continue (funded by the American people) but job creation doesn’t happen.
Henry Ford recognized that if American workers are not paid suitable wages, they can’t buy products. Consumer spending drives the US economy (responsible for 70%) so until the job situation in America improves our economy can’t recover.
As for the free market, capitalism and other issues, our government attempts to tilt the playing field in our favor, as does other nations. Is it fair that our companies pay for health insurance while in France health care is paid for by the Govt? Is it fair that while our companies are bound to pay for the clean up of rivers while in China, their two largest rivers will soon be considered “dead.” There is no level playing field, and the contract between companies and people is breaking.
Break a contract and expect what? Why should people that have no vested interest in companies support bail outs or tax breaks? With no vested interest, why should Americans support patents, copyright, trademark law?
Pull hope and a lot of bad things begin to happen. Don’t expect people to leave the country and move to places like Mumbai or other places with lower lifestyle levels, expect our cities to turn into places like that.
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Re:
WOW. Are you serious? You're expecting business to honor and stay true to "nonenforceable implied unwritten contracts"?
Why would you even admit to such an absurd thing?
-CF
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BOA
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Re: BOA
... and if you can get people to accept silver it's even better.
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They seemed largely unaware of the statement that came out over the weekend, and were quite perplexed by it considering it didn't match any information they've received in the last few weeks.
Not saying it's completely accurate or that they know what's going on, just what I found out from a quick phone interview.
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Re:
Corporations are held liable if they don't turn a profit. Held liable by their shareholders, which are often times those very same taxpayers.
And what does taxpaying have to do with anything? You seem to be making a case that just because someone here is an American Citizen and pays their taxes, these companies should somehow be loyal to them. Why?
As long as the company is making money: it. doesn't. care. I'm sure there are some CEO's out there that would LOVE to do their business according to their personal moral beliefs. But if those beliefs don't jive with 'making money', then they are overridden.
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Bank Of America...
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Bank bailouts and BoA shenanigans are the kinds of things that happen when government and business are allowed to collude together. And a company's only true legal obligation should be to its customers, not its shareholders - an obligation to treat them fairly and honestly, and to show good stewardship of the environment.
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It's too bad that more people won't act in kind and lay some serious financial hurt on these companies.
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Shunning large banks.
In my opinion Bank of America is one of the worst in the industry.
The banking industry pushes credit and hooks people much like drug dealers.
Everyone should get out of debt and shun credit for everything except major things like buying a house.
I was completely debt free by age 35 and have kept it that way.
Regarding BoA:
I did use a number of BoA credit cards (over 15 years) simply to consolidate transactions for each of my companies but switched to debit cards after BoA fleeced me. We pay invoices on the 1st and 15th in full each month. It was amazing how statements from numerous accounts were arriving 8-10 days after the supposed closing date out of a 20 day grace period.
It appears that BoA's return to profitability was based totally on unusual mail delays.
I stopped using BoA cards (formerly MBNA).
Ronald J. Riley,
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR at PIAUSA.org
Other Affiliations:
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 9 pm EST.
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stocks
OTHER BANKS LIKE = WFC , BANK OF PA. TD BANK , METRO BANK , AND SO MANY OTHER BANKS. THEY ARE ALL BEATING BAC ON THE NYSE STOCK EXCHANGE.
I CAN REMEMBER WHEN BAC SOLD FOR $18.00 DOLLARS A SHARE.
MR.G.
6-17-12
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