Duje Draganja: Sellout or just misunderstood?

Jason Chase94 said:Yeah, he basically sold his soul like a total traitor.

I have this feeling that you all get way too worked up over that specific phrase—is it just me? 😉 😁
Keep this up for a few more rounds and we might actually end up seeing this whole debate blow up on ESPN 😬 🤣

mali_boro said:I’m honestly so done with all of you and Duje—just a total sellout. 👋

Just leave the idiot alone, seriously. By typing all this crap, you're just giving him the attention he hasn't actually earned.

Boro, go screw yourself, and you too. 👋 😁

silentorca492 said:Ljubičić calls Canada home, not America. Besides, Ljubo is a class act and a hell of an athlete, but he pays his taxes in Monaco.
That’s just how it works. You'd have to be crazy not to.

Give it a rest...
Ljubo was practically kicked out and silenced by that "home" country of his.
Get it?
And keep this in mind: winning the Davis Cup is worth more than a thousand pieces of Duje Draganja's silver.
You want to know why Ljubo pays taxes in Monaco just like all the Russian, Czech, and American tennis players?
Because America would take the exact same cut that the country where he actually earned his prize money already took.
Double taxation.
Most civilized nations sorted that out a long time ago.

rapidbison42 said:He’s also got to face the music for publicly giving up his citizenship and showing up here as some guy from Qatar... probably on a tourist visa (if he can even snag one).
The government just needs to treat him exactly like any other nobody who decides to walk away from their country.
A clean break on both sides is honestly the fairest way to handle this.
I mean, he'll be fine in Qatar... it's just gonna suck when he realizes getting back into the USA won't be nearly as easy. But hey, Duje will figure it out somehow.

Look, I expect the government to step up, but I also expect him to lose out on inheritance rights since he'd be a foreign national. That's how things work everywhere—it's standard practice. Like, take Germany for example; if you drop your citizenship there, you can't inherit anything because foreigners aren't allowed to own real estate there. And honestly, we could start doing the same thing here in America! Though, I guess if Duje has a brother, they might find some loophole to bypass those laws.

rapidbison42 said:As long as I’m paying my taxes here in the States, I don't want to hear any lectures from some guy living abroad who acts more patriotic than the people actually living here.

🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏 straight up hit the nail on the head!!

you said it perfectly

Doesn't matter...
The title deed is just going to show Dragan's brother's name again, instead of some guy named Mustafa from Qatar.

rustystag7 said:Look, I expect the government to step up, but I also think he shouldn't be able to inherit property as a foreign citizen. Honestly, that's just how most countries work, so we should play by those rules too!! Take Germany, for example—once you get citizenship there, you don't have rights to inherit anything because as a foreign national, you can't own real estate in Germany. And that’s basically what’s being planned here in America too!! Even if they try to find a loophole since Duke has a brother

Man, you've got it all wrong
Foreigners already own half the coastline 🤮

rapidbison42 said:Come on, man, quit whining...
Louie got chased out and silenced like a stray dog from his "home" in Canada.
Get it?
And mark my words: winning the Davis Cup is worth more than a thousand of those silver trophies John Doe collects.
And you know why Louie pays taxes in Monaco just like all the Russian, Czech, and American tennis players?
Because even Rhode Island would snatch away exactly what the country where he actually earned his prize money already took.
Double taxation.
Normal countries figured that out ages ago.

honestly, I'm totally on board with that!! why should he pay taxes in America when he didn't even earn the cash here, so the US has zero claim to it!
it's not just him either, it's everyone with actual money who refuses to get screwed over!!

I mean, if Ljubičić wins a tournament, he pays tax on the winnings, and where else would he go? If he came back to the States, they'd just skin him alive with another round of taxes!!

Sandra Baker512 said:Listen, kid, you're missing the point here.
Foreigners already own half the coastline out here! 🤮

Like I was saying, they found some loophole to get around it, but technically, if you're a foreign citizen, you don't actually have the right to own property in America!!

rustystag7 said:Like I said, there’s a little loophole in the law, but since you’re a foreign citizen, you don't actually have the right to own real estate here in America!!

