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Introducing The Latest Tactic For Governments To Raise Cash
Submitted by Simon Black of Sovereign Man blog,
‘Creativity’ isn’t usually a word associated with ‘government’. Words like stodgy, bureaucratic, and incompetent are typically more appropriate.
But there is at least one area where bankrupt governments in particular tend to be exceptionally creative - finding unique ways to steal people’s money.
And over the last few years, one of the most creative ways that bankrupt governments have come up with is to confiscate what they consider “dormant” bank accounts—this would be an account without any transactions over a specified period of time.
The UK was the first on the scene with this idea with the 2008 Dormant Bank and Building Society Act. It was passed just in the knick of time right as the entire financial system was collapsing.
Within two years, the British Banker’s Association estimated that the law could raise as much as $600 million for the government… no small sum in the UK.
Earlier this year, Japan launched a similar initiative aimed at grabbing dormant bank accounts; they expect the move will raise approximately $500 million annually.
Both at least Japan and the UK have long-term thresholds. In Japan, they’ll seize an account if it has been dormant for more than 10 years. In the UK, it’s 15 years.
But there are a number of things wrong with this approach.
First, it calls into question the fundamental principle of private property. How can something be yours if the state can legislate its authority to seize it?
And even if the account holder has long since passed, shouldn’t the funds, by default, be awarded to the survivors nominated in accordance with the instructions in his/her last will and testament?
It is a rather ignoble act indeed to set aside the wishes of the dead so that the state can have yet another resource to plunder.
More concerning, though, is that if the state can simply legislate its authority to seize dormant bank accounts, then they can just as easily lower the bar.
Australia (which actually has a well-capitalized banking system and is not even a bankrupt government) passed legislation last year to reduce the threshold on seizing dormant accounts from seven years down to just THREE.
And in the last 12-months since the legislation was passed, the Australian government has seized a whopping 80,000 accounts totaling A$360 million… more than has been seized in the previous five decades COMBINED.
In case you’re wondering, yes of course, the Land of the Free has similar rules.
In fact, each of the 50 states has its own regulations pertaining to the seizure of dormant accounts. And the grand prize goes to… the great state of Georgia!
Georgia’s Disposition of Unclaimed Properties Act sets the threshold as low as one year.
In other words, if you have a checking account in Georgia that you haven’t touched in twelve months, the state government is going to grab it.
So much for setting aside money for a rainy day and having the discipline to never touch it.
If you’ve locked away money for your children’s savings or unforeseen emergencies, your government might be sharpening its knives ready to dig in.
And just like central bank policies punish savers with interest rates that don’t come close to keeping up with inflation, these policies provide disincentives for people to be responsible and save money.
It’s just another example of how the entire system is rigged against the individual… and all the more reason to divorce oneself from it. Physical gold, anyone?
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California had this YEARS ago.
All states have this. The key here is that they shortened the time of "dormant" to something so short as to be ridiculous.
A lot of states are in the 3-5 year range. One year is simply insane, a time frame that short and you're going to start picking up retiree's savings accounts, soldiers that are out of country, etc.
This is simply badly camoflaged theft.
Um, hate to point this out, but the moment you deposit your money in the bank it IMMEDIATELY ceases to be yours!
You have just lent the bank your money without requiring any collateral from them - you are an unsecured creditor!
This is simply a method to steal from pools of money where the government expects the least resistance. The expectation here is no one is closely watching these accounts so no one will put up a fuss. The fact that legally they belong to an account holder is inheritance trust is immaterial.
With bitcoin your cold wallet is yours forever, untouchable regardless of the length of time. You can pass the key to funds through multiple generations without transactions even hitting the block chain or being visible if you choose. You can escape in a boat and go somewhere else and immediately have access to every single coin with zero cross border risk.
bitcoin can be hacked.
Only Gold and Silver in your possession is safe.
Would this apply to Credit Unions as well?
Love the kneejerk downvotes whenever someone mentions the benefits of bitcoin over dollars in banks.
To those who respond that gold is safer, tell me which is safer and easier to secure secure.
1) A bitcoin key (around ~40 characters) written on a peice of paper, or better yet memorized as a brain wallet (ten random words memorized), that controls a lifetime of wealth, or
2) Several hundred ounces of physical gold
Both are easy to bury underground, yes. But I'd argue bitcoin is much easier to transport bitcoin out of country and/or spend it securely than gold.
Is there a law that people cannot keep more than US$10,000 cash at home ??
