In an October 5th New York Times article, United Autoworker's President Shaun Fain stated that "Billionaires in my opinion don't have a right to exist."
I second that excellent and much-needed opinion.
Billionaires have purchased the right-wing extremists on the SCOTUS, purchased and either destroyed outright or subverted the power of many news organizations (like Twitter) and, most importantly, I think, turned their relationships with far too many politicians into nothing more than patronage troughs.
Mr. Fain is correct that the billionaire class "don't have a right to exist."
The U.S and the world would be much better off without this scourge.
Deborah, They really don’t have a right to exist in a country they refuse to support with their fair tax dollars contributing to The Common Good! That goes for millionaires too! Fixing the tax code & removing all the unfair loopholes is the only way to achieve fairness & more revenue that’s badly needed!
Circulation of money is the lifeblood of a society. Just as blood in the human body must nourish all bodily cells, so a decent income must enable a good life for every individual.
Shirley, it seems the IRS does have some tools, but they can involve some complexity that until recently, this year, they have not had the resources to address. Maybe at least some of the loafing of the very rich when it comes to taxes can be corrected. We'll see.
The problem is that, because of their vast wealth, many people, including elected government officials, court them and flatter them, and they begin to think they are some superior species of human, omniscient and wiser than everyone else. And because of their vast wealth, they can fund policies that suit their personal whims, but may not advance the common good, such as keeping their own taxes unreasonably low. It is undemocratic. Our elected officials, free from the overbearing wealth of the superrich, should be making government policy.
I agree with Shawn Fain, no one individual needs a billion dollars.
Because they have gotten the tax laws, corporate laws, criminal laws, environmental laws rigged to their benefit billionaires can’t help but hurt the rest of society. Have you ever seen a billionaire decide to not use the tax breaks and to pay their fair share because they didn’t fit the profile?
Not all of them are responsible for rigging things. Some of the greatest civil rights avocates, advocates for equity, environmentalists have been rich.
That's true. But absolute power tends to corrupt absolutely. The general sentiment is that we have allowed, by the changed rules of the road, to favor more and more policies (due to politicians responding to the money) which creates more ans more inequality and wealth in the hands of a few. The sheer number of billionaires now is staggering, not to mention how much power (generational power now) that creates for a few. A billion dollars (ONE billion) is so far above what is needed for everyday existence. Think of the public good that could do.
RFKJr and Musk are allies. Israeli’s Ambassador to the UN ripped Elon Musk yesterday for allowing anti-Israeli hate and propaganda to be spread on this platform in the wake of the attacks.
RFKJr's big daddy, Putin also is anti Israel.
State whether or not you're compensated to be a troll.
steveandjanereed, yes, Trump claiming the system was rigged when it is people like him who did most of the work toward rigging it is crazy. Hypocrisy is strong with the rich and supposed rich.
We-the-people share some blame. Too many of us don't vote and aren't making the effort to be informed. In too many instances hate and fear sell, or in this case, win elections. Money in politics is a huge problem.
Sorry the problem IS with the form of unfairly rigged capitalism we've been practicing now for the last 40+ years. Rules which heavily favor the wealthy.
Daniel, I, too am OK with people being "rich," or at least not to the extent of folks like Musk. I think the love of money does corrupt and makes those folks think they are nearly gods, able to disperse largess on the populace if they are so minded to do that and think buying candidates, representatives, senators, other legislators, judges and justices, is within their purview. It isn't or at least should not be. When wealth divides people from reality with their gated communities, private islands, and other isolations while they are working behind the scenes and in front of them to manipulate voters and elected officials, they have gone too far and need to be stopped. I do like the wealth tax which could be increased when the wealthy have been found to be using their money to manipulate. Closing down secret donation, 503C funds that are not actually for charitable purposes exclusively would be a good start. Expanding the Supreme Court and requiring all future federal judges and justices to have some positive moral compass would be a good way to go too.
I was not born with a silver spoon but I come from a small town and I knew everybody.
A number of people born to great wealth never held a job, and "philanthropy" became their occupatiion. Like with most things, there's probably a statistical bell shaped curve, but on one end are people who give away all their money. We had the richest private banker in the US and to my knowledge he had no heirs and none of his money went to political organizations.
I'm sorry to say another local family funded the Heritage Foundation, the Mellon Family (Scaife) has funded some of the most reactionary, underhanded attacks on the public good... so there is a wide range.
I don't think a lot of political donations are charitable... mostly legalized bribery.
That does not mean that Democratic candidates shoud turn town political contributions. I only wish George Soros were as pervasive and effective as the Antisemitic right wing conspiracy theorists claim.
Daniel, I do know there is a wide range of responses to and management of wealth. The problem is when the management does harm. When the rich person has an agenda in spreading the bits of wealth around and that agenda is designed to gain more for the wealthy person than they gave, there needs to be an intervention and our government is the best one to do that. Elon Musk and his ilk care nothing for anyone but themselves and the power their wealth and "expertise" gets them. If they donate to anyone, it will be so they will gain; as far as I can see, they do not do it out of the goodness of their hearts as they say. I think Bill and Melinda Gates started out trying to donate, giving away some of their money just to help. I am not sure things have continued that way. The Kochs donated for name recognition and legitimacy. Leo, the Federalist Society guy is a jerk, plain and simple, pushing his right-wing, possibly fascist agenda on this nation. The sad part for me is that he got so many young lawyers and judges willing to buy his BS and to work so hard to undermine our nation. I occasionally wonder why he does it, but realize that is the road to madness. If I worried about every rich guy who undermines our nation, I would be a nervous wreck, unable to function because there are a lot of them and our representatives at all levels love the donations they give, forgetting perhaps that those donations come with a price. I am guessing the takers of those donations suspend their moral compasses (if they ever had one) and hold their nose while their hand is out. It is hard to run a campaign now without that dark money and Republicans get most of it. Thank you Johnny Roberts and your team. You knew better, but didn't care. The various justices were making big bucks and not from their salaries. Roberts has been groomed for years to be just what he is and he will go down in history, probably as the worst SC chief in history because so much harm was done while he was in charge. Ugh!! I have to stop, my brain is hurting!
