Democracy Now! with Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzales conducted this interview w/author Nicholas Shaxson, Treasure Islands: Uncovering the Damage of Offshore Banking and Tax Havens, prior to tax day here in Uncle Sam’s US of A. Shaxson talks in detail about this hidden financial system stashing away trillions of trillions of corporate and personal wealth purposely evading their share of taxes. Great interview and very enlightening while explaining why the people of the world are carrying the load for basic services while that “rich” guy, well, just laughs all the way to the bank.

“Treasure Islands: Uncovering the Damage of Offshore Banking and Tax Havens”

“An absolute gem that deserves to be read by anyone interested in the way contemporary globalization is undermining social justice. Give it to your sons, daughters, families, favorite legislators and anyone else needing stimulation of their thought buds. This masterpiece illuminates the dark places and shows the visible hand of governments, corporations, banks, accountants, lawyers and other pirates in creating fictitious offshore transactions and structures and picking our pockets. This financial engineering has enabled companies and the wealthy elites to dodge taxes. The result is poverty, erosion of social infrastructure and hard won welfare rights and higher taxes for ordinary people. Tax will be the decisive battleground of the twenty-first century as no democracy can function without it, or provide people with adequate educations, healthcare, security, housing, transport or pensions. Nicholas Shaxson has done a wonderful job in lifting the lid off the inbuilt corruption that has become so naturalized in the western world.”–Prem Sikka, Professor of Accounting, University of Essex, UK