Yes, is call "law of primordial tropical forest". If is not tie down with guard posted or bribery pay, any possession is subject of seizure by state or bank.
See that's why I stay broke, Boris .
I want someone to tell me how it's creative if nothing is actually being created. Confiscation is destructive.
this totally happened to me at suntrust in neptune beach, florida a couple of years ago. i had a small savings account to cash checks from a part time job. i hadn't put money in or taken it out in a year or two. i got a statement one day and it was gone. no phone call, no letter saying it might happen. after serious screaming and hollering, initially met with "this is out of our hands" i got it back in a week. needless to say i closed the account and consolidated the funds.
this is a real risk.
"If you don't hold it...."
How many times do peeples need to hear it to understand it?
The problem is that the goons (police) will claim it is drug money and you will probably never see it again.
Sure you will. A good lawyer, $10,000, and three years in court and you'll get every penny back. Why you gotta be so negative?
The major drawback of any crypto coin is the internet itself
if the .gov shuts it down or filters it the "coin" can be worthless instantly
Bitcoin is not real.
At this point, and IMO, carefully done Bitcoin transactions and Bitcoins themselves are pretty secure.
YES, very volatile.
(Don´t forget to include Pt and Pd as safe PM possessions!)
got me a little Pt action about a month ago. Not a lot...but just enough to look really fuckin' cool stacked with the Ag and the Au...right before it all fell overboard in a terrible boating accident while I was deep sea fishin' out in the Gulf of Mexico.
Darn it...
Damn! You too?
http://jerry611.newsvine.com/_news/2012/12/02/15618990-masked-men-hijack...
Why, it's becoming downright epidemic!
I am Chumbawamba.
BUY BITCOIN!!
I need to start diving where you guys keep going, it seems like there would be a lot of gold down there.
Dang, I lost thousands of ounces of silver bars and coins in a tragic accident while I was deep sea fishing out in the Gulf of Mexico too, probably for the same reason! Ain't that a coincidence?!
I suppose the cybercurrency bugs were right all along...an arrangement of electrons on a computer is much more safe & valuable than physical silver and always will be. Dumb me.
"an arrangement of electrons on a computer" is every dollar in a bank.
Indeed ... Are you seeing the pattern yet?
Well, that's bullshit, too. Anything physical can be taken.
The only secure form of money is NONE AT ALL, i.e. no physical tokens, and no virtual ones either (fuck you bitcoin fags).
I submit that the ONLY form of money worth considering is TRUST. It can be cheated but it can't be stolen. However, mankind was not capable of using trust as money in this past age. Maybe this time it'll be different. We'll see.
Does anyone even understand what I'm talking about?
I am Chumbawamba.
Executive Order 6102.
I like plastic.
I take plastic money to the grocery store and they give me food. I trade guns & ammo for plastic and cars and furniture and dental work. I can even get gold and silver with plastic money. Who needs paper when you can use plastic.
My treasure is stored in Heaven where no one can steal it.
Give us a call when you get there.
How crazy would it be if it actually happened?
On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero. His lifeform will change.
If you really...REALLY believed that...you wouldnt be on ZH.
know what I mean.
macholatte - and you are smarter then me. i'm stuck in the old ways - i really am. when you don't pay it back, they erase the debt completely - increase your credit score and beg you to take a new card at 12 months zero %!! love you. keep going buddy. you sucking down all of my years of work.
I do.
but then I also understand that nothing in life is guaranteed, every day holds possibilities, some of which may not be desired or even expected,
and so Trust - whether in Self or trust'd others chosen - is a practice that deepens over time, and can be used to dis-engage from a system that exists to exploit us all.
can't be bought with monies either.
Speaking of dis-engagement here's an interesting concept:
http://www.bloomberg.com/video/are-floating-cities-the-wave-of-the-futur...
Milton Friedman's grandson is involved in this project, and he has some thoughtful insights regarding government and self governance. The floating city idea is cool. But the idea of creating competition against established government is fantastic.
No fuck you you dunce loser!
We're riding with Satoshi until the bitter end!
Yup, and it will be bitter
Just ignore him gh0atrider, he doesn't understand. He is not capable of understanding. When eventually Bitcoin or some other cryptocurrency is used more than fiat, he will still claim that it "can be hacked" (not even understanding what "it" is, thus having no idea how stupid he looks). Bitcoin haters are the same as PM haters in that they have made a given choice, and they do not understand the alternatives, so they fear and mock what they do not understand.
