Should Billionaires Even Exist?

[Brain357]

Our politicians are all owned by the wealthy.

There's a very simple way to combat this; limit the size, scope, and power of the federal government. As was originally intended.

Liberals: 'We want bigger government!'

Liberals 5 minutes later: 'Look at all these problems with a bigger government!'

Republicans love big government too. They support subsidies and corporate welfare as much as anyone. Milton Friedman’s answer was to have a budget politicians couldn’t go over. That way they would be limited in what they could do. Their corruption is unlimited now.

Congress are the ones you should be holding accountable. The businesses only take advantage of the policies that congress makes. The businesses do not make the laws. They only follow them. Congress makes the laws. Congress members love lobbyists.

And business buys the politicians. Quite the circle. This is why we need campaign finance reform.

Point being, you are targeting the wrong side of the issue when you target businesses. You should be complaining to Congress.

I complain about Congress plenty. I think our government is bought and paid for by the wealthy.

 

[ChrisL]

A business would be silly to not take advantage of what is being offered to it and, of course, they are going to take advantage of what is offered to them. It is not the fault of business that Congress is full of corruption. That is the fault of Congress, and SOME voters who keep voting these same old dirtbags into positions of power.

 

[Brain357]

A business would be silly to not take advantage of what is being offered to it and, of course, they are going to take advantage of what is offered to them. It is not the fault of business that Congress is full of corruption. That is the fault of Congress, and SOME voters who keep voting these same old dirtbags into positions of power.

Business buys corruption. You see how much is spent on elections?

 

[ChrisL]

There's a very simple way to combat this; limit the size, scope, and power of the federal government. As was originally intended.

Liberals: 'We want bigger government!'

Liberals 5 minutes later: 'Look at all these problems with a bigger government!'

Republicans love big government too. They support subsidies and corporate welfare as much as anyone. Milton Friedman’s answer was to have a budget politicians couldn’t go over. That way they would be limited in what they could do. Their corruption is unlimited now.

Congress are the ones you should be holding accountable. The businesses only take advantage of the policies that congress makes. The businesses do not make the laws. They only follow them. Congress makes the laws. Congress members love lobbyists.

And business buys the politicians. Quite the circle. This is why we need campaign finance reform.

Point being, you are targeting the wrong side of the issue when you target businesses. You should be complaining to Congress.

I complain about Congress plenty. I think our government is bought and paid for by the wealthy.

And it would be pretty simple to put an end to that, right? Do you think members of congress (despite all of their blustering) will do that? Of course not. This is why people like Nancy Pelosi and the like have millions and set their children up in lucrative positions overseas.

 

[ChrisL]

A business would be silly to not take advantage of what is being offered to it and, of course, they are going to take advantage of what is offered to them. It is not the fault of business that Congress is full of corruption. That is the fault of Congress, and SOME voters who keep voting these same old dirtbags into positions of power.

Business buys corruption. You see how much is spent on elections?

You just keep repeating yourself, and I've already addressed this. Are you a bot?

 

[Brain357]

Republicans love big government too. They support subsidies and corporate welfare as much as anyone. Milton Friedman’s answer was to have a budget politicians couldn’t go over. That way they would be limited in what they could do. Their corruption is unlimited now.

Congress are the ones you should be holding accountable. The businesses only take advantage of the policies that congress makes. The businesses do not make the laws. They only follow them. Congress makes the laws. Congress members love lobbyists.

And business buys the politicians. Quite the circle. This is why we need campaign finance reform.

Point being, you are targeting the wrong side of the issue when you target businesses. You should be complaining to Congress.

I complain about Congress plenty. I think our government is bought and paid for by the wealthy.

And it would be pretty simple to put an end to that, right? Do you think members of congress (despite all of their blustering) will do that? Of course not. This is why people like Nancy Pelosi and the like have millions and set their children up in lucrative positions overseas.

The people need to demand it, so say it with me. We need campaign finance reform!

 

[ChrisL]

If businesses, corporations, billionaires have too much sway in decisions, that is the fault of corruption in the government and greedy politicians. They are allowing it.

 

[Brain357]

A business would be silly to not take advantage of what is being offered to it and, of course, they are going to take advantage of what is offered to them. It is not the fault of business that Congress is full of corruption. That is the fault of Congress, and SOME voters who keep voting these same old dirtbags into positions of power.

