Is it just me, or does "being a citizen," feel increasingly archaic as time goes on
When times are good it might, but just ask Americans who were in Liberia or Sierra Lione recently, or who were in Georgia in 2007, or who were in Ukraine until this year. Citizenship doesn't matter until it really, really matters. In Israel there are increasingly stories about families wondering about whether getting or attempting to get a second citizenship is a form of cowardice or a pragmatic acknowledgement of events on the ground.
Let me reiterate that moving towards a safer and more developed world in which citizenship doesn't matter much is great and I hope we do it. But that progress is not guaranteed and is not universal.
When times are good it might, but just ask Americans who were in Liberia or Sierra Lione recently
They would probably tell you that the US State Department charges people for being rescued rather than doing it for free like other governments, and that the bill has a habit of being absurdly large and in some cases (like evacuation via aircraft carrier) can result in bankruptcy and people wishing they had not been rescued.
Departure assistance is expensive. U.S. law 22 U.S.C. 2671(b) (2) (A) requires that any departure assistance be provided "on a reimbursable basis to the maximum extent practicable.” This means that evacuation costs are ultimately your responsibility; you will be asked to sign a form promising to repay the U.S. government. We charge you the equivalent of a full coach commercial fare on a comparable mode of transportation at the time that commercial travel ceases to be a viable option. You will be taken to a nearby safe location, where you will need to make your own onward travel arrangements. Typically, you will not have an opportunity to select the destination to which we will take you; it will be to the nearest safe location (only in rare circumstances will that be to the United States). If you are destitute, and private resources are not available to cover the cost of onward travel, you may be eligible for emergency financial assistance.
As far as I can tell once you leave US borders, unless you intend to return permanently one day there are no benefits to being a US citizen and lots of downsides.
By the way one thing I keep reading about re: FATCA is that the State Dept seems to be underreporting the numbers of people who are giving up citizenship.
When times are good it might, but just ask Americans who were in Liberia or Sierra Lione recently, or who were in Georgia in 2007, or who were in Ukraine until this year. Citizenship doesn't matter until it really, really matters. In Israel there are increasingly stories about families wondering about whether getting or attempting to get a second citizenship is a form of cowardice or a pragmatic acknowledgement of events on the ground.
We may be living in a peace bubble: http://www.cato.org/publications/cato-online-forum/primacy-f... . I hope that isn't the case. If however it is, citizenship really, really matters.
Let me reiterate that moving towards a safer and more developed world in which citizenship doesn't matter much is great and I hope we do it. But that progress is not guaranteed and is not universal.