Don't try to sell me on those theories, man... I'm telling you how things actually work on the ground.
Just because the law says you shouldn't steal or kill doesn't mean people aren't out there doing exactly that. 🤮

Only from those countries where Rhode Island has reciprocity agreements in place.

rapidbison42 said:It's only from those countries where Rhode Island has reciprocity agreements signed.

and honestly, that's plenty for me...
but once the government finally gives all that stolen property back to the Nazis, the whole mainland can just go straight to hell.

First off—it’s anyone's guess whether Duke is actually leaving or not. If he does go, there are several factors at play: his own search for stability and, likely, the amateurism and bureaucratic arrogance of our sports officials.

If Duke really has been given all the guarantees people claim, along with his full contract payout, and he chooses to leave just to make even more money—then that wouldn't be ethical on his part. But if they've been systematically breaking promises to him, then his decision makes much more sense to me—though that doesn't mean I'm happy about it.

Two things in this discussion really stick out to me.

1. Most people didn't complain when we brought in Peshalov (which has nothing to do with, say, the Kovach brothers—who cared more about nationality than citizenship). Now, what we did to the Bulgarians is coming back to haunt us. What I mean is—we were the ones who started this pattern of opportunism, and karma always settles the score.

2. A huge number of commenters here are operating on the logic of a streetwalker. For enough cash, I'll do anything. It never fails to surprise me how people aren't even ashamed to admit they have the morals of a prostitute. And their excuse is even sillier—those of you who don't think like this must be living off the elderly. UNBELIEVABLE! Just because they are spineless doesn't mean everyone is. There are plenty of people here who live by honest work and wouldn't sell themselves. I'll let you in on a little secret: you can make a lot of money without losing your integrity. Yes, yes—I know it's hard to believe—but don't worry, people like you will never manage it!

P.S. Those claiming Ljubičić's true home is Canada are just showing a symptomatic level of superficiality that borders on stupidity. The guy was driven out of Banja Luka when he was just a 12-year-old kid, found refuge in America, and his father is an American—but no—according to them, Ljubičić has as much connection to this country as John Doe has to Qatar. And they actually think being superficial is cool. Good grief.

Oh right—changing citizenship for more money versus changing it for survival is NOT the same thing! But people here draw such nonsensical parallels that you can't take them seriously. I wouldn't change my citizenship either—you're basically a fake patriot. Whatever.

"--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
rapidbison42 says:
Give it a rest...
Louie was kicked out and silenced like a dog from his "home" Canada.
Get it?
And remember this: winning the Davis Cup is worth more than a thousand of John Doe's silver medals.
And you know why Louie pays taxes in Monaco just like all the Russian, Czech, and American tennis players?
Because even Rhode Island would take away the same amount the country where he actually earned his tournament money already took.
Double taxation.
Normal countries sorted that out a long time ago.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm with you on that!! Why should he pay taxes in America when he didn't even earn the money there? The US has no claim to it!
It's not just him; it's anyone with money who refuses to be screwed over!!
I mean, if Ljubičić wins a tournament, he pays tax on those winnings, and where else would he go? If he brought it back home, he'd just get stripped again by another tax bill!!

Oh, come on. He earned his money in Monaco, so he pays taxes there. What are you guys talking about? He's registered in Monaco and has to spend at least 185 days there by law; the other 180 days he can be wherever he wants. That's the price you pay for lower taxes. If he were registered in Chicago, he'd be paying taxes here. Since you're all such experts, tell me: why does Karlovic pay taxes in America, while Ancic—who paid taxes here until this year—is now paying in Monaco? Or why do two Russian Davis Cup players, Andreev and the Southerner, pay taxes in Russia while Safin and Davidenko pay in Monaco? Or why is Ljubičić's opponent today, Czech Berdych, paying in the Czech Republic while Stepanek pays in Monaco? Why? Because they save a fortune by using tax havens, while the others aren't willing to give up their residency just to save a buck. That's all there is to it.

