Relying on the Fed to bring down prices is like treating someone’s fever by putting them a freezer. It doesn’t treat the underlying disease, and could make things far worse.
Just curious in the USA: Why do people talk about going after the oil companies and not the pharmaceutical companies? Or going after non profits and churches that don't pay any taxes. Like the NRA, NBA, NFL. Just curious to hear others thoughts.
Many do talk about going after price gouging by pharmaceutical companies. (I've written several articles about this.) But oil companies are an easier target because their prices at the pump are announced in big numbers on almost every major corner, therefore becoming the gauge by which most people judge inflation. And Big Oil is making record profits.
I've read some of your articles attacking Big Pharma and others as well. I find you to be very fair in your judgements. You've also pointed out price gouging in the food industry. No corporation should be entitled to profiteer for any reason. And then the GOP adds salt to our wounds by giving them more and more tax breaks.
Corporate taxes on income as a percent of GDP are the lowest they have been in 80 years. US corporate income taxes as a percent of GDP hover around 1%. The OECD average is 4%. America ranks third from the bottom among OECD countries on corporate income taxes. Corporate profits across the board, not just big pharma and oil companies, are setting all time records. Corporate consolidations have reduced competition which allows many of them to gouge the public with higher prices. Seems like the least we could do is tax some of that loot.
Don. Thank you for your update with numbers and facts. I can see how the "corporate consolidation" hurts all Americans with the baby formula debacle. The FDA shut down the plant but did NOT have a back up plan for production. Don't we pay these government employees running the FDA good salaries with our tax money? How could they shut down the plant and not have a back up plan? In the corporate world they would have all been fired by now. I am baffled as we watch the mismanagement of government with our tax money. I have watched Wal Mart over the years in small communities in Northern Arizona shut down ma and pa shops too. We have reduced competition with big box stores in every small and big cities in the USA. This is our new world in the USA. We let it happen on our watch. Thank you for caring and making a response. I hope you have a good day. Hugs from Arizona
The job of the FDA is to prevent businesses from producing and selling filthy and corrupted products that kill people. The Department of Justice enforces antitrust enforcement. It's an executive branch department under the authority of the president. Both parties have been guilty of allowing America's antitrust laws to become dormant which gets us back to Citizens United and campaign finance corruption. The DOJ should have prevented the consolidation of baby formula production down to two companies and we can see now why it was so wrong to allow this.
I'm opining that it would have been nice if the Repug administrations had done something to stop big corps from shutting down local businesses nationwide. The money spent at BIG stores goes out of the community to big banks worldwide. Snuffing out the benefits each community gets from pay packets being spent locally and supporting local businesses. It's spent once at the gas station, then goes on the corporate books, outside of the local area where local ppl spent it. Dems have not been in a power position to do anything about this for many years. So dont blame them. Blame the foot soldiers of big money. Think republicans.
Don. You hit the nail on the head. Both parties are to blame. They spend too much time impeaching Presidents, going after political opponents, and back stabbing each other. Sad time for politics in America. We go too far left (Obama) then we go too far right (Trump). Wish we could find politicians that could compromise and work together. Thanks for caring.
Fay. We think alike. I am for the little guy. I am 70 years old. I have seen a lot over the years. I worked hard and raised an amazing family. I love America. I respect the flag. I believe we stand for the flag and kneel for the fallen. Without those that fought for our freedom Americans would be like Russia or China. Unfortunately in the USA we tend to go too far right, then too far left. I have been registered as an independent voter for many years. We no longer can compromise on what is best for the country. I can see how to fix the abortion issue. I can see how to fix the gun issue. I can see how to fix the drug and poverty issue. If I can see it, why can't our politicians? The reason is big money has corrupted our government officials decision making processes. Our elections seem to be corrupt and broken too. The technology revolution is changing our world before our own eyes. We can only hope and pray that adults will begin to take action. We need laws and rules to be changed. No one over the age of 65 should be able to run for President. If we change that rule today we will not have the blood bath with Trump and Biden in 2024. Right now our #1 concern in America is keeping our children safe. Everything else comes second. Sending you hugs from Arizona.
Totally get you Cecelia, Money, Greed are our two biggest enemies. I don't understand either why these are the gods Americans worship. If you're 70 and I'm 89, will there be youngsters left to draw a wise line against these evils? I certainly hope so. And I know Dr. Reich puts his faith in the younger generation. I just don't see the wide spread passion of the Civil Rights movement of the 1960's or the anti-War movement of the 70's.
Fay you seem like a very young 89 year old. My best friend was almost 100 years old before she past on. Her name was Elisabeth Ruffner and she was inducted into the Arizona Women's Hall of Fame with Sandra Day O'Connor. Elisabeth was a Republican for years and then under George Bush changed to Democrat. She was my teacher, my mentor and one of my best friends. Elisabeth and Sandra taught me so much over the years. I have been an independent voter for years. I have grandchildren in their 20's. I talk to them. I also operate a small company called Visiting Angels. We help people that need help. We are NOT a non profit but we work hard to pay our bills and help others. My staff is under the age of 40 years old. These young folks know the government is corrupt. They know our voter laws are antiquated and don't work. They see with their own eyes the price at the gas pump, the illegals coming across the border, the homeless on the streets, the drug/mental health addictions, abortion issue, gun issue and safety for their kids. Many are not sure if they are men or women now. They have kids that are not sure if they are a man or a woman. The baby boomer generation has made a mess of the USA. We let things get out of control by being too far right then too far left. This younger generation can't be involved as much as we did with civil rights back in the 60's and 70's because they are barely keeping their heads above water. Many are sick physically and mentally. The only thing you and I can do is keep communicating and listening to Mr. Reich who cares so much. Just remember he lives in his own bubble. We need to work together on solutions. It can be done. But it will take great leadership. 1 by 1 we CAN make a difference. I send you special hugs from Arizona. Do you still reside back east?
Cecelia, you have quite a grab basket of concerns. First, people do know if they are male or female. Everybody KNOWS.
Few seem to recognize that our world is awash w/ chemicals that change the very nature of our offspring. And there have been for ages ppl who are not on the inside what they look like on the outside. It's more than sad that this status has been designated illegal & punishable. I suspect that science will prove there always have been men & women who look one way on the outside but are the opposite inside. Keeping it to 2 varieties of human being helps the masses to conform to ancient taboos w/o question. it's all about Gawd, for most people, you see. And war, which requires male-denominated skills, not those of females ( maybe that's just custom and not genetic?)As for poor people, if the connected, often corrupt, movers & shakers had not been working since the last Great Depression of the 1930s-- generation after generation of mostly male movers and shakers --all using religion as a tool to force others into their way of thinking--to accumulate as much money and power (which always work together) as possible in order to control media propaganda and control ALL the people, w/ God as their declared cause, reason, and force. Who decided, for instance, that it was wrong for people to act and BE the way they were formed in the womb? My suspicion is tht it was fearful men who found women malleable and willing to go along with whatever the men thought was "right."(The why of that requires more study, too) Men might not have a life of consumption and "winning" so easily if they could not label the third sex just by virtue of bodily appendages and hand gestures. It's a complex subject and i hope to get it together enough to have a sub-whatever worth reading about the scientific studies of hormones of gestation etc.