Business buys corruption. You see how much is spent on elections?

You just keep repeating yourself, and I've already addressed this. Are you a bot?

Yes you blame only the buyers and not the sellers. It’s all a problem. We need reform.

 

[Brain357]

If businesses, corporations, billionaires have too much sway in decisions, that is the fault of corruption in the government and greedy politicians. They are allowing it.

So what do we need?

 

[ChrisL]

Congress are the ones you should be holding accountable. The businesses only take advantage of the policies that congress makes. The businesses do not make the laws. They only follow them. Congress makes the laws. Congress members love lobbyists.

And business buys the politicians. Quite the circle. This is why we need campaign finance reform.

Point being, you are targeting the wrong side of the issue when you target businesses. You should be complaining to Congress.

I complain about Congress plenty. I think our government is bought and paid for by the wealthy.

And it would be pretty simple to put an end to that, right? Do you think members of congress (despite all of their blustering) will do that? Of course not. This is why people like Nancy Pelosi and the like have millions and set their children up in lucrative positions overseas.

The people need to demand it, so say it with me. We need campaign finance reform!

The people need to stop voting for the status quo. There are a LOT of areas that need cleaning up, besides campaign financing. But yeah, that is one thing that would help a little.

 

[ChrisL]

A business would be silly to not take advantage of what is being offered to it and, of course, they are going to take advantage of what is offered to them. It is not the fault of business that Congress is full of corruption. That is the fault of Congress, and SOME voters who keep voting these same old dirtbags into positions of power.

Business buys corruption. You see how much is spent on elections?

You just keep repeating yourself, and I've already addressed this. Are you a bot?

Yes you blame only the buyers and not the sellers. It’s all a problem. We need reform.

The buyers are our politicians. The sellers have no say if the buyers aren't buying. Lol.

 

[Brain357]

And business buys the politicians. Quite the circle. This is why we need campaign finance reform.

Point being, you are targeting the wrong side of the issue when you target businesses. You should be complaining to Congress.

I complain about Congress plenty. I think our government is bought and paid for by the wealthy.

And it would be pretty simple to put an end to that, right? Do you think members of congress (despite all of their blustering) will do that? Of course not. This is why people like Nancy Pelosi and the like have millions and set their children up in lucrative positions overseas.

The people need to demand it, so say it with me. We need campaign finance reform!

The people need to stop voting for the status quo. There are a LOT of areas that need cleaning up, besides campaign financing. But yeah, that is one thing that would help a little.

And what would help more? We only get two choices.

 

[Brain357]

A business would be silly to not take advantage of what is being offered to it and, of course, they are going to take advantage of what is offered to them. It is not the fault of business that Congress is full of corruption. That is the fault of Congress, and SOME voters who keep voting these same old dirtbags into positions of power.

Business buys corruption. You see how much is spent on elections?

You just keep repeating yourself, and I've already addressed this. Are you a bot?

Yes you blame only the buyers and not the sellers. It’s all a problem. We need reform.

The buyers are our politicians. The sellers have no say if the buyers aren't buying. Lol.

But they are.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Well we need to start with campaign finance reform for less government corruption.

Well we need to start with campaign finance reform for less government corruption.

Which reforms do we need?

Government control of campaign finance. Duh.

No control sure isn’t working.

Control didn't work...….

Explain.

We had control in 1996, while Clinton was getting illegal Chinese donations.

 

[kwc57]

You know what’s not cool anymore? Billionaires.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Elizabeth Warren believe some Americans have too much money, and they’re not alone.

Their very existence is now the subject of political debate, sparked most recently by tax-the-rich proposals from two prominent politicians.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) proposed placing a 2 percent tax on wealth over $50 million and 3 percent on assets over $1 billion. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said she wants to increase the marginal tax rate on those earning more than $10 million a year.

Their ideas went viral, starting a mainstream conversation about inequality and wealth.

This kind of talk has always existed among a certain group of hard-core progressives and left-leaning economists, but heading into next year’s presidential election, the idea that the super-rich should pay their fair share is gaining real momentum.

Marshall Steinbaum, a research director at the left-leaning Roosevelt Institute, has advocated taxing the rich at higher rates for years. “We do not need billionaires,” Steinbaum told HuffPost. “The economy’s done better without billionaires in the past.”

