Feral Jundi

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Cool Stuff: Taxes For Contractors 2012

Filed under: Cool Stuff,Finance — Tags: , , , , — Matt @ 10:00 PM

Here it is folks. Every year Luke Fairfield puts out these excellent letters that detail all the specific tax issues related to our profession for that tax year. So read through it and contact him or his partner Chris if you have any questions.

The stuff to watch out for this year are audits. Like Luke mentioned below, I have heard of more and more audits happening in our industry. The government is looking for any ‘loose change’ and taxes owed, so it pays to get prepared with this stuff. If you do get audited, contact Luke immediately and let him work the problem. I will keep this letter posted in my Taxes For Contractors page up top in the blue bar. –Matt

 

Greetings!

For all you ex-teams, ex-pats, ex special forces, security contractors and operators out there I hope this letter finds you well. In an attempt to keep you current with your tax filings I am sending out this letter as a year-end reminder that 2012 is almost over. There are some very important changes this year that could impact many of you as it relates to the IRS’s new audit interest in the foreign income exclusion. If you read nothing else, read the section below updating you on this topic. As always feel free to pass this email on to anyone in your situation who could use the help or anyone that I missed on this email. As always, I will do my best to minimize your tax bill and provide relevant advice for your situation.

Important Updates for 2012:
1) Audits on the foreign income exclusion have greatly increased. If you worked for Blackwater in 2009 chances are you were audited. Count yourself lucky if you were not as you are in the minority. If you have not heard of a teammate or fellow employee who has been through an audit I would be surprised. These audits have spread from ex-Blackwater employees to nearly anyone filing for the foreign income exclusion. As a result, I would recommend being more cautious in claiming the Foreign Income Exclusion in 2012. After a year of dealing with these audits, the below points stand out as noteworthy and important.
a.It is EXTREMELY important that you contact me in the event that you receive an audit notice. Do not make contact with the auditor for the same reason that you do not file your own tax return. Leave it to professionals with experience dealing with these situations; the results will almost certainly be better with less risk to you.
b.If you filed for the foreign income exclusion under the bona fide residency method and your location was Iraq or Afghanistan, under audit, the IRS will likely take the position that you were not a bona fide resident for tax purposes and will disallow the claim. A residency VISA from your host country is not enough to qualify. Yes, I am quite aware that everyone around you tells you they file as bona fide residents and have never had a problem. To that I can only ask if you have ever been fishing and if you have, did you catch all the fish?

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Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Cool Stuff: Art Of War Sun Tzu Strategy Card Deck, By Robert Cantrell

Filed under: Cool Stuff,Games,Strategy — Tags: , , , , , , , — Matt @ 10:23 PM

A big hat tip to Fred over at his website called Law Enforcement and Security Consulting for introducing this really neat set up. If you are a fan of Sun Tzu and like playing cards, and appreciate having dual use stuff in your deployment kit, this would be a good set up to have. A deck of playing cards doesn’t require batteries either.

Personally, I have used my Sun Tzu mobile apps I downloaded on my smart phone for reference. I have a quote generator app and the whole book as an app. But a deck of cards is equally cool, just because it is another way of looking at the material and organizing it.

The really intriguing part of this set up is the author has created a system on how to use these cards. They are organized in such a way so that you can easily get to the type of advice or material you need. Or you can combine them into unique strategies that suite your needs–or ‘building a snowmobile’ out of Sun Tzu’s strategies and ideas.

If you go to his website, there is a guidebook and more detail given on how best to use these cards. Or just use the cards for that game of poker or solitaire to pass the time on your deployment. Check it out and this would make for a great little gift during the holidays or for a birthday. –Matt

 

 

The Art of War: Sun Tzu Strategy Card Deck is made in the USA from the finest quality casino grade card stock. The content is written around four key elements of competitive strategy that include elimination, isolation, preparation of the field of contest, and preparation of the self. These elements are divided into four equal parts by suits as follows:

Preparation of Self – All hearts involve shaping yourself. You set your disposition to that best suited to reach your goal and present your adversary with appearances that that cause him to act against his best interests.

Preparation of the Field of Contest – All clubs involve shaping the field of contest. You create the conditions, such as confusion on the part of your adversary, that better allow you to win.

