Tax Haven in the Caribbean Is in Business With U.S. Blessings

James Flanigan’s Oct. 14 column, “Family Farm Tax Break Isn’t Chicken Feed,” covered just some of the shenanigans that rob our treasury of revenue that can help reduce our deficit.

While what’s happening “down on the farm” is common knowledge, how many are aware of the tax haven that operates in the Caribbean with the blessing of the Treasury Department?

I was shocked to learn recently that we have had an income tax treaty with the Netherlands Antilles for 32 years that created an investor’s paradise. And to learn that the Treasury backed away from closing this loophole because of the potential losses to bondholders and issuers and the possible loss of confidence in American securities sold to cover our bloated deficit.

All of which makes a non-player in high finances wonder: Where is the American constitutional promise of equity in our system?

HYMAN H. HAVES

Pacific Palisades