These "contributions" are really investments and they have paid back extremely well. They got trump elected and his tax cut for the wealthy has been an excellent investment for those obscenely wealthy people.
Also, there are a number of Dems who take none of those large donations, some of them win without the filthy money. I want money out of politics with publicly funded, short and substantive campaigns., (along with no to few paid lobbyists).
Daniel. I am OK with paying taxes. I have received a lot from our government as have all those rich folks, although they got a whole lot more. I just love the way rich people consider themselves the "givers" while everyone else is a "taker." That is beyond amusing. It shows just how either out of touch they are with reality or deliberately pretending they are really "giving" anything to anyone when they don't pay their fair share of taxes, hide money in tax shelters, make up foundations where they get tax cuts for money they can disperse in dribs and drabs while still getting the breaks decades later. That is crazy, but a lot of impoverished organizations depend on those dribs and drabs for survival to do the good work they do with people in need or programs that by their nature are underfunded. I don't know the answer, but I have no doubt there is an answer to be found if there were a will to find it.
Daniel, I don't mind paying taxes at all. I like my roads and fire department and schools and all the things that pooling our money allows us to work, live, play, enjoy life together. Do people who avoid taxes care about their self-respect? anyway, with respect to the lottery, if I win, I wonder if there's a way to sign it over to a nonprofit, before I ever touc;h it. would that avoid the taxes and do more good ? I'm thinking like UNICEF or feed the world.
I have everything I need, few wants, except books and tools.
what do you think of Leo Leonard and the Federalist Society’s plan? What do you think of their influence over the Supreme Court to rule in the favor of the rich at the expense of the rest of the civil rights and protections of the rest of the country? What does saying you don’t begrudge rich people without looking at what they do with their money?
That's because you've had to live life without gobs of money. Contrary to what most imagine, wealth is largely for the privileged: the more money/opportunity went into your upbringing, the more likely you are to be wealthy. Wealth begats more wealth. That fact has now been well-documented. And those who have never had to live without are less likely to understand or have empathy for those who do. This creates a snowball effect on society, where wealth buys more political favors, leading to exponentially more wealth and a fundamentally unfair society.
Most people, rich and poor, need to be able to empathicize. Spend some time in criminal law and find Being poor does not necessarily make people more empathetic. Evident on MMPI testing.
Except that money buys power. This is a fundamental issue in our society which is causing most of our social upheaval. We're living through a second Gilded Age.
I would also argue that, though there are exceptions, Machiaveli was right: absolute power corrupts absolutely. And money buys power, much more that it used to due to the laws that
those same dollars changed in favor of billionaires.
It's because of one thing and one thing ALONE: THEY GOT LUCKY! Most billionaires are talentless dopes who couldn't hold down a job FLIPPING BURGERS. Liddle elon is the perfect example. He INHERITED millions while losing TRILLIONS.
2. Lack intelligence, education and the ability to problem solve;
3. Have a short attention span; or
4. Have demonstrated treasonous acts such as: supporting an insurrection, stealing & sharing classified secrets, and making confidantes of our enemies while alienating our Allies.
Oct 11, 2023·edited Oct 11, 2023Liked by Robert Reich
The majority of the billionaires live outside the country and are non-US citizens. They have lots of US influence too. How do you propose getting rid of them? I think a better answer is to prohibit billionaires from owning media companies that operate in the USA, like X, TicTok, and network TV, and prohibit ALL cash donations to US politicians.
We need a global Leftist Liberal government that taxes everybody worth more than ten or fifteen million dollars 100% tax on everything over that amount.
Not if they are granted powers to destroy society. That is what they are doing. Billionaires and brain dead corporations who donate to peope who are doing harm. Ladies and gentlemen, we have a problem. Yeah I have noticed for a while now. Climate change is the final arbiter. The Earth, our Earth, is wonderfully homeostatic. If we don't curb climate change, the Earth will do it for us in a terrible way. My assumptions about the survival instincts of our species and it's ability to think were wrong from the start.
That's so communist. Of course they have a right to exist. But they don't have a right to engage in the abuses of democracy in order to attain & maintain their power and advantage over the rest of citizenry.
I can't speak for Mr. Fain, but in order to eradicate the very threats you have included in your critigue, the ability to amass such obscene wealth (and the undue influence it generates) should not exist in any society that purports to be a democracy.
Extreme wealth concentrated in the hands of a few is as lethal to democracy as a morbid illness is to the body.
That's not "communist" it's called concern for the greater good, not just an uncaring few.
This is a caveat with regard to social media sources in general, and "X" in particular, to keep in mind - a "heads up," if you will. (It's about the report, not about Ukraine.):
Closing our accounts on X is one good step. Turning to Robet Reich, Heater Cox Richardson, Dan Rather and Judd Legum for sound political analysis are another good step. Taking active steps to keep a would be authoritarian/fascist out of the Presidency is important also. But, we cannot ignore the driving force behind all of the disturbing trends that we are discussing here. Capitalism is a greed motivated system and it is undermining the system of democracy we are all trying to save. What we are facing is the struggle between the insatiable drive for accumulation of wealth and power verses the desire to have a governance and economic system that operates for the common good. Elon Musk is not the enemy, his is one of the many who take advantage of “the system.” and his tactics are not illegal under the current capitalist tainted system. Donald Trump made a statement that still resonates in my mind: “The system s rigged.” Trump, Musk and many other monied interests are a part of rigging it.
has always been about trying to make a more fair and just society. But history is also clear that, over time, democratic citizens tend to take their freedoms for granted, allowing strong-willed and powerful autocrats to destroy them. Greece, Rome, Venice all eventually faded due to forces mainly from within. The British made the longest journey toward democracy; we're a mere 250 years (minus Civil War) into the journey. This is why knowing history is so important for each generation to know. It only takes one generation to lose it.
