Money stored in banks, home vaults, or off shore accounte is money missing from the general populace where it is needed, thus creating a money shortage, or as us in the streets call it hard times. A 250,000 automobile is easier for me to understand, being a consumate car nut, but even that contributed to the money flow, the dealership, the corporation and all it's employees, the licencing fees going to the state, etc. It's the hoarding of money that has all of us on the down low. I mean really, how much does one dude need, a million, a thousand million (Billion), hundreds of billions. Where does the greed end.
Better that the money is missing. Think about the inflationary effects if the $10 Trillion that was estimated to be missing from our nation as a result of overseas holdings was suddenly dumped back in.
INFLATION THROUGH THE F* ROOF
The thought of more $4/gallon gas, $4/gallon milk, $5/bottle shampoo, $35/laundry soap.
Of course Salaries would rise, but the question becomes would they rise faster than inflation.
Historically they haven't. Which means the poor would once again get poorer.
However, if the $10 + Trillion was dropped, it might spark another industrial-type revolution.
Of course, the only way to get that money to come back is to lower taxes to where people want to bring it back. Forcing them wont work. All they have to do is leave the country and no amount of force is going to bring them back, and I doubt that the Cayman Islands, Switzerland or any other nation where they would go is going to extradite people for tax "evasion."
I know Switzerland wouldn't, and I don't think the Cayman Islands would either.
What is that common sense approach
If you want more of something you subsidize it, regulate it or tax it less.
if you want less of something you tax it or regulate it more.
Case in point, Smoking. I know of at least 2 people (including myself) that are going to be quitting due to the tax hikes.