2 ms·

>Its a slap in the face when I read about people literally buying there way in Why? The US is a capitalistic society and more so than other countries such as t

>Its a slap in the face when I read about people literally buying there way in Why? The US is a capitalistic society and more so than other countries such as those in Europe. Presumably you liked the US because it is such a capitalistic society with high pay, slightly lower taxes, etc. Paying to get in is pretty much the definition of capitalism.

FreedomToCreate 8y ago
So in your world view, bribery should be absolutely allowed than? You have a piece of land I want, but the law prevents me from stealing it from you and you won't sell. So I grease the hand of the local authorities and get them to take it via eminent domain, pay you some cash for compensation and just take it. I have more capital so its fair... We go to court, but since I have more money I'll just grease the hand of the judge.
- marcinzm 8y ago
  I quoted a specific part of what you said for a reason. The only dubious thing they did was get the cap for investment lowered from $1m to $500k. The lower cap does not change the fundamental issue you stated which was paying for citizenship. Merely changes how much they had to pay. So on that point, buying your way in is not bribery if the legal system allows it. It's merely paying for a service from the government. For example, I pay the government to register my car, to get permits for work I'm doing or get a concealed gun permit. In this case they're paying for citizenship. This is also merely one way to pay for citizenship, little different than the usual "pay $100+k for a US college degree so my child gets OTP and can apply for a H1B."
unreal37 8y ago
The US doesn't have lower taxes like you think it does.
- marcinzm 8y ago
  I said slightly lower and overall it's true depending on the exact US state and European country being compared. For high income brackets which is presumably what an immigrant would be aiming for. Also some countries tax individuals while others tax employers for the same thing which makes comparisons difficult. Then there's VAT which is objectively larger than even the largest US sales tax.
rainhacker 8y ago
> Paying to get in is pretty much the definition of capitalism It's not. Paying to get in like this is depriving not only OP but more importantly, the intended beneficiaries of such schemes. As the article points out, the total number of visas "may have easily claimed an entire year’s worth of visas issued under EB-5". Which leads to: "The cap on visas also serves as a cap on available financing. If a project like Hudson Yards accounts for a whole year’s worth of EB-5 visas, it also consumes a year’s worth of financing meant for projects in low-opportunity places." What about the 'payment' that generations of residents of Harlem made? If this was done fairly, neither the residents of low-opportunity places nor OP would feel slapped.

FreedomToCreate 8y ago

So in your world view, bribery should be absolutely allowed than? You have a piece of land I want, but the law prevents me from stealing it from you and you won't sell. So I grease the hand of the local authorities and get them to take it via eminent domain, pay you some cash for compensation and just take it. I have more capital so its fair... We go to court, but since I have more money I'll just grease the hand of the judge.

marcinzm 8y ago
I quoted a specific part of what you said for a reason. The only dubious thing they did was get the cap for investment lowered from $1m to $500k. The lower cap does not change the fundamental issue you stated which was paying for citizenship. Merely changes how much they had to pay. So on that point, buying your way in is not bribery if the legal system allows it. It's merely paying for a service from the government. For example, I pay the government to register my car, to get permits for work I'm doing or get a concealed gun permit. In this case they're paying for citizenship. This is also merely one way to pay for citizenship, little different than the usual "pay $100+k for a US college degree so my child gets OTP and can apply for a H1B."

unreal37 8y ago

The US doesn't have lower taxes like you think it does.

marcinzm 8y ago
I said slightly lower and overall it's true depending on the exact US state and European country being compared. For high income brackets which is presumably what an immigrant would be aiming for. Also some countries tax individuals while others tax employers for the same thing which makes comparisons difficult. Then there's VAT which is objectively larger than even the largest US sales tax.

rainhacker 8y ago

> Paying to get in is pretty much the definition of capitalism It's not. Paying to get in like this is depriving not only OP but more importantly, the intended beneficiaries of such schemes. As the article points out, the total number of visas "may have easily claimed an entire year’s worth of visas issued under EB-5". Which leads to: "The cap on visas also serves as a cap on available financing. If a project like Hudson Yards accounts for a whole year’s worth of EB-5 visas, it also consumes a year’s worth of financing meant for projects in low-opportunity places." What about the 'payment' that generations of residents of Harlem made? If this was done fairly, neither the residents of low-opportunity places nor OP would feel slapped.