Just ignore them. There is not a single Bitcoin-hater that actually understands even the most basic mechanisms of the protocol. Bitcoins are more secure than dollars in any bank account. From a technical perspective, hacking into a bank account is quantifiably simpler than somehow "stealing" Bitcoins. Obviously it's easy to steal an unsecured pen drive, or piece of paper with a key on it, but that could also be said for bank account credentials, or even physical PMs.
A rational person would simply say, "Hey I don't understand it, so I'm staying away from it." The fact that they are so passionate in their hatred of Bitcoin reveals the fear behind those feelings.
This comment voted down in 3... 2... 1...
bitcoin can be hacked.
Only Gold and Silver in your possession is safe.
Bitcoin cannot be hacked you asshole!!!!
gh0atrider Bitcoin cannot be hacked you asshole!!!!
---
However, your wallet can be rendered useless with a virus and the NSA has backdoors on everything. And that doesn't include and EMP attack that wipes out everything electronic.
You're going too far. A good magnet or the proximity with other magnetic devices in the long run will suffice.
idiot .... Bitcoin itself has never been 'hacked'... third party businesses with poor security practices have been hacked. Dishonest third party business have stolen Bitcoins entrusted to them..
The suggestion was a paper wallet held personally ... that has never been hacked. Educate yourself.
JLee2027 bitcoin can be hacked. Only Gold and Silver in your possession is safe.
---
In a society where government has replaced God for so many, nothing is safe.
Until someone comes to seize that too, at which time it will no longer be in your possession of course. The trick is in knowing the probabilities of losing one's money by any given method.
NOTHIING is untouchable.
1's and 0's cannot move without the flow of electrons.
When the lights go out, whether by martial action or emp blast, if there's no electricity, there's no crypto commerce.
1's and 0's cannot move without the flow of electrons.
When the lights go out, whether by martial action or emp blast, if there's no electricity, there's no crypto commerce.
True ... but there would also be no clean water, no food ... and not a lot of life around.
that's the point. how valuable does a silver coin or US dollar become if you have it on you? when the SHTF your ATM balance means nothing. everyone should have at least 7 days worth of water and canned goods, batteries (or a generator), a gun, and maybe $500 in cash. and that's the bare minimum. you'll be more prepared than 99% of the feral public. if you have a propane stove, water filter, swiss knife, band aids, tent, flashlight, and toothbrush then you'l be the freaking 1% of the 1%, Kyle Bass excepted.
sure, you may have some canned/dried goods expire eventually, but that's what, $50 in replacement costs every 3 years? if you live near a city of any size, and the power goes out for real, how long until it becomes Escape From NY? probably 3 days.
When the lights go out, the world's central banks become a bunch of old fucks sitting in a circle jerk. Lots of luck with that. You're gonna need more than 7 days food and 5 bills... That said, I doubt the lights go out. If it could practically be done, it would have already been tried somewhere. The spooks like to spread sci-fi. Getting it work reliably without annihilating everyone is an entirely different proposition.
you enjoy myself if you live near a city of any size, and the power goes out for real, how long until it becomes Escape From NY? probably 3 days.
---
You are going to FEMA camps in that scenario. Say goodbye to your ass.
JustUsChickensHere True ... but there would also be no clean water, no food ... and not a lot of life around.
---
That's odd. You mean one still couldn't boil water to clean it?. One still couldn't make a fire to cook food? Are you that retarded or just one of those lemmings that can't survive without McDonald's?
What if you wash your flash drive in your pants?
Correct, unless you specify on your signature card (the contract) that "ALL DEPOSITS ARE SPECIAL DEPOSITS" meaning that what you put in is EXACTLY what you expect to take out.
I am Chumbawamba.
CW
Plad.....But they are a Bank, they have lots of money, plus the deposit is federally insured by the Gov.
What could possibly go wrong? am I missing something?
seek
Yes and yes. I could understand five years.
But, this BS about GA seizing money after just one year takes the cake.
This is yet another message that a BIG PART of one´s net wealth should be OUT of the financial system and in gold (PMs) and (if you are OK with it) Bitcoin.
First of all, the article points to gold as a way to avoid confiscation by the state. Pretty stupid idea, FDR taught us that lesson. Secondly, what the state of Georgia is doing makes Gen. Sherman's antics look like child's play.