Jan, I canceled my account when it was still called Twitter bec I could see the writing on the wall that he would create something very objectionable & I didn’t want to be reading thru a bunch of crap. I think people who want to get on X or Truth Social have severe amounts of time on their hands or just enjoy reading crap & lies & could have ulterior motives in mind!
Daniel has a great idea that people short Tesla to give Musk an incentive to pay attention to his stock Acct & have no time for “X”
FTC should be involved in their regulation!
I voted for the 3rd choice about requiring content Police on the platform! I bet he has difficulty getting & keeping employees with his toxic personality!!
My account was closed before the deal was closed. My concerns were a little different in some regards because it was clear to me that there would be a cavalier approach to data protection and privacy. Could already see this with Tesla.
You are missing the truly informative content on X like Robert Reich's educational videos. I think the answer is to be discerning, just the same way you read any newspaper.
I choose not to give Elon Musk even a penny. He blocked Robert Reich before buying Twitter: When he had 9% of the company. Or something like that. Union hater.
That's what everyone says about Facebook too. Yet almost every Trumper I know gets tons of "alternate facts" from that site. Because algorithms. They get what they want.
I can see it in real time on YouTube. I can literally watch how some AI entity is testing me to see what I like. If I decline enough, I will stop seeing that stuff. If I "like" something, I'll see ten more videos just like it the the next time I'm on. What Musk is doing is different. He is not leaving it to chance. He is deliberately withholding information that you should know but can't learn.
professor reich: i voted for making twitter a public utility. this has been my position about twitter for a decade now, after i realized its importance to the public, the media and to me, personally, for aggregating news of the day. it's imperative that twitter is removed from elmo's treacherous poisonous possession as soon as is possible, or perhaps, even sooner.
twitter has performed a valuable function for many years and to have it crippled and bastardized like it is now is painful to see.
When it first came out, i thought Twittler was a silly gimmick when it was shown on football games with players congratulating each other and bragging about themselves. I never thought it would go world wide,
get up to the minute news, but it also served as a popular means of connecting liberal interests, helpful for mobilizing. Similar to what we're doing here, but on a much broader and bigger, further-reaching level. I hated to leave, but I could see the handwriting on the wall soon after Musk took over. IMO what he has done to a one public forum should result in revocation of his US citizenship and deport him back to his racist South Africa upbringing.
Incidentally, I feel the same way about Rupert Murdoch. What he has been allowed to do to our "news" here should result in rescinding HIS US citizenship and sending HIM back to Australia. I doubt very much that the Aussies would want
Billionaires have bought our media and the courts, and most valuable land and beachfronts. They are not good stewards of these things. They should not own so much and care so little. It should be against the law with penalties to have that outsized power ; especially if it is being abused. Democracy cannot exist with this blight of inequity, nor could decency.
FDR and JFK came from families rooted in strong moral beliefs, based on their shared history, familial and religious upbringings. They also both faced great personal challenges which helped mold them into compassionate people: FDR's life changed with polio and his discovery of people not as privileged as he; JFK served with distinction and difficulty in WWIi, then battles Addison's disease, and his mother was a devout Catholic who believed in service--"To whom much has been given, much is required". Both of them shared the Depression and War, two great leveling forces on our society. Today's wealthy class has largely had none of those experiences (or anything like it).
BTW, the Party of FDR was keenly aware of the gross inequalities and struggles of the common Americans coming out of the Gilded Age (and great upheaval) into the Depression and WWII's sacrifices. They knew they wanted a better life for their country's working class. And the War/Depression created a DEMAND by the common
Americans for opportunity and increased wealth and fairness.
Time to get monopoly laws in place and effective. I believe we have examples of the attempt against Google & Amazon. Another reason showing solidarity behind Biden is critical.
Tweedle dump and "Twitter" Dee, Elon Musk has acquired the wealth that could negatively affect the health of this country, and "X" doesn't mark the spot.
We have allowed the Titans of technology, most of them owned and operated by a single person, to run roughshod over our democracies, our communities and our countries for their own personal profit. There is no regulation, no guard rails, no proper vetting, and yet they have become the number one source of “news and information” in the world. This is incredibly dangerous and we are already feeling, the very destructive results. We must not allow Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, etc. to weaponize free speech, and point hundreds of millions of people in whatever illicit direction they so choose. This is mass manipulation, clear and simple. This is Hitler all over again. We ignore this at our peril. There’s plenty of room for free speech without promoting lies and misinformation. There’s plenty of cause to challenge Netanyahu and Israel’s relationship with the Palestinians and vice versa. There is serious wrong on both sides of the line. But nothing can justify what is happening to Israel, and what will be happening to the 2 million people that live in the open air prison called Gazza. The attack on Israel is horrific and completely unacceptable. But this is what happens when we allow an imbecile and his son-in-law to take charge of peace talks. Need I remind anyone that the David accord “negotiations” didn’t even include the Palestinians. Absurd! But why would they when Mr. Kushner’s only interest was in developing his relationship with the Saudi financiers that would fund his VC. Two State solution? Middle East Peace? Nonsense! This is what happens when we put people in charge for whom money and personal profit is all that matters. Trump, Kushner, musk, Zuckerberg… They’re all members of the same oligarchs club and we are not invited.
Daniel Solomon : I agree ; Communication in human culture is as important as the nervous systems that regulate our bodies. This must be fixed, before it is an even larger threat to us, and the world
Hopefully all free-thinking users of X wise up and learn to distinguish between lies and truth, wherever they are found. But that's a dream and the malign will always try to manipulate the gullible - there are plenty of both. So the answer is regulation. Happy to see that the EU is getting tough with Musk and will probably impose heavy fines before blocking X in Europe.