Then there's the issue of what happens to the developing child in the womb. What might the world be doing to affect the fetus at super-critical moments in development.
This has been a topic of discussion for some time.
Perhaps the way we all live creates ambiguous sexual development. Just as tossing tiny babies into hard carriers when they are days old instead of taking them right home in swaddling clothes and a mother's soft and tender warm arms, and letting them finish developing critical body parts in a warm. dim. quiet . & snug environment. Instead of being on the go among the overwhelming sound of rock "music", crowds of people, bright lights and rough hauling from house to car to pub etc, let them hear mom and dad's tender quiet voices to create a touchstone from which to move on to each new day w/a certitude and safety. That's how it's been for most humans as long as there have been people. Some animals have the same practices. There are scientific studies on the development of a human being, and ignoring what science knows might just be the reason so many people are capable of mass murder these days. Their brains don[t develop the ties to other human beings, and they never move to the music of the stars and good will, but to the dis-ease and discontent of the rough life. Spartanism, I suppose, is what makes some willing--and needing --to kill. It's a quality valued in wartime, but not in peace. And perhaps why we seem to have plenty of people who dont fit the "mold" society thinks our offspring must fit into from birth. It's a big job to put all the pieces together, but i used to like jigsaw puzzles. How about you? Are you open to learning what the science says, one study at a time? When I studied anthropology, i wanted to be an archeologist, but the topic of human development is worth more than every bone I have not dug up in my lifetime.
I have lived in California since 1961 and will never leave permanently (until I die) I really love this State. On the subject of young people I have four adult grandchildren and each has made the decision not to bring any children into this world. I agree with them, but I find this very sad, that thinking intelligent people don't want to have children because of the mess my generation made of this world. Some of the mess - climate control - was because most of us didn't know any better. [I didn't learn of the probability of rapidly increasing temperatures until I was in post-graduate college in the 1970's] but greed I did know about and deplored. I should have been even more vocal than I was. I disagree with your statement that the government is corrupt. Not all governments are corrupt, and most legislators are not - it's just that those who are corrupt wrangle their way into positions of power. Also a lot of the problem is caused by the "common people" who are so disinterested, or so in favor of greed, they pay little or no attention to who is governing them. In the case of trump, they refuse to face factual evidence when it is presented to them, preferring their 'pollyannish' view of the world.
Robert. I agree with you. People tend to be like sheep. They only see and hear what affects them in their own bubble. They see gas prices every time they fill up their vehicle.
And I wouldn’t go after nonprofits because by definition they have no profits to tax! So, Robert, do you have a petition for us to sign for Congress? For the greedy oil companies?
Carol non profits make a TON of money. They pay their directors and staff big bucks. They get all types of breaks by claiming a "non profit" status. The one's that don't get these breaks are the small mom and pop operations trying to run their small profit business. Trust me. I am one of those people. I wanted to speak about my business at our local Rotary, Elks and Lion's clubs. They only allow "non profits" to speak. If I don't make money to pay my staff them I will be a non profit too!
Robert et al. Many US corporations are owned by international shareholders Some of the profits are not taxed in this country.
The Saudis control OPEC, the "market maker" for the price of oil internationally by fixing output. The Saudis own the largest oil refineries in the US and control a number of US oil producers.
On April 12, 2020, under pressure from Trump, the world’s biggest oil-producing nations outside the United States agreed to the largest production cut ever negotiated.
OPEC, Russia and other allied producers slashed production by 9.7 million barrels per day (bpd), or about 10% of global output. Half that volume came from cuts of 2.5 million bpd each by Saudi Arabia and Russia, whose budgets depend on high oil-and-gas revenues.
This was done because the dramatic reduction in demand caused by the pandemic reduced gasoline prices to the point where it was hurting American oil company profits.
To protect those oil companies, Trump essentially extorted the Saudis to cut production.
Meanwhile, oil companies have achieved record, multi-billion profits. While no president is responsible for the price of gasoline at the pump, largely a function of supply, demand and corporate greed, Trump went to enormous length to cut supply.
Once demand was restored, we were stuck with Trump’s short-sightedness. Although some production has increased and the cost of oil has dropped, prices at the pump do not reflect the costs. This needs to be investigated.
Today the EU leaders say they will block most Russian oil imports by the end of 2022 to punish Moscow for invading Ukraine. .Crude oil prices and futures are skyrocketing.
Just a comment: I highly doubt Trump was short-sighted. He knew lowering the production of oil would drive prices up, and that the oil giants would profit more therefrom. This was totally intentional. That he did this at such a critical time was pure coincidence, but the oil companies, whoever ultimately owns them, are happier than hell to keep price gouging! I do not know what the anti-consortium laws (whatever you call them) are like in the States, but I find it very funny how all the oil companies raise their prices the same day all the time, and to the same levels. If this is not a conspiracy, I do not know what it is! This used to be illegal in Canada, but I have not heard of anyone being charged in the last 20 years, though it is obviously happening here as well as down beliw us.
Rawgod. You make great points! All I know is under President Trump we had low gas prices. Under President Biden we have all time high gas prices. The middle class American people that drive to work are being hurt the most. Sending you hugs from Arizona.
I know small businesses have taken it in the shorts, but don't lump all non-profits together. There are many that have only 5 to 10% administrative costs, the rest goes to the charity, You can research which ones are charities for the purported purpose and which are charities for the perpetrators.
Fay. You are correct. Not all charities or non profits are bad. Just like businesses. Not all are good or bad. However, the bad ones tend to make lots of money. My dad taught me money talks, and bullshit walks. Seems to be truer than true in today's society. Thank you for caring. Hugs from Arizona.
That's exactly why some so called non-profits should lose their tax free status. Much as I love football, there is no denying they rake in enormous profits year after year - why should that be tax free. And the scam artists who set up phony "charities" and send one cent of every dollar they rake in to said charity (that is if they send anything at all) What we need to do is overhaul the IRS, give them as many auditors as they need, go after the tax dodgers, scammers, etc. No matter how powerful they thing they are, everyone in the United States should pay their FAIR SHARE of the cost of living here.
Carol. That is the way non profits should act. However, many are most interested in paying their staff and administration high amounts of income. Very little goes to the people. Fay Reid makes good points about charities in her response below. Do some research. You would be amazed how 90% of the money collected by many non profits go to "administration" fees.
