Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2019/11/24/plutes-in-retreat.html
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Anand Giridharadas (previously) persuasively argues that capitalism discredited itself, starting with the 2008 crisis.
The end of the postwar economic anomaly in the U.S., which occurred at some point between 2001 and 2008 set the stage, and the looming acknowledgement of global warming’s effects have only raised the stakes looking forward. Since 2008 it’s basically been a scramble by the top 1% (aided by their political cronies and the Know-Nothing 27% dupes) to hoard wealth and opportunity and do a lot of reputation laundering and greenwashing through band-aid philanthropy, all while desperately trying to prop up the 40-year-old neoliberal consensus as the default/only alternative.
We’re turning into a very different society than the one many of us knew as the default from 1946-2001. The question of the moment is (as it was in the early 20th century) will we let the billionaires define it or will we wake up and come to our senses?
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I’m thinking of the ‘Alien vs Predator’ tagline: "Whoever wins… We lose. "
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The only way this is gonna work is when he loses the nomination, he still has a big heart and throws his cash and campaign war machine behind the winner. Otherwise, we are looking at 4 more years of the worst shit the planet has ever seen since Big Meteor 65,000,000 B.C.
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Everybody who thought Mark Zuckerberg was going to save us, raise your hand
- I HAVE A CHRONIC MEDICAL PROBLEM AND BILLIONAIRES ARE GOING TO CURE ME
- I HAVE A CHRONIC MEDICAL PROBLEM AND THE NEW DRUG THEY’RE WORKING ON THAT WILL COST THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS PER PILL IS NOT GOING TO WORK ANY BETTER THAN THE OLD ONE
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voters
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I like that there’s a candidate who understands my concerns about mega yacht depreciation and my fears over some people - that maybe they should be detained and searched on a regular basis.
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Needs more options.
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Vote for the rich; the rich will set you free?
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Vote for me and I’ll set me free!
Apologies to the Temptations.
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Writing in Time, Anand Giridharadas (previously) persuasively argues that capitalism discredited itself , starting with the 2008 crisis.
It makes me happy that in doctors’ waiting rooms across the country and in the living rooms of several older relatives including my parents, the print edition will appear with this as the cover story.
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I do not see this happening here in Tennessee. Quite the opposite.
This wording isn’t strong enough. I would have said, “evident corruption.”
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Though I hope his hearts in the right place, don’t forget that if he wins he’ll be able to sell Bloomberg tax free. Worth the investment of a run.
Saw one speculation that Bloomberg is running so that the $1 billion he is supposedly planning to spend on anti-Trmp ads will be cheaper and can’t be edited by the channels that deliver them because he is now an official candidate.
Perhaps Pollyanna-ish but may be useful to have in the back of your mind.
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Yes, this is much more biting and to-the-point than I’d’ve expected from Time. Gratifying.
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Mike, hit the bricks and take Biden with you.
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Dr. Richard Wolff talks about how this is simply the natural and predictable progression of capitalism: Accumulation of wealth and power to a small number of oligarchs, who then buy the government and use it to accumulate more.
Tweaks around the edges (i.e., regulation) can slow down the rate of collapse, but the changes need to be more systemic. The plutes are not going to fix themselves.
Dr. Wolff’s key proposal is to democratize the enterprise; put the decision making into the hands of the employees (1 person 1 vote; what a radical concept), instead of having a few rich fail-sons call all the shots. Factory workers are not going to vote to outsource their own jobs, or poison their own backyard.
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