Isolation – All diamonds involve isolating something. This something may be an adversary, an option, an objective, time, etc. You separate something from something else.

Elimination – All spades involve eliminating something. That something may be an adversary, an option, an objective, time, etc. You remove something from the contest.

They follow the natural progression from preparing the self and the field of contest, isolating on a target, and closing on the objective shown by everything from wolves chasing down a caribou, lawyers isolating on a witness inconsistency, deal makers identifying and addressing an objection, to a child getting the answer he wants from one parent or the other. At the very core, it is all the same.

Each strategy card provides a memorable title, a strategy definition, and a basis of truth from which the strategy works. You reach your goal by enacting one or more strategies together at the same time or in a useful sequence. The strongest strategy combinations tends to have at least one representative member from each card suite.

Website for cards here.

Buy the deck of cards here.

 

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Cool Stuff: Security Contractor David De Souza Tackled Suicide Bombers In Iraq– And Now The Tough Mudder!

Filed under: Cool Stuff,United Kingdom — Tags: , , , , , , — Matt @ 11:04 PM

This is a great story and David De Souza is part of the estimated 83,000 plus contractors wounded in this war, that have gone on to live their lives back home. They are contractor veterans and they have done heroic things in the war, and certainly have sacrificed with their lives and bodies.

David was also working for the British security company Aegis during the war in Iraq, and it is a reminder that the security contracting forces being used in this war come from all over the world. Some companies would be all British or American, or other companies would be a mix of all nationalities. Going through the DoL’s list of countries will give you an idea of how many folks have been involved over the years. And that is just the companies and contractors that filed DBA for injuries or deaths. The true cost in lives and injuries will never really be known…

Either way, bravo to David and to all contractor veterans who are doing what they can to work through their injuries and tackling obstacles back home. –Matt

 

Man injured driving Iraqi bomber off road tackles obstacle course
30th October 2012
A BODYGUARD who survived an attempted suicide bomb attack in Iraq is facing his toughest challenge since suffering devastating injuries in the high-speed crash.
David De Souza was working for private security company Aegis in Tikrit when he bravely intercepted a suicide bomber’s vehicle as it sped towards his convoy.
Mr De Souza drove out of the convoy in his 4×4 to block the suicide bomber and to protect a company boss who was travelling in a vehicle in front of him.
He rammed into the suicide bomber’s vehicle at high speed, smashing into it before coming off the road and rolling over six times.
The incident, on December 20, 2007, left Mr De Souza with a brain haemorrhage and a broken back.
He is now unable to work because of memory problems caused by his brain injury and is also suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
A year ago, the 36-year-old, who lives in Ashwood, Kearsley, was unable to run more than mile, but next month he will take part in Tough Mudder, a gruelling 12-mile obstacle course in Malpas, Cheshire, in memory of his niece, Maddie Rose Gooch.
The challenge will be both a physical and mental test, as Mr De Souza suffers from his post traumatic stress disorder and “catastrophic thinking”, which means he often imagines the worst-case scenario, which includes events relating to his 35-year-old wife, Lisa, and their children.

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Saturday, November 10, 2012

Cool Stuff: The Free Burma Rangers

Filed under: Cool Stuff,Myanmar — Tags: , , , — Matt @ 10:23 PM

The FBR’s work is dangerous. Rangers are often armed with whatever weapons they can find—shotguns, 22s, AK-47s—and have been the target of enemy fire on a number of occasions. Since 1997, 13 Rangers have died in the field—one caught and tortured to death by the Myanmar Army, others killed by land mines, malaria, and a lightning strike…..Today there are approximately 350 Rangers, divided into 70 teams operating in the states of Karen, Kachin, Kayah, and Shan. Each team consists of four to five Rangers: a team leader, a medic, a photographer, videographer, a security specialist to map their route and liaise with rebel armies, and a Good Life Club counselor, who is in charge of the education and health needs of village children. Once trained, the teams are deployed by veteran Rangers, who work with rebel militias and Scott to determine where to send them. 

Thanks to David Isenberg for pointing these guys out. I had heard of them before in the past but really didn’t know much about what they were doing. Outside magazine did a great little article about what they are up to and I thought I would share that.