Let's look at a specific "charity" This one is supposedly to help police and heir widows and children. Less than 5% of donations goes to help police, 95% goes to the 'owners" of the charity and their call centers, I have actually been contacted by our local Sheriff's office by phone and they've also posted online not to donate to this scam. They (the scammers) are registered as a non-profit. The same is true of the Cowboys, Giants, 49er's, Raiders and the other NFL teams. All are registered as non-profit. If you really believe the billions of dollars they take in every year is a charity, I know of a bridge in Brooklyn I can sell you. (p.s. I am still an avid football fan) I do not understand the IRS requirement for registering as a non-profit, but I am very skeptical. Perhaps Dr. Reich or Daniel Solomon could enlighten us of what constitutes a "non-profit" but obviously NOT all non-profits are equal.
Not all non-profits are non-profit. Mega churches, big league sports are given non-profit status by the IRS while pulling in billions of dollars per year. Also Big oil also gets big welfare in the form of oil depletion allowances.
Yes, Big Oil is simply the current egregious offender, but it's a system-wide problem that puts profits - as much profit as possible - first, and all other considerations ... well, there *are* no other considerations.
By people, I assume you mean the media. There are many very good non-profits, like Doctors Without Borders, World Wildlife Fund, ASPCA, Defenders of Wildlife, etc that spend very limited amounts on 'administration' so I don't think they should be taxed. There are a couple of agencies that track the percentage collected vs administrative costs. I quit donating to the Humane Society when I found they were paying their CEO several million dollars per year plus expenses - there are other so called charities to which I will not donate, but I had to research to find which ones are legitimate and which are just scams. The sports leagues are a different matter, they apparently got a 'charitable' classification around the 1950's/1960's. What a joke. The millionaire owners make huge profits every year and laugh all the way to the bank/ By the way you should include the MLB too. As to corporations, they put profits before anything. The Boards of Directors with the approval of the stockholders determine the CEO salaries, bonuses and perks. The only basis seems to be bragging rights about who pays the most. There is no risk/value assessment. Even CEO's who lost money and bankrupted their corporations walk away with more than you or I could make in a lifetime.
Fay. I am so impressed how you have done your research. We are like two peas in a pod. I know there are many more like us out here on this planet. I am glad Robert Reich has this forum for many of us to speak to each other. I doubt anything we say or do will make any difference. But I till believe in the American Spirit. I see it every. single. day. Hugs to you from Arizona. You hit the nail on the head with your response above!!!
Big Pharma is making huge profits while we have seniors and veterans that cannot afford their prescriptions. People are addicted to prescription drugs too. We are killing our citizens. Climate won't matter if we are all dead.
Biden at his core is a corporate Democrat. He appointed as Fed chief a person who was approved by Trump, for devil’s sake. He was Vice President when the big banks were deemed “too big to fail.” He should use the bully pulpit to advocate for a windfall profits tax on the bloodsucking gas and oil majors, but he won’t. He might be able to push a windfall profits tax by executive order as a national safety issue, but he won’t. Biden at his core is a good old boy Washington insider, and they wouldn’t do anything as “radical” as fight for a windfall profits tax.
I would love to be proven wrong on this, and would gladly eat crow if I am.
Joe Tonini, I would love for you to be wrong on this too. There are things I see in the Biden administration that I found frustrating in the Obama administration, one was the seeming passivity. I thought the banks should have had to pay a price for their behavior with the bailout money. People lost their homes all over the country, but the "big" banks got a tongue slashing and a "the country needs to move forward" and done. Don't get me wrong, Obama, I love that guy, wasn't a day in his two terms that I would have wanted his job, republicans were just flat ass mean to him, IMO. Now it seems that Biden lives in fear of pissing someone off, and I wish he would do just that. The windfall profits tax would be a wonderful way to start.
Joe Tonini ; the problem is that there should be NO Corporate Democrats! Our corrupt dialing for dollars type system "enhanced" by the Crooked Court is ruining our chances not only for Democracy, but for any type of fair, decent government. The sell outs should be shot!
Carol F. Yost ; There was the expression "I'm gonna Kill you!" too. We also had realistic toy guns. It was long ago and far away, as the universe travels very fast. Yes, we all have to be careful what we say these days.
Jimmy Carter was a Washington outsider and could not get much done! Biden’s being a longtime insider would help if the republicans were acting normal! Politics is about building relationships.
Unfortunately the way these Republicans are acting is their new normal. The “insider” Democrats keep playing by the old playbook that emphasizes compromise. The Republicans are using their playbook which emphasizes scorched earth. Inthe words of the old rock song …”You can’t talk to a man with a shotgun in his hands.”
Stephen W Blackburn ; Any of today's Republicans would risk threats of bodily harm, or at least censure of some kind, if they built relationships across the aisle.
We have enemies of the people within. Anti-Patriots and even terrorists who insist that we need weapons of war in the hands of just about anyone! Long Live the NRA! they say. We need weapons to protect us from 'bad government' is the argument. How bad does it have to get? Some want us to attack each other while the rest plot to declare Martial law so they can impose the ultimate police state! Friends of Putin! and Erdogan and the Saudi Prince and Kim Jong Un and the guy they were visiting in Hungary just recently, (no press allowed).
Rethugs play hardball and i bet Biden has to step carefully not to stir up the vipers. He;s also old, like me, and he knows the history of all of the people whom he has to face down. One reason to step carefully and make incremental changes instead of big ones all at the same time.
He's prolly tired, too,, with the huge responsibility he carries at his age. Rethugs have the propaganda machine to destroy any politician they want to. (And I believe they are working on this, so he has to consider that complication).
I'd kinda like him to be more like a dictator of old,,,,or a sneaky oligarch daring to risk lives & livelihoods of his people for great gain in the long run. . (That's all USAans, btw. 4 years is too little time to save a nation run by propagandists--in a legal way, I mean.)
I believe you are correct in wanting Biden to advocate for windfall profit tax on big oil and big pharma, but as long as the Republicans have their too big minority in the Senate, he might as well save his breath.
President Biden needs to take lesson from FDR’s Revenue Act of 1935 that introduced a “Wealth Tax” of up to 75% on the wealthiest Americans and President Carter who enacted a crude oil “Windfall Profits Tax” in 1980. Capitalists will scream socialism and undoubtedly try everything they can to stop him, including padding the pockets of republicans to act on their behalf, but he needs to ignore them and do it anyway through “Executive Order," or by eliminating the filibuster.
Raising interest rates is not going to help, the Feds aren’t seeing the big picture here, it will hurt the average American who is already struggling with low wages and high costs. It’s already difficult to qualify for a home or auto loan, with higher interest rates it will be impossible. Credit card debt will soar as families struggle to pay for basic living expenses. The only ones who will benefit is Wall Street as they bring in even higher profits.
I don’t know who can get through to the President, but I certainly hope someone can before it’s too late.