Freedom of speech is not the freedom to lie. There is always going to be a struggle here. Which is best, to regulate or to nationalize? I am torn on these two. Yet, there is another strategy at the personal level that some have already mentioned, cancel your account and ignore X. The same is true for Amazon. Bezos may not have the abrasiveness of Musk, but he still demands attention. Not buying and not using are strategies that lower the oxygen levels for these corporate catastrophes.
Wayne Teel : I see lies as a form of harmful pollution. They do not help anyone, except those lying. Eventually their ill will is like poison in a well. Deadly ultimately. For everyone. There are far too many weapons, getting deadlier all the time. Escalation is real. Regulation is the best remedy.
Yelling fire in a theater may be actually legal but the ensuing consequences are not! License to speak freely comes with responsibilities. Free speech is not FREE!
It must be viewed in holistic way, just like gun rights advocates would love us to ignore the terrible consequences. Of course, any restrictions on free speech content can (and will) be twisted to condone its own terrible outcomes, but let us all make the package of free speech bigger to include the consequences.
A most delicate balance but one that an enlightened society must face.
as often happens, I wake up in the middle of the night. turn on the computer and you suck me in.
First, and most important, I thank you for your lifetime of work on behalf of part of my chosen family.
I think Musk has too much power. The problem is not just that he owns twitter. or x. The problem is he has 42 billion dollars to spend on twitter.
I don't know what to do about it. I think there is nothing to be done about it but you have suggested that I need to act as though I think there is something I can do about it. as I think you put it, I can be pessimistic but should not be cynical. I have promised someone that try not to be cynical.
That being said, I have no idea what I can or should do.
The smart money has already exited. Time for responsible news organizations to follow suit and quit diluting the raw sewage. IMO, the accumulated bleed will eventually brand X as the digital Enquirer that nobody relies upon for real news.
I don’t trust Musk as far as I could throw him! On the other hand, media in general has lost my trust. I believe what you and Heather Cox Richardson write and that’s about it. If I cannot see or witness an event myself, the evidence needs annotations to it’s authenticity or I am skeptical. The idea that there are “two sides to every story” is not represented in the “news”. I keep that in mind as I read the NY Times, my general go-to. National TV news borders on the absurd as it uses “shock and awe”, as W used to say, to hook viewership. Social medias like Twitter and FB are not ‘news’ in any way shape or form. They are outrageous open forums where people vent “magical thinking”, as they say in psychiatry. Making informed decisions these days is a crap-shoot at best. “You pays your money and you takes your choice.” I am not apathetic so it is frustrating to try and remain informed. It used to be, there were certain news reporters one could trust to give the news without bias. Today, I cannot name one. Every snippet of every story needs thorough research.AI will (has?)make fact checking impossible. Add that to technology over-reach into our private lives (as in Cambridge Analytica) and the “Matrix” becomes our reality. Maybe it already has.
In an October 5th New York Times article, United Autoworker's President Shaun Fain stated that "Billionaires in my opinion don't have a right to exist."
I second that excellent and much-needed opinion.
Billionaires have purchased the right-wing extremists on the SCOTUS, purchased and either destroyed outright or subverted the power of many news organizations (like Twitter) and, most importantly, I think, turned their relationships with far too many politicians into nothing more than patronage troughs.
Mr. Fain is correct that the billionaire class "don't have a right to exist."
The U.S and the world would be much better off without this scourge.
Deborah, They really don’t have a right to exist in a country they refuse to support with their fair tax dollars contributing to The Common Good! That goes for millionaires too! Fixing the tax code & removing all the unfair loopholes is the only way to achieve fairness & more revenue that’s badly needed!
Circulation of money is the lifeblood of a society. Just as blood in the human body must nourish all bodily cells, so a decent income must enable a good life for every individual.
Shirley, it seems the IRS does have some tools, but they can involve some complexity that until recently, this year, they have not had the resources to address. Maybe at least some of the loafing of the very rich when it comes to taxes can be corrected. We'll see.
Ruth Sheets- Biden's been working on improving the IRS's effectiveness in enforcement of tax laws. Please read: https://taxnews.ey.com/news/2021-1321-biden-administration-expects-increased-irs-enforcement-to-generate-more-revenue-to-fund-infrastructure
I don't begrudge rich people as long as they are good citizens and pay their fair share.
When I win Powerball, I'll continue to act accordingly.
The problem is that, because of their vast wealth, many people, including elected government officials, court them and flatter them, and they begin to think they are some superior species of human, omniscient and wiser than everyone else. And because of their vast wealth, they can fund policies that suit their personal whims, but may not advance the common good, such as keeping their own taxes unreasonably low. It is undemocratic. Our elected officials, free from the overbearing wealth of the superrich, should be making government policy.
I agree with Shawn Fain, no one individual needs a billion dollars.
Not all fit that profile. Why chase them away?
Because they have gotten the tax laws, corporate laws, criminal laws, environmental laws rigged to their benefit billionaires can’t help but hurt the rest of society. Have you ever seen a billionaire decide to not use the tax breaks and to pay their fair share because they didn’t fit the profile?
Not all of them are responsible for rigging things. Some of the greatest civil rights avocates, advocates for equity, environmentalists have been rich.
Don't thrrow out the baby with the bath water.
That's true. But absolute power tends to corrupt absolutely. The general sentiment is that we have allowed, by the changed rules of the road, to favor more and more policies (due to politicians responding to the money) which creates more ans more inequality and wealth in the hands of a few. The sheer number of billionaires now is staggering, not to mention how much power (generational power now) that creates for a few. A billion dollars (ONE billion) is so far above what is needed for everyday existence. Think of the public good that could do.