Yeah, a stupid idea, which is why a lot of people (the smart ones I gather) held on to their gold and ignored the order. And the order only applied to federal employees and those subject to the jurisdiction of the Federal government only. Most people don't understand this though, and fewer than that why.
I am Chumbawamba.
The Supreme court has decided that the Federal government can confiscate your gold, regardless of the fifth amendment, as long as they call it a "tax". Well, actually, even if the President swears up and down that it is not a tax, as long the Supremes decide that they _could_ have called it a tax.
Thank you, Justice Roberts.
What gold? There's no gold here :-)
Most people don't understand that they aren't required to file a 1040 either. Unless you are in the federal jurisdiction or an employee. People just keep giving their money away. It's crazy I tell ya!
Clarification: This only applies when the party holding the property cannot locate the owner to give it to him. The one year is just for unclaimed paychecks, your bank account is five years. They have to warn you before they turn it over, so just open your statements once in a while and update your address when you move, and you should be fine. And if your property is turned over to the state, you just contact them and get it back. The idea is supposed to be to avoid custodians having to carry it forever for someone they can't find, and to avoid it just oops disappearing.
News flash, if you don't pay at least a little attention to your money, bad things sometimes happen, it's the same everywhere. Back to the kvetching now.
Shhh, Simon's trying to get us to move to Bolivia with the Bush's. Your logic is ruining the party.
I got one of these notices in Tennessee on an account where I only hold some old mining stock. Then I got a buyout package from the board, followed by a counter offer by the party trying to buy them out. Suddenly, I am getting emails from the brokerage like "Hey ol buddy! Where ya been?"
Got a letter from a cascade bank this week trying to declare a Heslth Savings account dormant.
Beware
Yeah, I have a friend who an account at WellsFargo in Ca, he went in to check on one day and were fixin to "freeze" it, he caught them just in time or they woul have, and this was several years ago.
They don't even attempt to contract the account holder before seizing it??
Holy cow.
Legally they are required to, but I've heard enough stories about this in CA to make it clear they don't try very hard (or at all.)
One of the stories I heard was the fellow had checking and savings, updated his address on one, and not the other. Bank didn't bother trying the other addresses they had. So as I said, they're not trying too hard.
On the other hand, after my parents died in AZ, the local dept of revenue sent several letters to both my brother and I that they had a refund check waiting for us. It was less than $20. So this stuff is really state dependent.
Fixin to...
Reminds me of this story.
They Stole His Money, Her Money & Mine TooYes, as a child of about 45 or 50 years ago, B.ofA. in California "STOLE" my few hard earned dollars. By now I (in my dreams) would have been a millionaire. I have never dealt with them since.
I think I just threw up a little in my mouth.
And pretty soon you will be paying for this perk with NIRP.
When the lightbulb goes off in depositors heads they better hire more printers, cause there is going to be quite a need for currency.
pods
Japan's market traded NO bonds or bond futures for hours yesterday (ZH article). We may not be there yet, but I'm pretty sure qw can see it from here.
Just squint your eyes real hard and look East.
This makes me think Japan will be the trigger.
Run. Do it on Friday the 13th 2014
Checking accounts - not savings accounts. If a checking account hasn't been used in 12 months it probably has little in it and the owner has died or moved on and forgotten about it.
Funny - I live in GA and haven't heard anything about this.
The only banks making any money are the big ones - the ones that loan large amounts and have MasterCard, Visa or other credit cards in their stable.
Plenty of people have multiple checking accounts, often as backup accounts or rainy-day funds. If they're taking any account with any funds after a year, it's outright theft and not excusable.
Don't forget that the definitions here are pretty loose -- is a moneymarket account you can write 3 checks/month on a checking account or a savings account? Most people use them for savings, but the regs say they're checking (which is why the banks push them on people who want savings accounts, because it impacts their reserve requirements in a more positive way than a real savings account would.)
Believe me; they are not stealing peoples money here in Georgia. At least, not in the way inferred in this article.
BS. I opened an account just for funding trading activity, and sometimes wouldn't trade for a LONG time (years). Admittedly, there wasn't much in it during periods of inactivity, but it was there, and I'd be pissed if it was stolen. One bank tried to take some from me with fees, so I threatened to come back with a bullhorn and tell their other customers about it. Needless to say they gave me my money back, and I told them to go fuck themselves.
Dontgo, this is not true! My friends account was a money market account, not checking
Small banks have to adhere to solvency regulations.
TBTF's do not.
"Don't steal — the government hates competition."