Old, simplistic definition of "Inflation" : Too much money chasing too few goods. The Fed's solution is to raise interest rates, slow the economy, and take purchasing power away from would-be buyers so that demand is once again in balance with available supply. Problem solved !
eg: Housing prices are too high because there is not enough housing available to fulfill the demand from people who need housing. The Fed's solution is to raise interest rates so that some would-be buyers can no longer afford to buy houses. Demand for housing falls in line with available supply, house prices stop rising, and inflation cools. Problem is solved. People who needed housing still need housing but that concern is not in the Fed's wheelhouse. (Google "Bed of Procrustes")
Remember, in 1980, there were no military quality heavy war arms available to civilians. Now they are in every town and village. More than Biden will likely go down if the warrior wannabes really get busy w/ their war toys. Every citizen will be a likely target. Times and people have changed. One good reason for us old ppl to die soon. We'd miss the fireworks.
Milton Friedman famously said, “Inflation is always and everywhere a monetary phenomenon in the sense that it is and can be produced only by a more rapid increase in the quantity of money than in output.” Prices for all products can't all increase at the same time without increasing the money supply. The Fed created this problem by pumping more than $4 trillion of new money into the economy with quantitative easing. The business of the Federal Reserve is to control the money supply and inflation. They created this problem and they are the only entity with the power to fix it. Biden and the legislature have almost nothing to do with it.
I wrote a letter on the White House website asking President Biden to support a windfall profits tax, and saying that raising interest rates will make things worse for low and moderate income families. I know they likely won't listen to me as an ordinary nobody, but it made me feel a bit better to do something.
Republicans opposed prosecution of price fixing, price gouging, using the FTC, antitrust, the creation of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, etc.. Grassley says he supports NOPEC, but not if the Democrats are for it.
Funny isn't it that Theodore Roosevelt was a Republican well known for his use of anti-trust laws to stem the greed of corporations. How times have changed.
I will say it again! We are past argument and words; nothing will change in congress short of millions of people in the streets in protest. Congress is dead. Scotus is dead. The voting booth is dead. And the longer we delay the smaller the chance of saving the skeleton. Where the hell is Thomas Paine?????
My vision of the condition is not quite that dire but I've had similar thoughts. It seem it is going to take massive 'nonviolent' protests all over the country for congress to see and hear us, "we the people".
When I read of failed democracies, I see America moving step by step in identical steps to those failed democracies. Read Anne Applebaum or Timothy Snyder, people who have lived in Eastern Europe. Then you will be as dire as I am. Forty percent of Americans have been duped!
I am familiar with Applebaum and Snyder, have not read all they have written though, thanks for the tip. In time, you may well be right about my inclinations.
". . . relying on the Fed to bring down prices is like treating someone’s fever by putting them a freezer. " Couldn't agree more. The Fed does not have proper tools to fight inflation without creating higher rates of unemployment or worse. Unfortunately, Congress has better tools, but . . . well . . . good luck with that.
Maybe someone could rank the Fortune 500 companies by the percent of increase in their pre-pandemic marginal rates of saving vs. current marginal rates of saving. This would, at least, allow us to see who is exploiting the current inflationary bubble (besides the oil companies).
I agree with you on all of this, especially your comment about the passivity in both the Obama and Biden administrations. Not only were the banks bailed out, not one of the big honchos served time in jail for their defrauding of the people. Too bad Bernie or Elizabeth Warren isn’t President. They aren’t afraid of pissing people off.
Robert Reich provides valuable, very timely and relevant statistics on profiteering by big oil. But, the thrust of his piece focuses on an excess profits tax - that is not an effective strategy because it has to be legislated and Republicans wil stop it with a filibuster in the Senate. Besides it will take months. A better approach is available.
Reich fails to point out that Biden can impose price controls by declaring a national emergency. Trump declared one when he relied upon the non-existent "invasion" on our southern border to build a wall. Surely the fleecing of the American people by big oil justifies declaring a national emergency. That is effective national action! It would change Biden's status with the American people overnight IMHO.
Excellent idea, Leonard. Why not propose it to President Biden? If you can put together a well-worded petition, I'm sure a lot of us would sign it, I know I would.
I will try a petition through Moveon because that's free. Chanhe.org has turned into a profit center and one has to pay to use it. Let's see if it gets any traction. Thanks for the suggestion.
Cecilia J. is absolutely correct. Sadly, taxes only apply to the lower and middle classes. This is all fed by our archaic (and presently self-destructive) political system, a pseudo-democracy.
While they are at it Isn't the increasing number of deadly attacks on 'soft targets' like schools, places of worship, and even supermarkets a national threat? Terrorism was fought by 'President' Bush, why not President Biden? Why can't the Commander in Chief' stop the flow of ammo that keeps the guns killing Americans, especially children. Seems like a Putin thing to kill innocents.
Thanks for addressing this Robert. Ugh, what can I say....I just wish Biden's brain could function differently in how he views the problems we are faced with and how the political environment that he's navigating in is NOT the one he dealt with decades ago. He just made a horrible tone deaf, foolish statement about how rational/decent he thought McConnell and Cornyn would be on gun legislation....those moments of political nostalgia and timidity really scare me. The ineptitude and sheer fear to take on the GOP must be addressed by Democrats who can take the reins and forge progress. There's plenty of talk, is there anyone who can step forward? Even Kamala Harris's addresses to the nation recently have fallen flat. What happened to her feisty charisma, charisma? Biden's brain dead approach to bipartisanship will be his undoing, starting with government agencies where he allowed Republicans to remain in control, Jerome Powell for one. Many government agencies are filled with Trump loyalist, what a massive mistake.
Just curious in the USA: Why do people talk about going after the oil companies and not the pharmaceutical companies? Or going after non profits and churches that don't pay any taxes. Like the NRA, NBA, NFL. Just curious to hear others thoughts.
Many do talk about going after price gouging by pharmaceutical companies. (I've written several articles about this.) But oil companies are an easier target because their prices at the pump are announced in big numbers on almost every major corner, therefore becoming the gauge by which most people judge inflation. And Big Oil is making record profits.
I've read some of your articles attacking Big Pharma and others as well. I find you to be very fair in your judgements. You've also pointed out price gouging in the food industry. No corporation should be entitled to profiteer for any reason. And then the GOP adds salt to our wounds by giving them more and more tax breaks.
Corporate taxes on income as a percent of GDP are the lowest they have been in 80 years. US corporate income taxes as a percent of GDP hover around 1%. The OECD average is 4%. America ranks third from the bottom among OECD countries on corporate income taxes. Corporate profits across the board, not just big pharma and oil companies, are setting all time records. Corporate consolidations have reduced competition which allows many of them to gouge the public with higher prices. Seems like the least we could do is tax some of that loot.
