[mschuster91]

No it's not, Americans have had difficulties getting banking in Germany because banks fear having US customers exposes them to liabilities.

It's all a huge pile of steaming manure, especially that the US considers companies in the US liable for things that their holding or child companies do in other countries - even if the behavior is fully legal in the place where it happens.

And banks and other corporations with even the tiniest amount of US connections are rightfully scared of excessive punishments dealt by the US "judicial" system.

[chaosite]

That's because having US citizens as customers requires them to file tax information for those customers with the US government, and the German banks don't want the overhead.

[q3k]

And that's because for some unknown reason the US is one of the few countries that tax based on citizenship, and not residence [1]. It's absurd. Even resigning your citizenship is taxed [2].

[1] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_taxation#Citizen...

[2] - https://nomadcapitalist.com/2018/06/16/tax-consequences-of-r...

[arcticfox]

> It's absurd

As someone who has paid a truckload of these taxes: I don't think it's that absurd. You're not double-taxed. And if you want to relinquish citizenship, you can.

[saiya-jin]

> No it's not, Americans have had difficulties getting banking in Germany because banks fear having US customers exposes them to liabilities.

That's just reaction to stupid US FATCA laws pushed by US down the throat all countries out there. Same is for Switzerland - quite hard to open an account for anybody qualifying as US citizen, although banks are mostly fully compliant with FATCA processes. But this was pushed by the guy before the Big Blonde

[mpweiher]

Oh, not just Americans. I am German. When I moved to the US for a while, most German banks wanted nothing more to do with me.

[mcherm]

> This is straight up racism

>> No it's not, [banks are scared if the US]

Yes, banks are scared of the US. And perhaps the racism stems from the Italian bank, perhaps it stems from the US government, perhaps it stems from the Iranian definition of citizenship, perhaps all share a part of the blame. But regardless of who gets the blame, it most definitely IS straight up racism.

[bsaul]

So, racism now doesn't mean race ? Or does race includes nationality in your definition ?

[izacus]

What's the practical difference? You're being punished due to a place you've been born in. Not something you did wrong. Just a luck of nature.

And that's wrong. By any moral standard.

[enedil]

If you're in a place where being woman is disadvantageous, would you call such disadvantage "racist"? Clearly it fits your description. If you think it's wrong, then I agree with you. If you think it's racist, then no way, it isn't and you just don't know the words you use.

[izacus]

Is that the most useful direction you could take this debate? Will changing the word for the same thing change anything? Racist, sexist, nationalist, whatever, people are having their livelihoods broken and you want to debate grammar?

[bsaul]

You’re just using a broader abstraction to define the original problem. This usually doesn’t help solving or understanding problems in general (you end up with general statement as « it’s wrong », which frankly doesn’t lead to anything).

As an example, it would be interesting to know if relocating to some other country, or give up your nationality solves the issue. In the case of racism, it wouldn’t for sure. In this case, i don’t know.

[DanBC]

Race includes nationality in any useful definition of racism, and has done for many many years.

From 2010, written into UK law: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/section/9

> 9 Race

> (1)Race includes—

> (a)colour;

> (b)nationality;

> (c)ethnic or national origins.

From 1976 (over 40 year ago), written into the previous UK law: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1976/74/enacted

> 1 Racial discrimination

[...]

> (ii) which he cannot show to be justifiable irrespective of the colour, race, nationality or ethnic or national origins of the person to whom it is applied ; and

[skissane]

See also Article 1 of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination:

> In this Convention, the term "racial discrimination" shall mean any distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference based on race, colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin which has the purpose or effect of nullifying or impairing the recognition, enjoyment or exercise, on an equal footing, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural or any other field of public life.

Both "descent" and "national or ethnic origin" appear relevant here.

https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/3ae6b3940.pdf

[alehul]

In the top-level comment, the issue was presumably Iranian citizenship (not descent), or, in other words, nationality.

[DomreiRoam]

By definition it is more xenophobia than racism according to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenophobia .

[qaq]

You do realize that Iran means "the land of Aryans"?

[emiliobumachar]

Interesting, but so what? Can Aryans not be the victims of racism?

[qaq]

"prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior."

[raxxorrax]

It is extremely shitty behavior, but not racism. The sanctions are in place because the Iranian government is racist and innocents suffer from that, which could in turn increase racism again.

[toong]

Yes, it is.