The Largest Upward Transfer of Wealth in American History
The Largest Upward Transfer of Wealth in American History
www.theatlantic.com
The Largest Upward Transfer of Wealth in American History
180 comments
-
Of course, this is going to affect the working class first and worst. But stay with me here.
My wife and I are what you'd call upper middle class. Thanks to our college education, union jobs in public agencies, and mostly being smart with money, our assets are not meager.
Are you like me? Don't think you're exempt. They're coming for our assets too. They want all of us living paycheck to paycheck, begging our employers to not fire us.
What I'm saying is, the class struggle is everyone's struggle. If you're not a billionaire, you're at risk. Act like it.
-
The #1 issue for all of us is Us versus Them. That's it. There's 1000 of them and 350 million of us.
-
It is, but the narrative they want it “us vs immigrants”. Think of how long they’ve been rage baiting people with this, it’s nuts.
Keep focus, it’s the 1%.
-
-
There are about 8 billion of us
-
Don't tell the American that there is a world out there. It might kill them.
-
If they could read, they would be very upset.
-
-
-
But what will you do when the rest of the world's working poor turns around and suddenly you're "them"
-
Right, we need to be careful about defining class struggle globally when we’re in the 99% locally but most of us may be in the 1% globally
This is one of the many reason we need to help our fellow humans, it’s our duty to increase support through agencies like USAid, global public health initiatives, global emergency response, global food aid, global development, education, outreach. We’ve never done enough to support our fellow humans, and now that’s the first place they’re cutting. Do we credit them with the intelligence to call it an intentional part of the strategy to divide us from our fellow exploited class?
-
-
-
Exactly. I don't think I am poor but in there eyes, I am dirt poor. Anyone can't afford a seat at their table are at peril.
-
I'm glad they're coming for your assets.
You have more than enough and should not receive even more while others have less, just like the billionaires you're criticizing.
Edit: All the people getting mad at this reality are the reason why we have to choose between clintons and trumps. As soon as someone threatens the wealth of neo-liberals, they immediately agree with conservatives.
Greed and consumerism are the worst issues we face as a species. It makes sense most of you will react the way that you do when being forced to acknowledge your contribution to the problem.
Now, who's excited for the switch 2 and gta 6?
-
Finally someone else who gets it. I kinda hoped lemmy would have a crowd that would at least be able to talk about this calmly but it looks like it's no less rabid about this topic than reddit.
They don't have to agree with conservatives. They just have to go so far as establishment Democrat. The "moderate" who keeps kicking the can down the road. 'Wait till midterms'. Wait till the next red line so we can move the red line to some time in the future.
The dream is not to become a billionaire. The dream is to become upper middle class. So you can sit in the middle and expound on virtues of those beneath you while reaping the benefits of those above.
-
There's a massive difference between well-off, or even wealthy (think a practicing doctor/dentist or small business entrepeneur) and billionaire.
Saying 'screw your savings' to people like that is the conflict the billionare class wants, instead of everyone focusing on them.
-
Completely true.
Do you know what the difference is between a millionaire and a billionaire?
A billion dollars.
There is really no comparison. Doctors, lawyers, tenured professors, even most CEOS are working class compared to the investor class.
-
No it's not. A well off doctor in the U.S. has more disposable income and assets than ~97% of the worlds population, and is able to sustain their resulting material wealth as a function of economic labor exploitation of "developing" countries
Y'all are just mad because Trump is kicking you down to hang with the rest of us poors.
-
It's incredible how you absolute cretins are happy to be shoved into the mud just because some other people you don't like might have to walk through the mud too. What causes this?
-
MAGA scum
-
-
Yeah. But this way he gets to be the most radical person in his peer group. Leftier than thou; regardless of the damage to the movement.
-
We should be starting at the billionaires and working our way down, but I also don't care when consumerists and neo-liberals get theirs early.
You have more than enough and should not receive even more while others have less, just like the billionaires you’re criticizing.
This is the important part that you're conveniently ignoring. Why should the person with a $400,000 house in suburbia be exempt from the redistribution of wealth while children starve? How much are they really contributing to the world to deserve that?
You mention doctors and dentists, and I'd agree with you. They can keep their assets within reason.
What about everyone else who isn't in medicine? What about the people that aren't easy for you to hide behind to justify your greed and consumerism?
-
It’s in our best interest to do things to stay in the “should be higher taxed” group, rather than the guillotine group. And I don’t think it’s as simple as wealth, but how you got it and what you do with it.
- Do you cause misery in your wealth accumulation, or support better jobs for everyone: better health and safety conditions, better benefits, higher pain, share in profits/efficiency, etc
- Do you hoard your wealth or spend on excessive luxury, or do you direct more to uplift those who didn’t catch the same bus?
I’m under no illusion that I have anything in common with working poor here, much less in less developed countries, but I do know I side more with them than the wealthy. I do know that giving even the least fortunate access to the same bus stop helps us all. I do know that there is a lot that can be done by taxing me more, more of what I have should be redistributed to provide the basics, to start building a more level playing field
I hope to deserve being in “should be higher taxed” group
-
Well off suburbanites should not be exempt from redistribution, but I. Doubt it will happen in a grand revolution.
-
There's not going to be any "revolution." I have a master's degree in sociology. I could explain why, but it would be boring.
-
-
-
-
Jesus Christ, buddy, calm down.
-
How am I not calm?
-
-
And I suppose you live in a yurt off-grid, and don't own a mobile device?
Thought so, hypocrite. Fuck Trump.
-
No, just live at or below a standard that is attainable for us all.
Thought so, hypocrite.
Sad watching you be so sure of yourself while also being clueless.
-
-
You could teach seminars on "Class Solidarity."
-
-
180 comments