Thank you for the explanation Don. It is much appreciated
Don. Thank you for your update with numbers and facts. I can see how the "corporate consolidation" hurts all Americans with the baby formula debacle. The FDA shut down the plant but did NOT have a back up plan for production. Don't we pay these government employees running the FDA good salaries with our tax money? How could they shut down the plant and not have a back up plan? In the corporate world they would have all been fired by now. I am baffled as we watch the mismanagement of government with our tax money. I have watched Wal Mart over the years in small communities in Northern Arizona shut down ma and pa shops too. We have reduced competition with big box stores in every small and big cities in the USA. This is our new world in the USA. We let it happen on our watch. Thank you for caring and making a response. I hope you have a good day. Hugs from Arizona
The job of the FDA is to prevent businesses from producing and selling filthy and corrupted products that kill people. The Department of Justice enforces antitrust enforcement. It's an executive branch department under the authority of the president. Both parties have been guilty of allowing America's antitrust laws to become dormant which gets us back to Citizens United and campaign finance corruption. The DOJ should have prevented the consolidation of baby formula production down to two companies and we can see now why it was so wrong to allow this.
I'm opining that it would have been nice if the Repug administrations had done something to stop big corps from shutting down local businesses nationwide. The money spent at BIG stores goes out of the community to big banks worldwide. Snuffing out the benefits each community gets from pay packets being spent locally and supporting local businesses. It's spent once at the gas station, then goes on the corporate books, outside of the local area where local ppl spent it. Dems have not been in a power position to do anything about this for many years. So dont blame them. Blame the foot soldiers of big money. Think republicans.
Don. You hit the nail on the head. Both parties are to blame. They spend too much time impeaching Presidents, going after political opponents, and back stabbing each other. Sad time for politics in America. We go too far left (Obama) then we go too far right (Trump). Wish we could find politicians that could compromise and work together. Thanks for caring.
Fay. We think alike. I am for the little guy. I am 70 years old. I have seen a lot over the years. I worked hard and raised an amazing family. I love America. I respect the flag. I believe we stand for the flag and kneel for the fallen. Without those that fought for our freedom Americans would be like Russia or China. Unfortunately in the USA we tend to go too far right, then too far left. I have been registered as an independent voter for many years. We no longer can compromise on what is best for the country. I can see how to fix the abortion issue. I can see how to fix the gun issue. I can see how to fix the drug and poverty issue. If I can see it, why can't our politicians? The reason is big money has corrupted our government officials decision making processes. Our elections seem to be corrupt and broken too. The technology revolution is changing our world before our own eyes. We can only hope and pray that adults will begin to take action. We need laws and rules to be changed. No one over the age of 65 should be able to run for President. If we change that rule today we will not have the blood bath with Trump and Biden in 2024. Right now our #1 concern in America is keeping our children safe. Everything else comes second. Sending you hugs from Arizona.
Totally get you Cecelia, Money, Greed are our two biggest enemies. I don't understand either why these are the gods Americans worship. If you're 70 and I'm 89, will there be youngsters left to draw a wise line against these evils? I certainly hope so. And I know Dr. Reich puts his faith in the younger generation. I just don't see the wide spread passion of the Civil Rights movement of the 1960's or the anti-War movement of the 70's.
Fay you seem like a very young 89 year old. My best friend was almost 100 years old before she past on. Her name was Elisabeth Ruffner and she was inducted into the Arizona Women's Hall of Fame with Sandra Day O'Connor. Elisabeth was a Republican for years and then under George Bush changed to Democrat. She was my teacher, my mentor and one of my best friends. Elisabeth and Sandra taught me so much over the years. I have been an independent voter for years. I have grandchildren in their 20's. I talk to them. I also operate a small company called Visiting Angels. We help people that need help. We are NOT a non profit but we work hard to pay our bills and help others. My staff is under the age of 40 years old. These young folks know the government is corrupt. They know our voter laws are antiquated and don't work. They see with their own eyes the price at the gas pump, the illegals coming across the border, the homeless on the streets, the drug/mental health addictions, abortion issue, gun issue and safety for their kids. Many are not sure if they are men or women now. They have kids that are not sure if they are a man or a woman. The baby boomer generation has made a mess of the USA. We let things get out of control by being too far right then too far left. This younger generation can't be involved as much as we did with civil rights back in the 60's and 70's because they are barely keeping their heads above water. Many are sick physically and mentally. The only thing you and I can do is keep communicating and listening to Mr. Reich who cares so much. Just remember he lives in his own bubble. We need to work together on solutions. It can be done. But it will take great leadership. 1 by 1 we CAN make a difference. I send you special hugs from Arizona. Do you still reside back east?
Cecelia, you have quite a grab basket of concerns. First, people do know if they are male or female. Everybody KNOWS.
Few seem to recognize that our world is awash w/ chemicals that change the very nature of our offspring. And there have been for ages ppl who are not on the inside what they look like on the outside. It's more than sad that this status has been designated illegal & punishable. I suspect that science will prove there always have been men & women who look one way on the outside but are the opposite inside. Keeping it to 2 varieties of human being helps the masses to conform to ancient taboos w/o question. it's all about Gawd, for most people, you see. And war, which requires male-denominated skills, not those of females ( maybe that's just custom and not genetic?)As for poor people, if the connected, often corrupt, movers & shakers had not been working since the last Great Depression of the 1930s-- generation after generation of mostly male movers and shakers --all using religion as a tool to force others into their way of thinking--to accumulate as much money and power (which always work together) as possible in order to control media propaganda and control ALL the people, w/ God as their declared cause, reason, and force. Who decided, for instance, that it was wrong for people to act and BE the way they were formed in the womb? My suspicion is tht it was fearful men who found women malleable and willing to go along with whatever the men thought was "right."(The why of that requires more study, too) Men might not have a life of consumption and "winning" so easily if they could not label the third sex just by virtue of bodily appendages and hand gestures. It's a complex subject and i hope to get it together enough to have a sub-whatever worth reading about the scientific studies of hormones of gestation etc.
Then there's the issue of what happens to the developing child in the womb. What might the world be doing to affect the fetus at super-critical moments in development.
This has been a topic of discussion for some time.
Perhaps the way we all live creates ambiguous sexual development. Just as tossing tiny babies into hard carriers when they are days old instead of taking them right home in swaddling clothes and a mother's soft and tender warm arms, and letting them finish developing critical body parts in a warm. dim. quiet . & snug environment. Instead of being on the go among the overwhelming sound of rock "music", crowds of people, bright lights and rough hauling from house to car to pub etc, let them hear mom and dad's tender quiet voices to create a touchstone from which to move on to each new day w/a certitude and safety. That's how it's been for most humans as long as there have been people. Some animals have the same practices. There are scientific studies on the development of a human being, and ignoring what science knows might just be the reason so many people are capable of mass murder these days. Their brains don[t develop the ties to other human beings, and they never move to the music of the stars and good will, but to the dis-ease and discontent of the rough life. Spartanism, I suppose, is what makes some willing--and needing --to kill. It's a quality valued in wartime, but not in peace. And perhaps why we seem to have plenty of people who dont fit the "mold" society thinks our offspring must fit into from birth. It's a big job to put all the pieces together, but i used to like jigsaw puzzles. How about you? Are you open to learning what the science says, one study at a time? When I studied anthropology, i wanted to be an archeologist, but the topic of human development is worth more than every bone I have not dug up in my lifetime.