The leader of this group, who happens to be former Special Forces, reminds me a lot of the Machine Gun Preacher guy in the Sudan named Sam Childers. In both cases, these men are trying desperately to help a people being oppressed and they are putting a lot on the line to save lives. That is cool.

Of course I am not that interested in the religious angles that these folks bring to the table, but as far as the act of defending others and doing what they can to empower the local populations against oppressive regimes, well then that is pretty awesome in my book.

If you are interested in donating money or getting involved with this group, here is a link to their website. It sounds like they have a few veterans working with them as well. The FBR does train folks in the combat arms, so if you have those skills or have something to offer in the realm of warfare, these guys would probably appreciate the help. –Matt

 

The Jesus-Kissed, War-Fringed, Love-Swirled Rangers
By: Adam Skolnick
Wednesday, November 07, 2012
The leader of the Free Burma Rangers keeps his identity secret. But he’s real, and he’s definitely hardcore. A former U.S. Special Forces operative—and an ordained minister, climber, and triathlete—he trains rebels and refugees in the fine art of outwitting one of the world’s most oppressive regimes to deliver humanitarian aid. Adam Skolnick hits the trail with a soldier on a mission from God.
On a sticky 90-degree day last November, the sun blazed high over a village in northern Karen, a province of 7.5 million people in southeastern Myanmar. At the edge of a riverside clearing, farmers dressed in rags, sweaty and soiled, trickled home from the fields to their thatched-bamboo huts for lunch. They chatted and laughed freely—until a mortar exploded 50 feet away.
Within seconds men in Myanmar Army uniforms strafed the village with semi-automatic gunfire. Shouting soldiers dragged women to the ground and held pistols to the men’s heads. The platoon leader wandered from hut to hut, using a torch to ignite grass roofs.
Then something strange happened. A young blond girl—dressed in black and wearing flip-flops, her face streaked with grease—suddenly leaped to the top of a boulder, holding a bow and arrow. Narrowing her eyes, she pulled back and fired.
“Way to go!” A lean, fit American guy, dressed in running shorts and an Army green T-shirt, emerged from the sidelines, clapping and cheering like a proud parent at a soccer game. “Did you see that? She jumped up like Robin Hood and just nailed the guy!”

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Monday, October 29, 2012

Cool Stuff: Asgarda–Women In The Ukraine Create A Modern Day Tribe Of Amazons

Filed under: Cool Stuff,Ukraine — Tags: , , , , , — Matt @ 2:30 PM

Crazy stuff here. But it also shows how bad things are in that region when it comes to gender oppression. For these women to run to the mountains and form such a highly defensive warrior tribe indicates to me that obviously there are some issues there. Now the question I have is when will these modern day Amazons make the jump from swords and scythes, to firearms and modern combat arms training? Interesting stuff. –Matt

 

In the Ukraine, a country where females are victims of sexual trafficking and gender oppression, a new tribe of empowered women is emerging. Calling themselves the “Asgarda”, the women seek complete autonomy from men. Residing in the Carpathian Mountains, the tribe is comprised of 150 women of varying ages, primarily students, led by 30 year-old Katerina Tarnouska. Reviving the tribal traditions of the Scythian Amazons of ancient Greek mythology, the Asgarda train in martial arts, taught by former Soviet karate master, Volodymyr Stepanovytch, and learn life skills and sciences in order to become ideal women. Little physical documentation existed on the tribe, until recently, when renowned French photographer, Guillaume Herbaut, met the Asgarda back in 2004 in the midst of the Orange Revolution.
Story here.
—————————————————————
Fight club
Imagine the Girl Guides with racier uniforms accessorised with pickaxes, chains and scythes and what have you got? Answer: a women’s youth movement sweeping Ukraine
By Sally Howard
12 Sep 2010
It’s 5.30am and dawn is breaking in the Carpathian Mountains. Morning mist garlands the mountaintops as the sun rises over a view that’s as old as the hills: headscarved babushkas push carts of hay by hand, white-tailed eagles circle drowsily above and the air is scented by the ancient spruces of Europe’s last stretch of virgin forest. Only the rumble of cargo trains driving west to Hungary disturbs this bucolic scene. That and the peals of three bikini-clad girls as they jump into the frigid Dniester, the fast-flowing river that courses south across the length of eastern Ukraine to the Black Sea.

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