Another fun one I came across today:
Meanwhile, in the North Atlantic:
https://twitter.com/EliotJacobson/status/1671603838770626563
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I donât think itâs the case that he actually has $1 billion dollars in the bank. Rather that includes assets and credit etc that he is able to raise, as banks are very willing to lend him capital. The same with other billionaires. They donât actually have billions in cash.
It doesnât have to be a fantasy world in which a society decides to rein in the super-wealthy. Japan actually did it to dismantle the rentier class that had developed during their industrial revolution. No, they didnât collapse into a civil war or fall into economic disarray. It actually made their economy healthier. Of course, Japan is a ultra-civil society in which this sort of thing could actually be done without much trouble over it. Other cultures, like America, would explode like a tenderbox because weâre not particularly civilized, to be honest.
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What are you talking about? They fell into a little external war known as World War II⌠A war they, letâs not forget, lost.
The emperor and his military sending families to the front lines certainly did have a âcivilizingâ effect on the elites, as did the American bombings and subsequent occupation⌠but this happened within the context of truly massive bloodshed⌠to call that âwithout much troubleâ is truly astonishing
Thanks to our government, which feeds on the wealth of the corporate class through PACs and direct political contributions, tax rates on individuals and corporations are at historic lows, allowing companies like Amazon and its owners to amass incredible, untaxed wealth. Even Warren Buffet has commented that a secretary in his office has a higher tax rate on income than he does, based on the way our tax laws favor the wealthy. Additionally, it is believed that if the US ratcheted up its corporate and personal tax rates, these companies would simply leave the US and set up shop in low tax havens. The global game is indeed rigged in favor of the wealthy.
Maybe the best solution, aside from legislating fairer tax schemes, is a very Buddhist one. Cultivate the idea in a culture that dana and a measure of renunciation is a path toward happiness. If you spend any time around wealthy people, one thing you might find is that many of them are miserable. The path out of misery is a very Buddhist path, and as all humans desire to be happy, perhaps governments and nations might encourage more altruism, more charity, and more incentives to invest in programs to save people and the planet.
By way of example, Bezosâ ex-wife publicly shamed him by taking the Amazon billions she received in the divorce and setting up a massive philanthropic effort that made Bezos look like a piker. How MacKenzie Scott Has Given Away BillionsâAnd Is Still One Of The Worldâs Richest Women
Mackenzie Scott is apparently not a very public person, but it might be useful if, as part of her campaign, to more publicly talk about the benefits of altruism, and how living a life focused on dana and altruism has made her life a better, happier life. Aside from not having to live with Jeff Bezos, she might expand upon themes of how altruism for the wealthy leads to actual health and happiness. Ven. Matthiew Picard has articulated this point very well as part of his monastic life, having seen at an early age the correlation between a life focused on wealth acquisition and suffering . Matthieu Ricard: World's Happiest Man on What Really Matters..
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The wealthy were removed from their powerful positions after the war. There wasnât any massive disorder or violence over it. Try to pay attention to whatâs being said instead of flying off the handle with every other thing that Iâm perfectly aware of.
Is that even true though?
The video itself explains that the powerful families were left largely in place. Mitsubishi is still around. Yes, weakened somewhat. They had to pay their taxes. But theyâre still on top.
This was actually a deliberate strategy on the part of the occupying forces, who knew that trying to remove the powerful families from their positions entirely would not go over well and might lead to violence breaking out again.
The problem is a lack of virtue and wisdom, rather than wealth. One of the Buddhaâs chief lay followers was a wealthy banker, but he spent his wealth wisely. That said many secular leftists would disagree with me, since he spent a lot of money supporting the Buddha. Anyways wealth isnât the problem. Itâs how you got it and what you do with it. By extension Capitalism isnât good or bad. Itâs how itâs done. I think if we did away with it we would find all the same problems in different forms, because the problem is the defilements more than the material relations between people. This is why attempts at a post-capitalist society never work and, IMO, never will.
Battle not with monsters, lest ye become a monster, and if you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.
The anti-capitalists in history became the very monsters they said they were vanquishing, if not worse.
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Doesnât make the game less fun! I just bought so many playstations!
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