I have lived in California since 1961 and will never leave permanently (until I die) I really love this State. On the subject of young people I have four adult grandchildren and each has made the decision not to bring any children into this world. I agree with them, but I find this very sad, that thinking intelligent people don't want to have children because of the mess my generation made of this world. Some of the mess - climate control - was because most of us didn't know any better. [I didn't learn of the probability of rapidly increasing temperatures until I was in post-graduate college in the 1970's] but greed I did know about and deplored. I should have been even more vocal than I was. I disagree with your statement that the government is corrupt. Not all governments are corrupt, and most legislators are not - it's just that those who are corrupt wrangle their way into positions of power. Also a lot of the problem is caused by the "common people" who are so disinterested, or so in favor of greed, they pay little or no attention to who is governing them. In the case of trump, they refuse to face factual evidence when it is presented to them, preferring their 'pollyannish' view of the world.
That;s a rethug speciality, giving tax breaks to the wealthiest, and hot air to the neediest.
Robert. I agree with you. People tend to be like sheep. They only see and hear what affects them in their own bubble. They see gas prices every time they fill up their vehicle.
And I wouldn’t go after nonprofits because by definition they have no profits to tax! So, Robert, do you have a petition for us to sign for Congress? For the greedy oil companies?
Carol non profits make a TON of money. They pay their directors and staff big bucks. They get all types of breaks by claiming a "non profit" status. The one's that don't get these breaks are the small mom and pop operations trying to run their small profit business. Trust me. I am one of those people. I wanted to speak about my business at our local Rotary, Elks and Lion's clubs. They only allow "non profits" to speak. If I don't make money to pay my staff them I will be a non profit too!
Robert et al. Many US corporations are owned by international shareholders Some of the profits are not taxed in this country.
The Saudis control OPEC, the "market maker" for the price of oil internationally by fixing output. The Saudis own the largest oil refineries in the US and control a number of US oil producers.
On April 12, 2020, under pressure from Trump, the world’s biggest oil-producing nations outside the United States agreed to the largest production cut ever negotiated.
OPEC, Russia and other allied producers slashed production by 9.7 million barrels per day (bpd), or about 10% of global output. Half that volume came from cuts of 2.5 million bpd each by Saudi Arabia and Russia, whose budgets depend on high oil-and-gas revenues.
This was done because the dramatic reduction in demand caused by the pandemic reduced gasoline prices to the point where it was hurting American oil company profits.
To protect those oil companies, Trump essentially extorted the Saudis to cut production.
Meanwhile, oil companies have achieved record, multi-billion profits. While no president is responsible for the price of gasoline at the pump, largely a function of supply, demand and corporate greed, Trump went to enormous length to cut supply.
Once demand was restored, we were stuck with Trump’s short-sightedness. Although some production has increased and the cost of oil has dropped, prices at the pump do not reflect the costs. This needs to be investigated.
Today the EU leaders say they will block most Russian oil imports by the end of 2022 to punish Moscow for invading Ukraine. .Crude oil prices and futures are skyrocketing.
Just a comment: I highly doubt Trump was short-sighted. He knew lowering the production of oil would drive prices up, and that the oil giants would profit more therefrom. This was totally intentional. That he did this at such a critical time was pure coincidence, but the oil companies, whoever ultimately owns them, are happier than hell to keep price gouging! I do not know what the anti-consortium laws (whatever you call them) are like in the States, but I find it very funny how all the oil companies raise their prices the same day all the time, and to the same levels. If this is not a conspiracy, I do not know what it is! This used to be illegal in Canada, but I have not heard of anyone being charged in the last 20 years, though it is obviously happening here as well as down beliw us.
Rawgod. You make great points! All I know is under President Trump we had low gas prices. Under President Biden we have all time high gas prices. The middle class American people that drive to work are being hurt the most. Sending you hugs from Arizona.
Daniel all I know for certain is under President Trump gas prices were lower. Under President Biden gas prices are higher. I depends on what you read, view and see. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/big-oil-biden-administration-spar-over-blame-pain-pump-2022-03-10/
Trump staged it. Biden asked OPEC, Big Oil to increase production and they refused.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/arielcohen/2021/11/09/opec-says-to-biden-if-you-want-more-oil-pump-it-yourself/?sh=41144e4e3efd
I know small businesses have taken it in the shorts, but don't lump all non-profits together. There are many that have only 5 to 10% administrative costs, the rest goes to the charity, You can research which ones are charities for the purported purpose and which are charities for the perpetrators.
Fay. You are correct. Not all charities or non profits are bad. Just like businesses. Not all are good or bad. However, the bad ones tend to make lots of money. My dad taught me money talks, and bullshit walks. Seems to be truer than true in today's society. Thank you for caring. Hugs from Arizona.
But why should they be taxed? They’re supposed to use most of that money to benefit others. They’re not Jeff Bezos.
That's exactly why some so called non-profits should lose their tax free status. Much as I love football, there is no denying they rake in enormous profits year after year - why should that be tax free. And the scam artists who set up phony "charities" and send one cent of every dollar they rake in to said charity (that is if they send anything at all) What we need to do is overhaul the IRS, give them as many auditors as they need, go after the tax dodgers, scammers, etc. No matter how powerful they thing they are, everyone in the United States should pay their FAIR SHARE of the cost of living here.
Carol. That is the way non profits should act. However, many are most interested in paying their staff and administration high amounts of income. Very little goes to the people. Fay Reid makes good points about charities in her response below. Do some research. You would be amazed how 90% of the money collected by many non profits go to "administration" fees.
Let's look at a specific "charity" This one is supposedly to help police and heir widows and children. Less than 5% of donations goes to help police, 95% goes to the 'owners" of the charity and their call centers, I have actually been contacted by our local Sheriff's office by phone and they've also posted online not to donate to this scam. They (the scammers) are registered as a non-profit. The same is true of the Cowboys, Giants, 49er's, Raiders and the other NFL teams. All are registered as non-profit. If you really believe the billions of dollars they take in every year is a charity, I know of a bridge in Brooklyn I can sell you. (p.s. I am still an avid football fan) I do not understand the IRS requirement for registering as a non-profit, but I am very skeptical. Perhaps Dr. Reich or Daniel Solomon could enlighten us of what constitutes a "non-profit" but obviously NOT all non-profits are equal.
Tell 'em that you don't profit instead; maybe then ..
I went ahead and sent it on the official form ..
Not all non-profits are non-profit. Mega churches, big league sports are given non-profit status by the IRS while pulling in billions of dollars per year. Also Big oil also gets big welfare in the form of oil depletion allowances.
