U2 has embarked in a world tour and there’s already some controversy, as the Guardian reports that Bono was asked about taxes once again! Should I remind you that, four years ago, U2 was in trouble when they headlined Glastonbury and activists had put chaos holding ‘U pay tax 2’ banners?
But it’s not over and Bono had to explain his tax situation on Sky news: ‘It’s just some smart people we have working for us trying to be sensible about the way we’re taxed. And that’s just one of our companies, by the way. There’s loads of companies.’
Sensible about the way we’re taxed? How can I be sensible about the way I am taxed? Of course that means they are not paying their taxes in Ireland and we already knew this. The Edge was clear about this: ‘So much of our business is outside Ireland. It’s ridiculous to sort of make a big deal about the fact that we operate outside of Ireland’
Well they pay their taxes in the Netherlands and they are Irish, they should pay their taxes there, I have no choice, why should they ahem this choice?
Bono continued: ‘And we pay a fortune in tax. Just so people know, we pay a fortune in tax; and we’re happy to pay a fortune in tax, people should. But that doesn’t mean, because you’re good at philanthropy and because I’m an activist, people think you should be stupid in business and I don’t run with that.’
Bono pays a fortune because he makes a fortune, and I don’t know how Bono can justify his tax exile by his so-called philanthropy! In other words, poor people, peasants, should be happy to pay a fortune in tax, but we, U2, we simply don’t do that!
Ireland is not doing very well, it has been suffering under a financial crisis for years, so who cares if he goes preaching everywhere to save Africa if he doesn’t even want to help the poor citizens of his own country?
And then he had one of this rant that does not make any sense to me:
‘Our country believes in being tax competitive. We’ve had some hard times in Ireland over the years and smart people in government and in the civil service have worked hard to make Ireland tax competitive and it’s been great. It’s got a lot of technological companies, a lot of people receive some very high level education. We are not going back on that. I know it upsets people and people get annoyed in Europe and sometimes in America but we think it is our sovereign right to be tax competitive and U2 just reflects that.’
Knowing how much time Bono has spent preaching everywhere how government should spend their money, this is just ridiculously hilarious…