Exactly. We could use their help. We don’t want to alienate them!
The problem is not with capitalism.
It’s when capitalism takes over the gov,
Which is what RFK is running for president on.
Dems and republicans have let this happen.
Money run amuck
RFKJr and Musk are allies. Israeli’s Ambassador to the UN ripped Elon Musk yesterday for allowing anti-Israeli hate and propaganda to be spread on this platform in the wake of the attacks.
RFKJr's big daddy, Putin also is anti Israel.
State whether or not you're compensated to be a troll.
We agree. But RFKjr is not the answer any more than Donald Duck was with his breathless revelation that the system was rigged.
steveandjanereed, yes, Trump claiming the system was rigged when it is people like him who did most of the work toward rigging it is crazy. Hypocrisy is strong with the rich and supposed rich.
Yeah funny how Trump left that part out.
A true Scump!
Or Cornell West,what is he?
We-the-people share some blame. Too many of us don't vote and aren't making the effort to be informed. In too many instances hate and fear sell, or in this case, win elections. Money in politics is a huge problem.
RFK ? I couldn’t vote for him in good conscience & in good consciousness (being fully aware of who he truly is.
Sorry the problem IS with the form of unfairly rigged capitalism we've been practicing now for the last 40+ years. Rules which heavily favor the wealthy.
Daniel, I, too am OK with people being "rich," or at least not to the extent of folks like Musk. I think the love of money does corrupt and makes those folks think they are nearly gods, able to disperse largess on the populace if they are so minded to do that and think buying candidates, representatives, senators, other legislators, judges and justices, is within their purview. It isn't or at least should not be. When wealth divides people from reality with their gated communities, private islands, and other isolations while they are working behind the scenes and in front of them to manipulate voters and elected officials, they have gone too far and need to be stopped. I do like the wealth tax which could be increased when the wealthy have been found to be using their money to manipulate. Closing down secret donation, 503C funds that are not actually for charitable purposes exclusively would be a good start. Expanding the Supreme Court and requiring all future federal judges and justices to have some positive moral compass would be a good way to go too.
I was not born with a silver spoon but I come from a small town and I knew everybody.
A number of people born to great wealth never held a job, and "philanthropy" became their occupatiion. Like with most things, there's probably a statistical bell shaped curve, but on one end are people who give away all their money. We had the richest private banker in the US and to my knowledge he had no heirs and none of his money went to political organizations.
I'm sorry to say another local family funded the Heritage Foundation, the Mellon Family (Scaife) has funded some of the most reactionary, underhanded attacks on the public good... so there is a wide range.
I don't think a lot of political donations are charitable... mostly legalized bribery.
That does not mean that Democratic candidates shoud turn town political contributions. I only wish George Soros were as pervasive and effective as the Antisemitic right wing conspiracy theorists claim.
Daniel, I do know there is a wide range of responses to and management of wealth. The problem is when the management does harm. When the rich person has an agenda in spreading the bits of wealth around and that agenda is designed to gain more for the wealthy person than they gave, there needs to be an intervention and our government is the best one to do that. Elon Musk and his ilk care nothing for anyone but themselves and the power their wealth and "expertise" gets them. If they donate to anyone, it will be so they will gain; as far as I can see, they do not do it out of the goodness of their hearts as they say. I think Bill and Melinda Gates started out trying to donate, giving away some of their money just to help. I am not sure things have continued that way. The Kochs donated for name recognition and legitimacy. Leo, the Federalist Society guy is a jerk, plain and simple, pushing his right-wing, possibly fascist agenda on this nation. The sad part for me is that he got so many young lawyers and judges willing to buy his BS and to work so hard to undermine our nation. I occasionally wonder why he does it, but realize that is the road to madness. If I worried about every rich guy who undermines our nation, I would be a nervous wreck, unable to function because there are a lot of them and our representatives at all levels love the donations they give, forgetting perhaps that those donations come with a price. I am guessing the takers of those donations suspend their moral compasses (if they ever had one) and hold their nose while their hand is out. It is hard to run a campaign now without that dark money and Republicans get most of it. Thank you Johnny Roberts and your team. You knew better, but didn't care. The various justices were making big bucks and not from their salaries. Roberts has been groomed for years to be just what he is and he will go down in history, probably as the worst SC chief in history because so much harm was done while he was in charge. Ugh!! I have to stop, my brain is hurting!
These "contributions" are really investments and they have paid back extremely well. They got trump elected and his tax cut for the wealthy has been an excellent investment for those obscenely wealthy people.
Also, there are a number of Dems who take none of those large donations, some of them win without the filthy money. I want money out of politics with publicly funded, short and substantive campaigns., (along with no to few paid lobbyists).
If the donations are in the nature of lobbying, they should be disqualified.
Excellent Ruth!
"think they are nearly gods"....CLEARLY the case with that man.
Sounds good! You can win Powerball while I win Mega Millions.;)
when you win, you won't have a choice, the gov't takes their cut before you see anything,
if you were rich you wouldn't be treated that way.
I currently pay more income taxes than many rich people. When I make it, I don't mind.
I do resent people who avoid taxes at the cost of their self respect.
Daniel. I am OK with paying taxes. I have received a lot from our government as have all those rich folks, although they got a whole lot more. I just love the way rich people consider themselves the "givers" while everyone else is a "taker." That is beyond amusing. It shows just how either out of touch they are with reality or deliberately pretending they are really "giving" anything to anyone when they don't pay their fair share of taxes, hide money in tax shelters, make up foundations where they get tax cuts for money they can disperse in dribs and drabs while still getting the breaks decades later. That is crazy, but a lot of impoverished organizations depend on those dribs and drabs for survival to do the good work they do with people in need or programs that by their nature are underfunded. I don't know the answer, but I have no doubt there is an answer to be found if there were a will to find it.