For Steinbaum, higher taxes on the wealthy would mean freeing up more money for everyone else. If you think of the economy as a pie, right now, billionaires are getting just about all of it, while we’re all left splitting just one slice.

If you raise taxes on the richest, their incentive to grab at every morsel declines. The theory is they’ll fight a little less hard to depress everyone else’s wages if they know that every extra million is going to get taxed away. A high-paid CEO has less incentive to keep workers’ wages low so he can get a bigger payday.

Billionaires were once a rare breed. In the past few decades, as the U.S. has slashed tax rates, their numbers have exploded, far outpacing inflation.

Since 2008, the number of billionaires in the world has doubled, according to a report published last week by the anti-poverty nonprofit Oxfam. In just the last year, billionaires raked in an astonishing $2.5 billion each day.

In 1982, the first year Forbes debuted its list of the 400 richest Americans, there were about a dozen billionaires. The richest man in the U.S. back then was an 85-year-old shipping magnate with an estimated worth of $2 billion, or $5.2 billion in today’s dollars.

"We do not need billionaires. The economy’s done better without billionaires in the past."
--Marshall Steinbaum, Roosevelt Institute​

Nowadays, Forbes’ list is entirely billionaires. The richest is Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, worth $160 billion.

More: Should Billionaires Even Exist?

I agree! Billionaires aren't cool anymore! The playing field is tilted like the Titanic before it went down. There is no logical reason for so few to have so much. What do you think?

You know what’s not cool anymore? Billionaires.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Elizabeth Warren believe some Americans have too much money, and they’re not alone.

Their very existence is now the subject of political debate, sparked most recently by tax-the-rich proposals from two prominent politicians.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) proposed placing a 2 percent tax on wealth over $50 million and 3 percent on assets over $1 billion. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said she wants to increase the marginal tax rate on those earning more than $10 million a year.

Their ideas went viral, starting a mainstream conversation about inequality and wealth.

This kind of talk has always existed among a certain group of hard-core progressives and left-leaning economists, but heading into next year’s presidential election, the idea that the super-rich should pay their fair share is gaining real momentum.

Marshall Steinbaum, a research director at the left-leaning Roosevelt Institute, has advocated taxing the rich at higher rates for years. “We do not need billionaires,” Steinbaum told HuffPost. “The economy’s done better without billionaires in the past.”

For Steinbaum, higher taxes on the wealthy would mean freeing up more money for everyone else. If you think of the economy as a pie, right now, billionaires are getting just about all of it, while we’re all left splitting just one slice.

If you raise taxes on the richest, their incentive to grab at every morsel declines. The theory is they’ll fight a little less hard to depress everyone else’s wages if they know that every extra million is going to get taxed away. A high-paid CEO has less incentive to keep workers’ wages low so he can get a bigger payday.

Billionaires were once a rare breed. In the past few decades, as the U.S. has slashed tax rates, their numbers have exploded, far outpacing inflation.

Since 2008, the number of billionaires in the world has doubled, according to a report published last week by the anti-poverty nonprofit Oxfam. In just the last year, billionaires raked in an astonishing $2.5 billion each day.

In 1982, the first year Forbes debuted its list of the 400 richest Americans, there were about a dozen billionaires. The richest man in the U.S. back then was an 85-year-old shipping magnate with an estimated worth of $2 billion, or $5.2 billion in today’s dollars.

"We do not need billionaires. The economy’s done better without billionaires in the past."
--Marshall Steinbaum, Roosevelt Institute​

Nowadays, Forbes’ list is entirely billionaires. The richest is Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, worth $160 billion.

More: Should Billionaires Even Exist?

I agree! Billionaires aren't cool anymore! The playing field is tilted like the Titanic before it went down. There is no logical reason for so few to have so much. What do you think?

Should gays exist?
Should Jews exist?
Should African Americans exist?
Should Native Americans exist?
etc., etc. etc.

Why is the party of enlightenment, tolerance and diversity always wanting to do away with people not like them or at least control them? Liberals are a dangerous bunch. Pound sand you commie bastard.

 

[Brain357]

Well we need to start with campaign finance reform for less government corruption.

Which reforms do we need?

Government control of campaign finance. Duh.

No control sure isn’t working.

Control didn't work...….

Explain.

We had control in 1996, while Clinton was getting illegal Chinese donations.

