An article in the New Yorker a while back described a bunch of millionaires and billionaires building luxury bomb shelters on private islands in anticipation of some sort of apocalyptic scenario – high-end sanctuaries for the end of days. These people are willing to pay millions to live through the collapse of society in comfort, but how many of them have spent millions – or any amount, for that matter – to change the dynamics that caused the threat in the firt place? How many of those millionaires are willing to admit that they helped create or worsen the societal onditons that are cuasing their fear? Do any of them understand that much of – even most of – what is happening today is their fault? You can not continue to sit by and enjoy your riches while the rest of the world falls further into poverty and chaos.
A trend that worth paying attention if the number of young billions below ago 35 is growing. U.S. Net Worth Statistics: The State of Wealth in 2023. According to Economist Robert Reich, America is now on the cusp of the larget intergenerational transfer of wealth in history. As wealthy boomers pass on, somewhere between $30 Trillion to $70 Trillion will go to their children over the next three decades. By the loophole of current tax system, these children will be able to live off this wealth and leave the bulk of it to their children tax free.
The Geographic Distribution of Extreme Wealth in the U.S. dwells into many perspectives of wealth distribtuion by states and offer their insights about tax reform. Another research The Wealth of Households: 2020 by U.S Censor Bureau analysis wealth by household statistics. Thebusinessinsider.com gave a good account of the situation in an article dated Sept 29, 2022: The bottom half of American families hold just 2% of the country’s wealth — while the top 1% of families have a third.
The collapse of the money supply is said to be one of the four major reasons causing the 1930 great depression. Everyone said nowadays the Fed hiking interest rate will cause recession becuase rate increase monetary policy will reduce the money supply. The argument may have some logic in it. But it ignore another major factor, the highly concentration of wealth. 如果問題是來自印鈔，那解方不是衰退，是QT。衰退一直不來，慢慢QT才是正解。雖然這會讓經濟成長停滯一段時間，但可以讓未來的人負擔減輕。
Tax engineering in Luxembourg explained in four minutes
To go into more detail, Inside the Secret World of Tax Havens: The Multi-Million Businesses in Luxembourg | Documentary investigate the world of tax havens and show how some of the world’s most famous companies are using a tax haven at the heart of Europe to save millions in tax. The small country Luxembourg the size of Wyomin had become one of Europe’s cleverest tax shelters and attracts big corporations from around the world. Secret documents reveal how companies like GlaxoSmithKline have been getting big tax breaks on billion-pound transactions in the tiny country of Luxembourg. By opening offices there, diverting profits overseas and then having their Luxembourg office lend offices in other countries money, they can avoid multi-million euro tax bills in their country of origin. In these austere times, is big business paying its fair share?
This vido dive into how it became a tax haven thanks to quick-thinking civil servants in the 1960s and ’70s who bet big on attracting financial investment from abroad. According to audience who live there, the country still have high tax just for ordinary citizens like in panama, but not for massive companies. That is why companies like amazon headquarters is in luxembourg. Ironically europeans defend that they have the best democracy, law etc. But in the middle of europe everybody acts like those fradualent countries like luxembourg or lienchenstein do not exist at all. But we all know throughout the history no crime schemes or systems etc could continue like that forever. Billionaires safehouse. Why is Luxembourg so insanely rich ? explain why the insane salaries, huge companies and some of the richest people in the world are just some elements that make the entire world why this tiny country is so rich and why it is even on the map. In this video you will find out why and much more. If every government just put a fair tax nobody would hide their money. Does not these count as organized crime?
Mr. Reich explained in clear and easy understandable way about corporate greed. Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations, Book I, Chapter IX wrote: “Our merchants and master-manufacturers complain much of the bad effects of high wages in raising the price, and thereby lessening the sale of their goods both at home and abroad. They say nothing concerning the bad effects of high profits. They are silent with regard to the pernicious effects of their own gains. They complain only of those of other people. ” Media had helped corporation to hide their profits. If the media reported on corporate profits then it would be impossible to blame the powerless.
People get reporting on jobs. We get reporting on wages. You know what we don’t get? Reporting on corporate profits. Corporate America wants to keep it this way. Workers get blamed for inflation. Corporations get cover for their greed. The Truth Behind “Self-Made” Billionaires.
- The CEO: “I’ll need a multimillion dollar bonus if I succeed, and a multimillion dollar severance package in case I fail.”
