Here’s a Rich Fact
“U.S. Billionaires Could Give $3,400 Stimulus Checks To 331 Million Americans Using Only Their Increase In Wealth Since March 2020”
“The 660 billionaires in the U.S. have increased their collective net worth by $1.1 trillion since the start of the pandemic. The jaw-dropping statistic, contained in a report by Americans for Tax Fairness and based on data from Forbes, hints at the sharp divergence in the economic fate of Americans. While over 40 million Americans relied on unemployment benefits in 2020, the richest of the rich saw their wealth soar over $1 trillion.
The dynamic is even starker when contextualized in the current negotiations over the next stimulus relief. “With their $1.1 trillion increase in wealth since March, America’s 660 billionaires could give every one of the 331 million people in the United States a $3,400 stimulus check and still be billionaires,” tweeted Robert Reich. Reich, the Secretary of Labor under Bill Clinton and author of the forthcoming book, “The System: Who Rigged It, How We Fix It.” Instead of arguing over small changes in stimulus check size that would have a huge impact on the lives of millions, perhaps we should be arguing over small changes that would barely be noticed by the 660 billionaires in the country.”
You can read the rest of this fascinating and insightful article at:
https://www.newsbreakapp.com/n/0YYKU9NL?s=a99&pd=022AufTA
02/08/2021 @ 9:09 pm
If Reich had any sense, he would go on to say what that would mean for America’s businesses in terms of purchasing, profits, perhaps even hiring. Right now it looks like rich vs. poor. Pit the rich against businesses and you’ve got a more powerful political case.
02/08/2021 @ 9:10 pm
He could take it a step further. He could estimate how much the billionaires would make on the extra business. The $1.1 trillion would not cost them $1.1 trillion.
And if it did cost them that, why are they getting tax breaks at all?
02/08/2021 @ 9:43 pm
“If Reich had any sense, he would go on to say what that would mean for America’s businesses in terms of purchasing, profits, perhaps even hiring.”
Kosh, Reich was quoted in this article. He is not the author of it…
I suspect that he touches on your concern in his forthcoming book:
“The System: Who Rigged It, How We Fix It.”
I’m going to give it a shot when I can obtain a copy, and read it.
Perhaps you should as well…
02/09/2021 @ 12:43 am
I suspect he won’t touch on my concern enough. He’ll address it but he’ll stop short. He doesn’t and neither does Krugman. They both come close and then stop. They will talk about how polarization depresses demand. So does that guy in France who wrote the big book of a couple of years ago, Thomas Pikety. Big splash, saying stuff I’ve been saying since 2008. But none of them complete the circle. They don’t say
Liberal economic policies are better for business than conservative economic policies are.
They might go so far as to say they’re better for The Economy, but they don’t say they’re better for Business. They don’t say
If you’re in the automobile business, or any business supporting it, you’ll sell more under Democratic policies than Republican policies. You’ll sell more cars, you’ll sell more tires, you’ll sell more insurance policies. This is because more people will be able to afford what you sell.
Neither of them is getting in front of the Chamber of Commerce or Wall Street or whomever and saying: We’re not promising to change policies because you’ll do better with our current policies than with alternatives.
or
You shouldn’t be asking why we tax so much, when in fact we don’t. You should be asking why the Republicans don’t support your customers.
or
Do you understand where tax money goes? When are you going to figure out that it is all spent either directly or indirectly in the Private Sector? When the government buys a building, who do you think builds it? Wires it? Roofs it? Carpets it? Provides plumbing equipment and installs it? Paints it? Installs and sells lighting? Installs and sells heating and air conditioning? Installs and sells elevators? Installs and sells alarm systems? Installs and sells sprinkler systems and alarm systems?
You Do.
If the government hires postal workers, where do you think they spend their income? Where do they get their food? Clothing? Housing? Transportation? Recreation? Medicine/medical care? Education? Hell, their toothbrushes?
From you.
When the Hell are you going to stop pretending it’s getting flushed down the toilet?
You know what flushes money down the toilet?
Tax breaks for rich people. What do they do with the money? Mainly invest in obscure financial instruments in the hope of a return on what is essentially gambling. They don’t need to spend it. They’re already eating. They’ve already got housing. Their necessities are paid for. Give money to the middle class and the poor, on the other hand, and they’ll spend it because they have no choice, and that spending creates customers for business and taxpayers that ease the tax burden on business.
02/09/2021 @ 1:54 am
Do you think you can amass enough material in support of your thesis to write your own book?
“If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.”
—-Toni Morrison