Daniel, I don't mind paying taxes at all. I like my roads and fire department and schools and all the things that pooling our money allows us to work, live, play, enjoy life together. Do people who avoid taxes care about their self-respect? anyway, with respect to the lottery, if I win, I wonder if there's a way to sign it over to a nonprofit, before I ever touc;h it. would that avoid the taxes and do more good ? I'm thinking like UNICEF or feed the world.
I have everything I need, few wants, except books and tools.
Here's an article I wrote .....https://www.americanbar.org/groups/senior_lawyers/publications/voice_of_experience/2011/winter/social-security-maybe-charity-should-begin-at-home/
https://www.ssa.gov/agency/donations.html#:~:text=How%20can%20I%20make%20a,you%20are%20giving%20is%20unconditional.
Paul, but you should be treated that way. That is income you did little to nothing to obtain.
Agreed! I've even been planning ahead for my Powerball charitable trust! (Maybe tonight . . . ?)
what do you think of Leo Leonard and the Federalist Society’s plan? What do you think of their influence over the Supreme Court to rule in the favor of the rich at the expense of the rest of the civil rights and protections of the rest of the country? What does saying you don’t begrudge rich people without looking at what they do with their money?
I think Leo should be investigated.
As long as people obey the law, they are entitled to a presumption of innocence.
That's because you've had to live life without gobs of money. Contrary to what most imagine, wealth is largely for the privileged: the more money/opportunity went into your upbringing, the more likely you are to be wealthy. Wealth begats more wealth. That fact has now been well-documented. And those who have never had to live without are less likely to understand or have empathy for those who do. This creates a snowball effect on society, where wealth buys more political favors, leading to exponentially more wealth and a fundamentally unfair society.
Most people, rich and poor, need to be able to empathicize. Spend some time in criminal law and find Being poor does not necessarily make people more empathetic. Evident on MMPI testing.
Bet not!
No free will
Like trauma and PTSD
Become mega rich changes the brains biology to greed
Not opinion.
“What are we becoming?”
-Elons girlfriend as they became mega rich
Except that money buys power. This is a fundamental issue in our society which is causing most of our social upheaval. We're living through a second Gilded Age.
I would also argue that, though there are exceptions, Machiaveli was right: absolute power corrupts absolutely. And money buys power, much more that it used to due to the laws that
those same dollars changed in favor of billionaires.
Except that ethics and wealth are OFTEN connected. Machiaveli 101. Not always, but the temptation is greater.
Why are mentally ill men allowed to rule our world???
It's because of one thing and one thing ALONE: THEY GOT LUCKY! Most billionaires are talentless dopes who couldn't hold down a job FLIPPING BURGERS. Liddle elon is the perfect example. He INHERITED millions while losing TRILLIONS.
He's a super YUTZ!
Because mentally ill women would be more competent and get the destruction done more efficiently. Power does not discriminate between male and female.
dnkarr ; Well said and diplomatic, too! And most likely, true!
Or those who:
1. Are criminals;
2. Lack intelligence, education and the ability to problem solve;
3. Have a short attention span; or
4. Have demonstrated treasonous acts such as: supporting an insurrection, stealing & sharing classified secrets, and making confidantes of our enemies while alienating our Allies.
Only the ones who have money:). Seriously, there have been books written on the tendency of autocrats to be sociopathic.
The majority of the billionaires live outside the country and are non-US citizens. They have lots of US influence too. How do you propose getting rid of them? I think a better answer is to prohibit billionaires from owning media companies that operate in the USA, like X, TicTok, and network TV, and prohibit ALL cash donations to US politicians.
We need a global Leftist Liberal government that taxes everybody worth more than ten or fifteen million dollars 100% tax on everything over that amount.
Tim Baldwin : and all judges! And airplane rides, school tuition, home restorations....etc.
Not if they are granted powers to destroy society. That is what they are doing. Billionaires and brain dead corporations who donate to peope who are doing harm. Ladies and gentlemen, we have a problem. Yeah I have noticed for a while now. Climate change is the final arbiter. The Earth, our Earth, is wonderfully homeostatic. If we don't curb climate change, the Earth will do it for us in a terrible way. My assumptions about the survival instincts of our species and it's ability to think were wrong from the start.
Tax the heck out of them. Make it way less appealing to be filthy rich.
Exactly right! Obsolete billionaires ONLY exist because those inhuman monsters STOLE and LIED and MURDERED.
Now millionaires DO have the right to exist, as many recieved their money performing services people need and/or want. Billionaires? NO.
That's so communist. Of course they have a right to exist. But they don't have a right to engage in the abuses of democracy in order to attain & maintain their power and advantage over the rest of citizenry.
I can't speak for Mr. Fain, but in order to eradicate the very threats you have included in your critigue, the ability to amass such obscene wealth (and the undue influence it generates) should not exist in any society that purports to be a democracy.
Extreme wealth concentrated in the hands of a few is as lethal to democracy as a morbid illness is to the body.
That's not "communist" it's called concern for the greater good, not just an uncaring few.
Agree fully.
A TANGENT CONSIDERATION:
This is a caveat with regard to social media sources in general, and "X" in particular, to keep in mind - a "heads up," if you will. (It's about the report, not about Ukraine.):
- THE BBC REPORT AND UKRAINE...:
https://youtu.be/iXdIp1TFJu0?si=ZPhK5VPyJRwq62Md
Disinfo propaganda is getting pretty sophisticated. Heed ol' Beau's advice on following up suspect or out of character articles.
So kill the bills?
I closed my account and haven’t gone back. There are other, less poisonous places to go.