Fay. You hit the nail on the head!
Go after ALL!!!!!
Yes, Big Oil is simply the current egregious offender, but it's a system-wide problem that puts profits - as much profit as possible - first, and all other considerations ... well, there *are* no other considerations.
By people, I assume you mean the media. There are many very good non-profits, like Doctors Without Borders, World Wildlife Fund, ASPCA, Defenders of Wildlife, etc that spend very limited amounts on 'administration' so I don't think they should be taxed. There are a couple of agencies that track the percentage collected vs administrative costs. I quit donating to the Humane Society when I found they were paying their CEO several million dollars per year plus expenses - there are other so called charities to which I will not donate, but I had to research to find which ones are legitimate and which are just scams. The sports leagues are a different matter, they apparently got a 'charitable' classification around the 1950's/1960's. What a joke. The millionaire owners make huge profits every year and laugh all the way to the bank/ By the way you should include the MLB too. As to corporations, they put profits before anything. The Boards of Directors with the approval of the stockholders determine the CEO salaries, bonuses and perks. The only basis seems to be bragging rights about who pays the most. There is no risk/value assessment. Even CEO's who lost money and bankrupted their corporations walk away with more than you or I could make in a lifetime.
Fay. I am so impressed how you have done your research. We are like two peas in a pod. I know there are many more like us out here on this planet. I am glad Robert Reich has this forum for many of us to speak to each other. I doubt anything we say or do will make any difference. But I till believe in the American Spirit. I see it every. single. day. Hugs to you from Arizona. You hit the nail on the head with your response above!!!
the Big Phama are not making Putin richer? drugs are not making climate disaster worse?
Big Pharma is making huge profits while we have seniors and veterans that cannot afford their prescriptions. People are addicted to prescription drugs too. We are killing our citizens. Climate won't matter if we are all dead.
True!
Biden at his core is a corporate Democrat. He appointed as Fed chief a person who was approved by Trump, for devil’s sake. He was Vice President when the big banks were deemed “too big to fail.” He should use the bully pulpit to advocate for a windfall profits tax on the bloodsucking gas and oil majors, but he won’t. He might be able to push a windfall profits tax by executive order as a national safety issue, but he won’t. Biden at his core is a good old boy Washington insider, and they wouldn’t do anything as “radical” as fight for a windfall profits tax.
I would love to be proven wrong on this, and would gladly eat crow if I am.
Joe Tonini, I would love for you to be wrong on this too. There are things I see in the Biden administration that I found frustrating in the Obama administration, one was the seeming passivity. I thought the banks should have had to pay a price for their behavior with the bailout money. People lost their homes all over the country, but the "big" banks got a tongue slashing and a "the country needs to move forward" and done. Don't get me wrong, Obama, I love that guy, wasn't a day in his two terms that I would have wanted his job, republicans were just flat ass mean to him, IMO. Now it seems that Biden lives in fear of pissing someone off, and I wish he would do just that. The windfall profits tax would be a wonderful way to start.
Joe Tonini ; the problem is that there should be NO Corporate Democrats! Our corrupt dialing for dollars type system "enhanced" by the Crooked Court is ruining our chances not only for Democracy, but for any type of fair, decent government. The sell outs should be shot!
Mussolini was shot up north in Milan and brought down to Rome to be hung upside down by his heels. If memory serves.
Well, not shot, especially in todays atmosphere. But punished and heavily taxed.
I guess it's just an unfortunate American expression. Saying that 'He should be shot!'
I’m not familiar with that expression, but I believe you. We just have to be darned careful about what we say, especially with all that’s going on!
Carol F. Yost ; There was the expression "I'm gonna Kill you!" too. We also had realistic toy guns. It was long ago and far away, as the universe travels very fast. Yes, we all have to be careful what we say these days.
As Bob Dylan sang ; "If my thought dreams could be seen, they'd probably put my head, in a guillotine".
Jimmy Carter was a Washington outsider and could not get much done! Biden’s being a longtime insider would help if the republicans were acting normal! Politics is about building relationships.
Unfortunately the way these Republicans are acting is their new normal. The “insider” Democrats keep playing by the old playbook that emphasizes compromise. The Republicans are using their playbook which emphasizes scorched earth. Inthe words of the old rock song …”You can’t talk to a man with a shotgun in his hands.”
Yes total war is scorched earth not unlike Putin!
Stephen W Blackburn ; Any of today's Republicans would risk threats of bodily harm, or at least censure of some kind, if they built relationships across the aisle.
They would risk being thrown out of office by huge money being thrown at challengers within the party! Cowards all!
We have enemies of the people within. Anti-Patriots and even terrorists who insist that we need weapons of war in the hands of just about anyone! Long Live the NRA! they say. We need weapons to protect us from 'bad government' is the argument. How bad does it have to get? Some want us to attack each other while the rest plot to declare Martial law so they can impose the ultimate police state! Friends of Putin! and Erdogan and the Saudi Prince and Kim Jong Un and the guy they were visiting in Hungary just recently, (no press allowed).
Rethugs play hardball and i bet Biden has to step carefully not to stir up the vipers. He;s also old, like me, and he knows the history of all of the people whom he has to face down. One reason to step carefully and make incremental changes instead of big ones all at the same time.
He's prolly tired, too,, with the huge responsibility he carries at his age. Rethugs have the propaganda machine to destroy any politician they want to. (And I believe they are working on this, so he has to consider that complication).
I'd kinda like him to be more like a dictator of old,,,,or a sneaky oligarch daring to risk lives & livelihoods of his people for great gain in the long run. . (That's all USAans, btw. 4 years is too little time to save a nation run by propagandists--in a legal way, I mean.)
I believe you are correct in wanting Biden to advocate for windfall profit tax on big oil and big pharma, but as long as the Republicans have their too big minority in the Senate, he might as well save his breath.
Cathie ; Don't worry, he knows it.
President Biden needs to take lesson from FDR’s Revenue Act of 1935 that introduced a “Wealth Tax” of up to 75% on the wealthiest Americans and President Carter who enacted a crude oil “Windfall Profits Tax” in 1980. Capitalists will scream socialism and undoubtedly try everything they can to stop him, including padding the pockets of republicans to act on their behalf, but he needs to ignore them and do it anyway through “Executive Order," or by eliminating the filibuster.
Raising interest rates is not going to help, the Feds aren’t seeing the big picture here, it will hurt the average American who is already struggling with low wages and high costs. It’s already difficult to qualify for a home or auto loan, with higher interest rates it will be impossible. Credit card debt will soar as families struggle to pay for basic living expenses. The only ones who will benefit is Wall Street as they bring in even higher profits.
I don’t know who can get through to the President, but I certainly hope someone can before it’s too late.
