capitalism
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- Morning_star-5
What is rich?
There’s lots of posts here that criticise the ‘rich’ or request some further taxation or redistribution of wealth and I struggle to understand what (financially) rich means. It’s become a meaningless totemic word for perceived financial insensitivity or vulgar displays of wealth.
I’d imagine that most, if not all of the contributors to QBN are in the global top 1% of earners, and by that comparison we are all ‘rich’. Yet, I’d also imagine that those that support a more socialist approach to redistribution are likely to be amongst the folk that would be most effected if their suggestions ever came to light.
Targeting an incredibly small group of celebrity billionaires as the problem seems dumb and naive.
So what is ‘rich’ and what would ‘tax the rich’ actually mean?
- Probably means “make those who earn (a lot of) money pay the actual amounts of tax they should be paying, and not sidestepping their dues”hardhat
- Which tax? Personal taxation, corporate taxation, taxes on goods and services, tax on gifts and inheritance, regional taxes, tax on income? The types of tax...Morning_star
- ...are complex, imperfect and prone to exploitation. What is wrong with using the imperfection to reduce the amount you pay? We ALL do it.Morning_star
- Prince Andrew is a nonce, but he's using legal methods to not get prosecuted for being a dirty fucking nonce. Just because it's legal doesn't make it ok.PhanLo
- You have to remember that most people don’t have any way to exploit the system (mainly the bottom row tax payers) whereby the top tier have a multitude of wayshardhat
- Which they do so royally. Just because a system *can* be exploited, doesn’t mean it should be, or that it’s “right” to do so.hardhat
- A lot of tax dodging is just plain immoral, and indefensible. That’s my take on it in any case.hardhat
- It’s not the same. Let’s assume Andrew is guilty (as we don’t actually know) then he’s done something illegal and subject to prosecution. What have the Rich...Morning_star
- ...done that’s illegal? And again, just what consitutes Rich?Morning_star
- @hardhat, if it isn’t illegal why is reducing the amount you pay immoral?Morning_star
- The absolute exploitation of workers? No-one becomes a billionaire without breaking the backs of those under them and profiting from their labour.face_melter
- I think the term is just shorthand for “people who earn more should pay more” which if you think about it, is quite a good ideahardhat
- The wider issue is capital. Billionaire cunts are the manifestation of capital and it's utter disregard for people, the environment, society, and human rights.face_melter
- Agreed. But these structures are also just put in place to shield “individuals” from their tax bills.hardhat
- @face, Isn’t exploiting workers illegal?Morning_star
- Make no mistake, Gates et al would happily flatten the planet if it meant more cash. Especially Gates and his wretched white-man-saviour 'philanthropy'.face_melter
- “People” still run these things and choose to circumvent paying their dues but can put a “we do it for our shareholders” etc as way of justificationhardhat
- Also, do you mean ‘capitalism’?Morning_star
- “We” (I included) are essentially greedy and don’t want to give up the $$ we got. Understandable, but not “right”.hardhat
- @face, are you a fan of a communist system.Morning_star
- @hardhat, I understand what you’re trying to say but it’s not greed. I want the best Life I can afford for me and my family. That lifestyle is radically...Morning_star
- ...different depending on the country you reside in. I won’t apologise for wanting the best I can afford, yet the iPhone I have is manufactured...Morning_star
- ...by an unregulated, un-unionised workforce. Arguably I am just as much part of the problem as Bezos or Cook yet the knives are out for the people who bring us...Morning_star
- ...these products we’re very happy to consume. The whole argument is incredibly hypocritical.Morning_star
- Paying taxes in the country you earn money helps the people living in that country, it makes the society better. How hard is that to understand?PhanLo
- Go to a Scando country and see what the higher taxes pay for.PhanLo
- Roosevelt taxed 75% of 'rich' peoples earnings over a certain amount with the New Deal. Build loads of stuff and gave people work.PhanLo
- @phanlo, I totally agree with you. The financial and political model that the scando countries embrace is possibly the peak of what we can expect...Morning_star
- ...on this planet today. However, they subscribe to a mix of free market and socialists systems depending on what’s best. And it works. The cry of many that...Morning_star
- ...capitalism is evil and socialism is the only answer is crass and unworkable. I’m all for an appropriate mix of the two.Morning_star
- With regard to Tax, the system is fucked and until it’s simplified and the loopholes addressed then painting those who exploit the inadequacies as...Morning_star
- ...evil is idiotic and missing the point entirely.Morning_star
- @morning - I think we’re pretty much on the same side here. I was just saying “people should pay what they should pay” at its simplesthardhat
- And agree - loopholes need to be closed. We all want “the best” but “taxing the rich” is just saying we want things to be fair and that often they skirt payinghardhat
- grafician-1
"Warren Buffett makes over $120 billion on Apple's rise to $3 trillion, among his best bets ever"
"The 5% Apple stake Berkshire Hathaway acquired in 2018 for $36 billion is now worth $160 billion as the tech giant hit the $3 trillion milestone.
Warren Buffett's conglomerate has also enjoyed regular dividends from Apple, averaging about $775 million annually.
Berkshire's Apple stake now makes up more than 40% of its equity portfolio."
- utopian-1
- grafician-2
- diversity right there. no racism right there.shapesalad
- except disable or trans not represented.shapesalad
- utopian-1
- grafician-1
"America gained 2.5 million new millionaires last year"
"The number of rich people in the world rose at a rapid pace last year, boosted by gains in the stock market and house prices.
As many as 5.2 million people became millionaires last year, with nearly half in the United States alone, according to Credit Suisse’s latest annual wealth report.
“This is the largest increase in millionaire numbers recorded for any country in any year this century,” it said.
Worldwide, the total number of millionaires stood at 62.5 million at the end of 2021, Credit Suisse estimated.
The report, which was released Tuesday, found that aggregate global wealth totaled $463.6 trillion at the end of last year, jumping 9.8%.
Unsurprisingly, the top two economies — the United States and China — saw the biggest gains in household wealth, followed by Canada, India, and Australia."
- imbecile-2
- Henry Ford, his raging antisemitism attracted the admiration of Adolf Hitler.Morning_star
- PhanLo-1
Also UK IS FUCKOED
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- utopian-1
- sofas-3
Feels like relationships and jobs go hand in hand in many aspects.
From long to short term marriage, partner, dating and hookups, so do workplaces change from life, a few years, freelancing, gig economy.
Hiring consultants to improve the business etc.
As a wise man said -
Capitalism in love, love in capitalism- What are you saying? It’s hard to decipher your point.monospaced
- deathboy-2
- shapesalad-3
That dorky clothing brand French Connection (Worn by short haircut boy racer types who thought they were being so edgy wearing FCUK t-shirts in the 2000's)... share price up 148% in one day.
- just pointing it out... madness.. all on a RNS that basically says we are kinda doing ok due to covid, but not great.shapesalad
- NBQ00-2
I wanna be a fucking C Y B E R T R I L L I O N A I R E
- NBQ00-2