Closing our accounts on X is one good step. Turning to Robet Reich, Heater Cox Richardson, Dan Rather and Judd Legum for sound political analysis are another good step. Taking active steps to keep a would be authoritarian/fascist out of the Presidency is important also. But, we cannot ignore the driving force behind all of the disturbing trends that we are discussing here. Capitalism is a greed motivated system and it is undermining the system of democracy we are all trying to save. What we are facing is the struggle between the insatiable drive for accumulation of wealth and power verses the desire to have a governance and economic system that operates for the common good. Elon Musk is not the enemy, his is one of the many who take advantage of “the system.” and his tactics are not illegal under the current capitalist tainted system. Donald Trump made a statement that still resonates in my mind: “The system s rigged.” Trump, Musk and many other monied interests are a part of rigging it.
All good points.
Historically speaking, the struggle for democracy
has always been about trying to make a more fair and just society. But history is also clear that, over time, democratic citizens tend to take their freedoms for granted, allowing strong-willed and powerful autocrats to destroy them. Greece, Rome, Venice all eventually faded due to forces mainly from within. The British made the longest journey toward democracy; we're a mere 250 years (minus Civil War) into the journey. This is why knowing history is so important for each generation to know. It only takes one generation to lose it.
A modern society needs government. The relevant questions are: What kind of government? And to whom is it responsible?
Jan, I canceled my account when it was still called Twitter bec I could see the writing on the wall that he would create something very objectionable & I didn’t want to be reading thru a bunch of crap. I think people who want to get on X or Truth Social have severe amounts of time on their hands or just enjoy reading crap & lies & could have ulterior motives in mind!
Daniel has a great idea that people short Tesla to give Musk an incentive to pay attention to his stock Acct & have no time for “X”
FTC should be involved in their regulation!
I voted for the 3rd choice about requiring content Police on the platform! I bet he has difficulty getting & keeping employees with his toxic personality!!
I did, too. Discernment and critical thinking are becoming a lost art in the era of social media.
My account was closed before the deal was closed. My concerns were a little different in some regards because it was clear to me that there would be a cavalier approach to data protection and privacy. Could already see this with Tesla.
You are missing the truly informative content on X like Robert Reich's educational videos. I think the answer is to be discerning, just the same way you read any newspaper.
I watch and read Reich's material on other platforms.
I choose not to give Elon Musk even a penny. He blocked Robert Reich before buying Twitter: When he had 9% of the company. Or something like that. Union hater.
That's what everyone says about Facebook too. Yet almost every Trumper I know gets tons of "alternate facts" from that site. Because algorithms. They get what they want.
I can see it in real time on YouTube. I can literally watch how some AI entity is testing me to see what I like. If I decline enough, I will stop seeing that stuff. If I "like" something, I'll see ten more videos just like it the the next time I'm on. What Musk is doing is different. He is not leaving it to chance. He is deliberately withholding information that you should know but can't learn.
Ditto
Ditto
professor reich: i voted for making twitter a public utility. this has been my position about twitter for a decade now, after i realized its importance to the public, the media and to me, personally, for aggregating news of the day. it's imperative that twitter is removed from elmo's treacherous poisonous possession as soon as is possible, or perhaps, even sooner.
twitter has performed a valuable function for many years and to have it crippled and bastardized like it is now is painful to see.
Yes. Break it up and/or regulate it. The EU and Australia have been doing this for some time. Why are we the only "Wild West"?
Never been on Twitter. Don't need to be on Twitter and never listen what this man has to say.
Yes, I think he has too much influence.
I can't stand to listen to him and i can't the sight of him.
Likewise never saw any value in this platform.
When it first came out, i thought Twittler was a silly gimmick when it was shown on football games with players congratulating each other and bragging about themselves. I never thought it would go world wide,
Jenny, Twitter used to be a place to not only
get up to the minute news, but it also served as a popular means of connecting liberal interests, helpful for mobilizing. Similar to what we're doing here, but on a much broader and bigger, further-reaching level. I hated to leave, but I could see the handwriting on the wall soon after Musk took over. IMO what he has done to a one public forum should result in revocation of his US citizenship and deport him back to his racist South Africa upbringing.
Incidentally, I feel the same way about Rupert Murdoch. What he has been allowed to do to our "news" here should result in rescinding HIS US citizenship and sending HIM back to Australia. I doubt very much that the Aussies would want
him back.
Billionaires have bought our media and the courts, and most valuable land and beachfronts. They are not good stewards of these things. They should not own so much and care so little. It should be against the law with penalties to have that outsized power ; especially if it is being abused. Democracy cannot exist with this blight of inequity, nor could decency.
I'm sure that there are exceptions -- noblesse oblige is alive and well in some circles. I belong to the party of FDR, JFK......
Daniel Solomon ; Of course, there were the 'paternalistic ' owners who treated their employees fairly, even generously. Rare, indeed now.
FDR and JFK came from families rooted in strong moral beliefs, based on their shared history, familial and religious upbringings. They also both faced great personal challenges which helped mold them into compassionate people: FDR's life changed with polio and his discovery of people not as privileged as he; JFK served with distinction and difficulty in WWIi, then battles Addison's disease, and his mother was a devout Catholic who believed in service--"To whom much has been given, much is required". Both of them shared the Depression and War, two great leveling forces on our society. Today's wealthy class has largely had none of those experiences (or anything like it).
BTW, the Party of FDR was keenly aware of the gross inequalities and struggles of the common Americans coming out of the Gilded Age (and great upheaval) into the Depression and WWII's sacrifices. They knew they wanted a better life for their country's working class. And the War/Depression created a DEMAND by the common
Americans for opportunity and increased wealth and fairness.
Time to get monopoly laws in place and effective. I believe we have examples of the attempt against Google & Amazon. Another reason showing solidarity behind Biden is critical.
Tweedle dump and "Twitter" Dee, Elon Musk has acquired the wealth that could negatively affect the health of this country, and "X" doesn't mark the spot.