Dormant accounts seized from a dormant population...
Heh. There's no money there. We're talking Georgia, for infi's sake.
The best part is that nobody gives a shit because if you have money that you don't need, then obviously big brother should be putting to better use, right? And like those cops who take your cash as it is proof of past or future crimes, we need the protection.
Enabled by all of you baby boomer hating redistributionists out there seeking "justice".
Doormat accounts you say?
Pardon me if I wipe my shit-covered jackboots on your doormat account, 'citizen'?
"More concerning, though, is that if the state can simply legislate its authority to seize dormant bank accounts, then they can just as easily lower the bar."
Yeah, down to "we're just taking it because we can." Obligatory George Carlin routine is, of course, required viewing on this subject.
They already seize any cash that they want. They don't even accuse you of a crime and they can take it.
Can you say Civil Forfeiture? I knew you could.
pods
I get that part. What I don't get is whether they even make an attempt to contact the account holder of record before doing it.
Why would they - morals?
We need a different concept in politics, one where elected officials should pride themselves on abolishing laws not creating them. Too many laws and rules and regulations. Its begining to feel like slavery.
Beginning ?
Begining?
Literally no one knows how many laws there are... Google it... If you include state law, statutory law, case law interpretation, divorce law, IRS tax law, corporate law, traffic law, environmental law, civil law, international law, etc. the total number of laws that exist are beyond anyone knowing but it is a fair bet that it is in excess of 10's of millions of laws and regulations, perhaps more laws and regulations than the US current population.... Keep in mind that ignorance of the law is an illegal defense.
It's down right disturbing. Add to the fact your mobile electronic device is now your personal activity log, and your jailbait awaiting a sentence.
All regulations are.....positive rights desribing what you can do. Negative rights would be that you can do anything you want so long as you do not impose any harm to other persons or their property. And yet an entire industry has been fabricated on enforcing positive rights that have no constitutional bearing. Legal positivism - just another branch of big government ideology.
Positive rights, or tax monopoly. The idea of the government enforcing a tax monopoly while creating laws to prevent anything similar in business, is just absurd. Really absurd.
Long coffee cans in the back yard.
We should create a "People's derivative" for that...
It's you avatar. Good watch dog in the yard watching your coffee cans. 10g by the door just in case.
Ha, don't let that pose fool you. The cat in that pic is a stone-cold killer....
Glass mason jars work better. Not that I have any experience with that sort of stuff.
End capped 4" PVC pipe. Much harder to find and will never rot out.
Anything within their grasp WILL be seized. THAT is the 'new normal' folks.
Keep as little as you can in the system, keep everything else close to home, in your PHYSICAL possession.
With interest rates going negative, why would you WANT to keep your money in the bank? It sure isn't going to lose any more under your mattress, is it?
Sure, it can be stolen, but you can protect it if you must. In the bank, it can be stolen too, but you can't shoot the people taking it. In fact, the ONLY justification for banking your money was the safety thing...and that is now gone.
Keep cash if you want...personally I keep gold on hand. Hell, even if you keep it in the form of dried beans, you're better off than keeping money in the bank.
Give me manipulated gold over inherently worthless currency any day of the week
Its amazing there is anything left after all the bank charges....now that is theft
The easy way around this is to open two accounts (different banks) and set-up auto transfers between the two... say 10-100 per month. Keeps the account active.
This reminds me of when CA was accelerating state tax collections, people bitch but did not realize they could just adjust their W2, lazy sheep.
Ideally we would not have such laws, but we get the best gov that special interest groups can buy!
if you have a savings account that you haven't touched in one year, the fed stole about 5% of it + implied future inflation AND the government is going to take it soon.
A couple years ago, I put some crispy Franklins in an envelope an stuck 'em in the safe. Didn't even look at them for several months. One day I decided to take a peek. The bills felt dusty and there was a dark powder (the ink?) in the envelope. It actually appeared as though they were disintegrating.
Anyone else had that experience?
Every day the FED is in existence.
What kind of paper and ink were you using?
Oldwood made a funny! Yer still pissed huh?
Those were Vampire Franklins, nothing to worry about.
Believe or not, but you gotta wash your cash literally! It is the bacteria on the bill that actually causes the degradation ....not that I ever tried it. Just saying
Could be, friend, could be. So, it follows that if I don't trust banks and wanna bury some cash in the backyard in old coffee cans that it will have turned into dust when I go to retrieve it. It figures. Btw, do you have to wash your cash only once, or is it a weekly, monthly or annual interval? Yeah, I'm being an ass, but those who know me have come to expect it. Those who don't, take offense.