- The executive board: “Let’s spend our profits on stock buybacks and more bonuses for ourselves. If we fail, the government will bail us out.”
- The workers: “We just want enough to pay our rent/mortgage and take care of our families.”
- The media: Look at those GREEDY employees!”
“There is nobody in this country who got rich on his own — nobody. You built a factory out there? Good for you. But I want to be clear. You moved your goods to market on the roads the rest of us paid for. You hired workers the rest of us paid to educate. You were safe in your factory because of police-forces and fire-forces that the rest of us paid for. You didn’t have to worry that marauding bands would come and seize everything at your factory — and hire someone to protect against this — because of the work the rest of us did. Now look, you built a factory and it turned into something terrific, or a great idea. God bless — keep a big hunk of it. But part of the underlying social contract is, you take a hunk of that and pay forward for the next kid who comes along.” — Elizabeth Warren, 2012
The Supreme Court’s War on the People Citizens vs. United really was one of the most disasterous Supreme Court decisions in this country’s history. This 2010 Supreme Court decision, a controversial decision that reversed century-old campaign finance restrictions and enabled corporations and other outside groups to spend unlimited funds on elections, further tilted political influence toward wealthy donors and corporations, with negative repercussions for American democracy and the fight against political corruption. Dark money is election-related spending where the source is secret. Citizens vs. United contributed to a major jump in this type of spending, which often comes from nonprofits that are not required to disclose their donors. In Canada Corporations are not allowed to make any political donations and private citizens donation amounts are capped. In 2008, before the ruling, billionaires contributed $31 million to federal campaigns. In 2020, billionaires contributed $1.2 billion. Corporations should not have the political rights of citizenship, particularly those that operate in more than one sovereignty. And there are at least fifty-one sovereignties in the US.
Corporate greed is off the rails. Then they spend millions or more to fight unions. In a Nov 2021 youtube program How Wealth Inequality Spiraled Out of Control – Economist Robert Reich explained how prblem baloon into the top 1% holds 15x more wealth than the bottom 50% combined. Professor Reich pointed out: “Billionaires are not made by rugged individuals. They’re made by policy failures. And a system that rewards wealth over work.” The ultra wealth had benefits from American system – from laws that protect their wealth, and our economy that enable them to build their fortune in the first place. “Don’t blame the billionaires, blame the game,” but what if the billionaires own and direct the game? Unlimited wealth = unlimited power, the game itself is an illusion.
People are not mad at the rich for being rich. We’re mad at them and our politicians for the unadulterated corporatism that is now a signature of what used to be capitalism based democracies. They should pay their fair share! Professor Reich suggested many way to do so: closing the stepped up basis of loopholes, raising capital gain tax, fully fund the IRS, so it can properly audit the wealthiest tax, for starters. Beyond those, we need a wealth tax of 2% tax on wealth in excess of $1million. That is hardly a drop in the bucket for the super rich. That would generate plenty of revenue to invest in education, health care, so that millions of American can have a fair share of the system for both risk and rewards. The most important thing is everyone of us need to fully understand how the reality of wealth inequality, and how the system has become rigged in favor of those on the top. And demand your political representative to take action to unrig it.
In the similar token, Tobacco industry has reported a profit and tax revenue of 1.4 trillion yuan in China, Shouldn’t government charge much higher taxes for industries that create hidden damage to the society ? 2023年4月10日，中国著名的异议人士许志永，被判处有期徒刑14年，罪名是煽动颠覆国家政权罪。三大罪状：第一倡导公民权利，践行宪法规定的公民权力，履行公民责任；第二推动教育平权，随迁子女就地高考； 第三呼吁政府官员财产公示。 本片的所有收益，将全部捐给该纪录片的制作团队。制片者希望各位通过这个纪录片，能更多地了解许志永。非常感谢王志安先生利用影响力为许教授发声。墙内对舆论管控严厉至极，99%的百姓都不知道有这么一位北大法学博士为民请愿，为中国公民社会平权请愿！中国民主化，需要这样的殉道者和自我牺牲，如此这个社会才会觉醒。王志安先生的传播，实在太重要了！
关于中国经济的判断，林毅夫很可能是错的！How Can We Improve The Economy? Start By Reining In The Power Of Corporations – Robert Reich on CNN.