Old, simplistic definition of "Inflation" : Too much money chasing too few goods. The Fed's solution is to raise interest rates, slow the economy, and take purchasing power away from would-be buyers so that demand is once again in balance with available supply. Problem solved !
eg: Housing prices are too high because there is not enough housing available to fulfill the demand from people who need housing. The Fed's solution is to raise interest rates so that some would-be buyers can no longer afford to buy houses. Demand for housing falls in line with available supply, house prices stop rising, and inflation cools. Problem is solved. People who needed housing still need housing but that concern is not in the Fed's wheelhouse. (Google "Bed of Procrustes")
Remember, in 1980, there were no military quality heavy war arms available to civilians. Now they are in every town and village. More than Biden will likely go down if the warrior wannabes really get busy w/ their war toys. Every citizen will be a likely target. Times and people have changed. One good reason for us old ppl to die soon. We'd miss the fireworks.
Milton Friedman famously said, “Inflation is always and everywhere a monetary phenomenon in the sense that it is and can be produced only by a more rapid increase in the quantity of money than in output.” Prices for all products can't all increase at the same time without increasing the money supply. The Fed created this problem by pumping more than $4 trillion of new money into the economy with quantitative easing. The business of the Federal Reserve is to control the money supply and inflation. They created this problem and they are the only entity with the power to fix it. Biden and the legislature have almost nothing to do with it.
I wrote a letter on the White House website asking President Biden to support a windfall profits tax, and saying that raising interest rates will make things worse for low and moderate income families. I know they likely won't listen to me as an ordinary nobody, but it made me feel a bit better to do something.
good to have a carbon tax on those who can afford to pay it; then to use the payments for cost effective programs for the poor
that is a good idea if greedheads hands can be kept from the funds intended to help the poor.
What CAN Biden do that doesn't require approval from Congress/Senate?
Not much. Needs authority to prosecute price fixers and price gougers.
However, several states do. https://www.ncsl.org/research/financial-services-and-commerce/price-gouging-state-statutes.aspx
Most require a finding of a state of emergency.
Hahaha....oh the irony of laws designed to protect the "people"!
Republicans opposed prosecution of price fixing, price gouging, using the FTC, antitrust, the creation of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, etc.. Grassley says he supports NOPEC, but not if the Democrats are for it.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Oil_Producing_and_Exporting_Cartels_Act
Funny isn't it that Theodore Roosevelt was a Republican well known for his use of anti-trust laws to stem the greed of corporations. How times have changed.
That kind of Republican would be good to see today, But how long would S/he live?
Thank you for this URL Daniel, very informative.
Ah! So quick and easy!
I will say it again! We are past argument and words; nothing will change in congress short of millions of people in the streets in protest. Congress is dead. Scotus is dead. The voting booth is dead. And the longer we delay the smaller the chance of saving the skeleton. Where the hell is Thomas Paine?????
My vision of the condition is not quite that dire but I've had similar thoughts. It seem it is going to take massive 'nonviolent' protests all over the country for congress to see and hear us, "we the people".
When I read of failed democracies, I see America moving step by step in identical steps to those failed democracies. Read Anne Applebaum or Timothy Snyder, people who have lived in Eastern Europe. Then you will be as dire as I am. Forty percent of Americans have been duped!
I am familiar with Applebaum and Snyder, have not read all they have written though, thanks for the tip. In time, you may well be right about my inclinations.
I keep thinking of the people in L.V. shot down by one guy at their outdoor party..........
". . . relying on the Fed to bring down prices is like treating someone’s fever by putting them a freezer. " Couldn't agree more. The Fed does not have proper tools to fight inflation without creating higher rates of unemployment or worse. Unfortunately, Congress has better tools, but . . . well . . . good luck with that.
Maybe someone could rank the Fortune 500 companies by the percent of increase in their pre-pandemic marginal rates of saving vs. current marginal rates of saving. This would, at least, allow us to see who is exploiting the current inflationary bubble (besides the oil companies).
Let's copy the Brits!
Britain’s conservatives are reasonably intelligent. America’s ‘conservatives’ are bat guano crazy trump ring kissers. Major difference.
I agree with you on all of this, especially your comment about the passivity in both the Obama and Biden administrations. Not only were the banks bailed out, not one of the big honchos served time in jail for their defrauding of the people. Too bad Bernie or Elizabeth Warren isn’t President. They aren’t afraid of pissing people off.
Robert Reich provides valuable, very timely and relevant statistics on profiteering by big oil. But, the thrust of his piece focuses on an excess profits tax - that is not an effective strategy because it has to be legislated and Republicans wil stop it with a filibuster in the Senate. Besides it will take months. A better approach is available.
Reich fails to point out that Biden can impose price controls by declaring a national emergency. Trump declared one when he relied upon the non-existent "invasion" on our southern border to build a wall. Surely the fleecing of the American people by big oil justifies declaring a national emergency. That is effective national action! It would change Biden's status with the American people overnight IMHO.
Leonard Polletta
Excellent idea, Leonard. Why not propose it to President Biden? If you can put together a well-worded petition, I'm sure a lot of us would sign it, I know I would.
I will try a petition through Moveon because that's free. Chanhe.org has turned into a profit center and one has to pay to use it. Let's see if it gets any traction. Thanks for the suggestion.
Biden's status might change in other ways too, if he is still with us.
Cecilia J. is absolutely correct. Sadly, taxes only apply to the lower and middle classes. This is all fed by our archaic (and presently self-destructive) political system, a pseudo-democracy.
So he can pass a windfall profit tax without Congress?
I'm not sure, but I think there is something he can do by Executive Order. Does anyone know how far a president can go with an Executive Order?
While they are at it Isn't the increasing number of deadly attacks on 'soft targets' like schools, places of worship, and even supermarkets a national threat? Terrorism was fought by 'President' Bush, why not President Biden? Why can't the Commander in Chief' stop the flow of ammo that keeps the guns killing Americans, especially children. Seems like a Putin thing to kill innocents.
Heart to you, Leynia! (sometimes the heart button does not work. I don't think it's because of content though).
No.
If inflation is still high two years from now Biden is toast.
Maybe the country too, will be toast.
Laurie.....you may be right. If Republicans get total power we are toast.
Thanks for addressing this Robert. Ugh, what can I say....I just wish Biden's brain could function differently in how he views the problems we are faced with and how the political environment that he's navigating in is NOT the one he dealt with decades ago. He just made a horrible tone deaf, foolish statement about how rational/decent he thought McConnell and Cornyn would be on gun legislation....those moments of political nostalgia and timidity really scare me. The ineptitude and sheer fear to take on the GOP must be addressed by Democrats who can take the reins and forge progress. There's plenty of talk, is there anyone who can step forward? Even Kamala Harris's addresses to the nation recently have fallen flat. What happened to her feisty charisma, charisma? Biden's brain dead approach to bipartisanship will be his undoing, starting with government agencies where he allowed Republicans to remain in control, Jerome Powell for one. Many government agencies are filled with Trump loyalist, what a massive mistake.