Did he? Link?

how much control did we have?

 

[ChrisL]

A business would be silly to not take advantage of what is being offered to it and, of course, they are going to take advantage of what is offered to them. It is not the fault of business that Congress is full of corruption. That is the fault of Congress, and SOME voters who keep voting these same old dirtbags into positions of power.

Business buys corruption. You see how much is spent on elections?

You just keep repeating yourself, and I've already addressed this. Are you a bot?

Yes you blame only the buyers and not the sellers. It’s all a problem. We need reform.

The buyers are our politicians. The sellers have no say if the buyers aren't buying. Lol.

But they are.

??? But they are what? Again, the sellers cannot sell if the buyers stop buying. Correct?

 

[Brain357]

Business buys corruption. You see how much is spent on elections?

You just keep repeating yourself, and I've already addressed this. Are you a bot?

Yes you blame only the buyers and not the sellers. It’s all a problem. We need reform.

The buyers are our politicians. The sellers have no say if the buyers aren't buying. Lol.

But they are.

??? But they are what? Again, the sellers cannot sell if the buyers stop buying. Correct?

They are buying. What should we do about that?

 

[ChrisL]

You just keep repeating yourself, and I've already addressed this. Are you a bot?

Yes you blame only the buyers and not the sellers. It’s all a problem. We need reform.

The buyers are our politicians. The sellers have no say if the buyers aren't buying. Lol.

But they are.

??? But they are what? Again, the sellers cannot sell if the buyers stop buying. Correct?

They are buying. What should we do about that?

Well, we could vote in some people who are NOT lifelong corrupt politicians. Really though, Congress could put an end to it. THEY choose not to.

 

[WTH_Progs?]

You know what’s not cool anymore? Billionaires.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Elizabeth Warren believe some Americans have too much money, and they’re not alone.

Their very existence is now the subject of political debate, sparked most recently by tax-the-rich proposals from two prominent politicians.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) proposed placing a 2 percent tax on wealth over $50 million and 3 percent on assets over $1 billion. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said she wants to increase the marginal tax rate on those earning more than $10 million a year.

Their ideas went viral, starting a mainstream conversation about inequality and wealth.

This kind of talk has always existed among a certain group of hard-core progressives and left-leaning economists, but heading into next year’s presidential election, the idea that the super-rich should pay their fair share is gaining real momentum.

Marshall Steinbaum, a research director at the left-leaning Roosevelt Institute, has advocated taxing the rich at higher rates for years. “We do not need billionaires,” Steinbaum told HuffPost. “The economy’s done better without billionaires in the past.”

For Steinbaum, higher taxes on the wealthy would mean freeing up more money for everyone else. If you think of the economy as a pie, right now, billionaires are getting just about all of it, while we’re all left splitting just one slice.

If you raise taxes on the richest, their incentive to grab at every morsel declines. The theory is they’ll fight a little less hard to depress everyone else’s wages if they know that every extra million is going to get taxed away. A high-paid CEO has less incentive to keep workers’ wages low so he can get a bigger payday.

Billionaires were once a rare breed. In the past few decades, as the U.S. has slashed tax rates, their numbers have exploded, far outpacing inflation.

Since 2008, the number of billionaires in the world has doubled, according to a report published last week by the anti-poverty nonprofit Oxfam. In just the last year, billionaires raked in an astonishing $2.5 billion each day.

In 1982, the first year Forbes debuted its list of the 400 richest Americans, there were about a dozen billionaires. The richest man in the U.S. back then was an 85-year-old shipping magnate with an estimated worth of $2 billion, or $5.2 billion in today’s dollars.

"We do not need billionaires. The economy’s done better without billionaires in the past."
--Marshall Steinbaum, Roosevelt Institute​

Nowadays, Forbes’ list is entirely billionaires. The richest is Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, worth $160 billion.

More: Should Billionaires Even Exist?

I agree! Billionaires aren't cool anymore! The playing field is tilted like the Titanic before it went down. There is no logical reason for so few to have so much. What do you think?

Every one of those guys is a PROG, right Tonto? Matter of fact your guy Bezo's just purchased a "home" for 165 million. This is the same **** who says "anyone who doesn't believe man-caused climate change is a fool". But you know how PROGS are right? Say one thing, project another & demonstrate how full of shit you really are.