We have allowed the Titans of technology, most of them owned and operated by a single person, to run roughshod over our democracies, our communities and our countries for their own personal profit. There is no regulation, no guard rails, no proper vetting, and yet they have become the number one source of “news and information” in the world. This is incredibly dangerous and we are already feeling, the very destructive results. We must not allow Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, etc. to weaponize free speech, and point hundreds of millions of people in whatever illicit direction they so choose. This is mass manipulation, clear and simple. This is Hitler all over again. We ignore this at our peril. There’s plenty of room for free speech without promoting lies and misinformation. There’s plenty of cause to challenge Netanyahu and Israel’s relationship with the Palestinians and vice versa. There is serious wrong on both sides of the line. But nothing can justify what is happening to Israel, and what will be happening to the 2 million people that live in the open air prison called Gazza. The attack on Israel is horrific and completely unacceptable. But this is what happens when we allow an imbecile and his son-in-law to take charge of peace talks. Need I remind anyone that the David accord “negotiations” didn’t even include the Palestinians. Absurd! But why would they when Mr. Kushner’s only interest was in developing his relationship with the Saudi financiers that would fund his VC. Two State solution? Middle East Peace? Nonsense! This is what happens when we put people in charge for whom money and personal profit is all that matters. Trump, Kushner, musk, Zuckerberg… They’re all members of the same oligarchs club and we are not invited.
The "airwaves" should be public. That includes social media. When the FCC was created, it didn't contemplate people like Musk or Murdoch. Easy fix.
https://www.fcc.gov/media/radio/public-and-broadcasting
Daniel Solomon : I agree ; Communication in human culture is as important as the nervous systems that regulate our bodies. This must be fixed, before it is an even larger threat to us, and the world
Even the internet itself should be public. It’s a common good similarly to electric transmission lines, interstate highways and even railways.
I have never had an account on twitter/X. I realize many thought the platform was useful. I did not. I still don’t.
Me either! Amen to that.
It is SO ridiculous!
Same here, i never had an account and never had any desire to. I guess my daughter thinks it's still useful as she still uses it everyday.
Hopefully all free-thinking users of X wise up and learn to distinguish between lies and truth, wherever they are found. But that's a dream and the malign will always try to manipulate the gullible - there are plenty of both. So the answer is regulation. Happy to see that the EU is getting tough with Musk and will probably impose heavy fines before blocking X in Europe.
Freedom of speech is not the freedom to lie. There is always going to be a struggle here. Which is best, to regulate or to nationalize? I am torn on these two. Yet, there is another strategy at the personal level that some have already mentioned, cancel your account and ignore X. The same is true for Amazon. Bezos may not have the abrasiveness of Musk, but he still demands attention. Not buying and not using are strategies that lower the oxygen levels for these corporate catastrophes.
Wayne Teel : I see lies as a form of harmful pollution. They do not help anyone, except those lying. Eventually their ill will is like poison in a well. Deadly ultimately. For everyone. There are far too many weapons, getting deadlier all the time. Escalation is real. Regulation is the best remedy.
One man’s lies are another man’s truth.
A sane Supreme Court decided this a long time ago
Actually, Schenk was and is an abomination. The "aiwaves" are supposed to be public.
Blake Fleetwood : The latest Supreme Court is not the same as 'a long time ago'. The world is different, and here comes AI.
Yelling fire in a theater may be actually legal but the ensuing consequences are not! License to speak freely comes with responsibilities. Free speech is not FREE!
It must be viewed in holistic way, just like gun rights advocates would love us to ignore the terrible consequences. Of course, any restrictions on free speech content can (and will) be twisted to condone its own terrible outcomes, but let us all make the package of free speech bigger to include the consequences.
A most delicate balance but one that an enlightened society must face.
Charles Anderson : Yes, regulation could help. As always: determining intent is important. Not easy. Speech should not incite riots, at least.
I don't think our society is up to it. Hasn't been so far.
Social media are anti-social.
Unsubscribe, and support proper verified journalism in responsible MSM.
Professor,
as often happens, I wake up in the middle of the night. turn on the computer and you suck me in.
First, and most important, I thank you for your lifetime of work on behalf of part of my chosen family.
I think Musk has too much power. The problem is not just that he owns twitter. or x. The problem is he has 42 billion dollars to spend on twitter.
I don't know what to do about it. I think there is nothing to be done about it but you have suggested that I need to act as though I think there is something I can do about it. as I think you put it, I can be pessimistic but should not be cynical. I have promised someone that try not to be cynical.
That being said, I have no idea what I can or should do.
As always
Much love
Fred
The smart money has already exited. Time for responsible news organizations to follow suit and quit diluting the raw sewage. IMO, the accumulated bleed will eventually brand X as the digital Enquirer that nobody relies upon for real news.
I don’t trust Musk as far as I could throw him! On the other hand, media in general has lost my trust. I believe what you and Heather Cox Richardson write and that’s about it. If I cannot see or witness an event myself, the evidence needs annotations to it’s authenticity or I am skeptical. The idea that there are “two sides to every story” is not represented in the “news”. I keep that in mind as I read the NY Times, my general go-to. National TV news borders on the absurd as it uses “shock and awe”, as W used to say, to hook viewership. Social medias like Twitter and FB are not ‘news’ in any way shape or form. They are outrageous open forums where people vent “magical thinking”, as they say in psychiatry. Making informed decisions these days is a crap-shoot at best. “You pays your money and you takes your choice.” I am not apathetic so it is frustrating to try and remain informed. It used to be, there were certain news reporters one could trust to give the news without bias. Today, I cannot name one. Every snippet of every story needs thorough research.AI will (has?)make fact checking impossible. Add that to technology over-reach into our private lives (as in Cambridge Analytica) and the “Matrix” becomes our reality. Maybe it already has.
So, Elon Musk? Just another brick in the wall.
I cancelled my account just after Musk purchased Twitter. It became a site I did not trust.