If you don't trust banks, why to bury funny banksters paper in the backyard? To me it just makes no sense.
That was rhetorical, for now. But really, I don't walk around with gold and silver coins in my pockets and don't use credit/debit cards except online. So I keep cash around. My transactions are my business, and mine alone.
Physical gold AND BITCOIN, anyone?
Both!
no use for bitcoin, may as well be dormant/seized/vaporized, equal value.
I have 2 ten trillion dollar bills from zimbabwe in my savings account. I wonder when they will try and take it
It boggles the mind. You don't even have to be a gold bug to see how foolish it is to save USD inside or outside the bank. One car accident and a year long coma and the gov't straight up steals the money from your account? Really? I'm a working class dude, but every time I get a couple extra Ks in my bank account, it's straight to my precious metals dealer. Why would anybody risk any sum in this fashion?
Use of dormant funds was always part of the banker business model, though I see government agencies are now getting in on the scheme. I'm sure banks will still charge an administration fee for the transfer. It starts with 3-5 years, changes to one year, then 1 month...aaaaand it's gone.
Banks don't like the government grabbing these accounts. Many banks will start charging a 'dormant account' fee that they get to suck out of these accounts every month - and it goes to the bank. If the government takes the whole account then they can't suck the blood money out themselves.
Why would anyone keep anything (but the bare minumum) to survive in a fucking bank anyways? Between ZIRP and monthly fees you're paying the fuckers to hold your cash.
It costs $5-20 to open a credit union account and usually the accounts are service fee free.
Georgia also has great asset forfeiture laws. Great, that is, if you are a cop.
Just accuse someone of something and take their shit! Isn't that awesome?
If you like your checking account, you can keep your checking account.
<---I just checked my bank account
<---I said fuck it and visited my local pub for a B&B on the rocks
Simon Black is full of shit.
This bill is not law. It was put together by a group of libtard senators (all of the same race), read on the floor, and then buried in committee. It was never voted on by the senate nor sent to the house.
As written, It would have applied to any financial account including gift cards. Georgia is a lot smarter than that.
Suck eggs Simon, You need to do a little better research.
Icarus
Not that I obseved during my seven years therein.
http://dbf.georgia.gov/dormant-accounts
Looks like a law from the criminals in Atlanta to me....Icarus is the one full of it, I'm afraid.
They are stealing what the banksters have already stolen.
Only government can steal something more than once.
“My guillotine is interested in seizing the dormant heads of pols, crats and bankster.”
Related to this topic of of bail-ins, account freezes, inactive account seizures, does anyone know the relationship of 'federal credit unions" to all of this?
Are we just as susceptible if we do bidness with a credit union?
Is cash held in a credit union checking account just as susceptible to seizure as if it were held in a "bank?"
Yes all banking laws fully apply to credit unions as well.
if we like your checking account, we can keep your checking account,
there, fixed it for you
That's not called creativity. That is called the power of the gun.
Correction:
Physical gold, everyone!
+1 Yup. if you don't have it, then you don't own it, or, anything else.
Etrade jerkoffs did this after the 2000 crash, wiping out inactive accounts with newly created maintenance fees.
I wonder if the rule applies to term deposits. That would be hilarious.
That would make it, what, -100% interest rate? A Central Banker's dream!
I guess they could make it -200% interest rate..."Ma'am, your $10,000 2 yr CD has escheated to the State. You now owe us $10,000 in administrative fees."
double post
Its actually worse, in CA they issued bonds based on future thefts so if they stop stealing money CA gets more tax increases.
So I can take possession of a dormant, bank owned house, or two, or three?...
I opened a savings account at Wells Fargo here in CA several years ago (we mostly bank at our credit union). It was a savings account, so it sat there untouched. When I went in after about 10 months to make some transaction, I was told that it was about to go into dormancy. I asked them if they would have contacted me first - they said they would have. Yeah, right. Yes, it is theft. You can feel so secure, getting your monthly statements - open them up, yep, my money is still there. No, it is on its way to being stolen. Not by Wells Fargo, in this case, but by the state of California.
This reminds me of the story of the Caesar who passed a law ordering the wealthy to will their estate to the Empire. And the soldiers who delivered the news were to ensure that those citizens complete the will, then immediately commit suicide ( fall on their swords).
Was it Caligula?