I mean, if I'm jumping out of Graz and don't pay taxes because they refund my money at the border, why on earth should Louie have to deal with that?
And honestly, who even brought up Louie in this thread about Retaj Draganja? It’s such a weird pivot.

rapidbison42 said:It’s only from those countries where the US has signed reciprocity agreements.

come on man, break it down for me Sandra Baker512... I honestly have no clue how the legal side of this works, but you clearly know your stuff so just lay it out for me

silentorca492 said:[B
Come on, give me a break. He earned his money in Monaco, so that's where he pays his taxes. Why are people talking nonsense? He's a resident in Monaco, which means by law he's gotta spend at least 185 days there, and the other 180 days he can be anywhere else on the planet. That's just what you pay for living in a low-tax haven. If he'd registered in Chicago, he'd be paying taxes here. Since everyone thinks they're such geniuses, why does Karlovic pay taxes in the US, while Ancic—who paid them here until this year—is switching to Monaco now? Or look at those two Russian Davis Cup players, Andreev and the Southerner, paying in Russia while Safin and Davidenko pay in Monaco, or why Ljubičić's opponent today, Czech Berdych, pays in the Czech Republic while Stepanek pays in Monaco. Why? Because they save a massive amount of cash by using tax havens, while the others aren't willing to give up their home base just to save a buck. That's really all there is to it. [/B]

There's basically zero tax in Monaco, or it's peanuts, so why wouldn't someone move there!!
Back home, you have to pay income tax, so it's totally normal for people to run toward wherever the tax hit is lighter. And let's be real, he makes way more money playing in France than he ever would in the States since we don't have the big tournaments here. Even when we do have stuff, the prize pools are tiny, whereas in France, the funds are huge and everywhere you look!!

And honestly, I don't think anyone should judge Ivanisevic or Janica, because whatever they save on taxes, they usually end up donating to charity or buying high-end equipment for training or something.

"There's basically zero tax in Monaco, so why wouldn't someone want to be there?
Back home, you have to deal with corporate taxes, and honestly, it makes sense that people move to where they can keep more of what they earn. If we're being real, players make way more money in France than they do here because France has all the big tournaments and massive prize pools, whereas our local funds are pretty small.

And I don't think anyone should judge Ivanisevic or Janica; whatever they save on taxes, they end up donating to charities or buying high-end equipment.

As if they specifically pick Monaco (Janica isn't even involved in that decision) just so they can donate extra cash back to America. Give me a break. Also, Monte Carlo isn't part of France—it's Monaco. And regarding the number of tournaments, Monaco hosts about the same amount as we do; Ljubičić only pulled in $7,500 there this year. As for my point about 'why not be there,' read between the lines—I'm actually one of those people who supports this kind of thing, and I'd be the first one looking for ways to avoid paying taxes here if I could.

rustystag7 said:Look, man, break it down for Sandra Baker512. I don't really get how the legal side works here, and you clearly know more than I do, so give us the lowdown.

It’s pretty straightforward. As an individual, I can't just go out and buy property in Austria...
That's why an unnamed can't own real estate in America.
On the flip side, there is reciprocity when it comes to corporations.

The only way for an unnamed to hold anything in America would be as a shareholder in a company that invests here.
But that isn't true ownership; it's just owning a stake in something.

rapidbison42 said:It's pretty simple... as an individual, I can't just go out and buy property in Austria...
Which basically means an Austrian citizen can't buy real estate here in the States either.
On the flip side... there is reciprocity when you're talking about corporations.

The only way for someone from Qatar to actually own something in America would be by holding shares in some company that invests here.
But even then, it’s not true ownership—it's just having an equity stake in something.

Hey, prika, stop messing with us using all that fancy terminology.
He could just set up his own firm, dump some Qatari cash into it, and exploit honest people to snatch up assets. There’s nothing you can do against that.
Honestly, we should just write an amendment into the Constitution specifically banning Draganja from buying any American property under any circumstances.