Comments for Learning from Dogs

Comment on Inequality, a rich man speaks! by Patrice Ayme

Patrice Ayme — Wed, 30 May 2012 05:13:40 +0000

First Pedantry is right: inequality is at all time high in the USA (at least since the 1930s). That’s measured by GINI.
Taxing the wealthy is just a matter of mathematics of the exponential, and the nature of interest. This was known already in neolithic societies. That this is forgotten today shows that some societies yearn towards prehistory.

Comment on Inequality, a rich man speaks! by Merci O

Merci O — Wed, 30 May 2012 03:44:11 +0000

First thought that comes to mind is that, simply stated, the taxation structure is illogical. As the author Carlos Fuentes once stated “yesterday’s communism without freedom, today’s capitalism without justice.” Amen…
Merci

Comment on Inequality, a rich man speaks! by How to get through the eye of the needle « Lack of Environment

How to get through the eye of the needle « Lack of Environment — Tue, 29 May 2012 23:06:21 +0000

[...] has published his thoughts under the title Inequality, a rich man speaks and, in doing so, has provided an excellent summary of Hanauer’s spectacularly-successful [...]

Comment on Inequality, a rich man speaks! by Paul Handover

Paul Handover — Tue, 29 May 2012 16:36:38 +0000

I’m tempted to track down the man and ask what was his motivation behind the TED video!

Comment on Inequality, a rich man speaks! by Martin Lack

Martin Lack — Tue, 29 May 2012 16:33:35 +0000

Is he, indeed, the exception that proves the validity of the rule that "power corrupts; and absolute power corrupts absolutely"?

Comment on Inequality, a rich man speaks! by Paul Handover

Paul Handover — Tue, 29 May 2012 16:14:44 +0000

Thanks Martin, yes this message is so powerful because it comes from the mouth of someone sufficiently brave to stand up and say not all the wealthy are plutocrats.

Comment on Inequality, a rich man speaks! by Martin Lack

Martin Lack — Tue, 29 May 2012 15:56:41 +0000

Mr Hanauer needs to have a quiet word with George Osborne and David Cameron in the UK; because one of the few things that the Liberal Democrats are not challenging the Conservative-led coalition government is their well-publicised and enacted policy of lowering Corporation Tax to the lowest level of any country in Europe – if not the World. They have also lowered personal tax on the wealthy – on advice from those trying to collect the taxes who say so much money is spent on tax avoidance that it is not economic to try and collect it all… Next stop for the UK may be Greece – where so little tax is collected from anybody that it is only good for cheap summer holidays, fine-sounding literature and philosophy, and ancient monuments.

Mr Hanauer’s appeal for the wealthy to shoulder more of the tax burden (not less) is welcome evidence of altruism sadly absent from the pronouncements and behaviours exhibited by most of the super-rich. It is somewhat reminiscent of the refreshing demand of the owner of a peat-extraction business calling for carbon to be taxed or even banned; in order to encourage demand for and investment in alternatives.

With people like Mr. Hanauer around, there may yet be hope for humanity to avert the catastrophe awaiting us all if we choose to ignore science, history and economics.

Comment on Inequality, a rich man speaks! by Paul Handover

Paul Handover — Tue, 29 May 2012 15:25:01 +0000

Apologies not required, just lovely to have your comment. Oh, and if you want to republish this Post on ‘Wibble’ please do so. Paul

Comment on Inequality, a rich man speaks! by pendantry

pendantry — Tue, 29 May 2012 10:02:05 +0000

Apologies for the reply to my own post, but: intriguing… I followed the link in your postscript and read the article there without realising that the talk being discussed was the very one, from Nick Hanauer, that you talk about above. And this kind of makes me feel like retracting my comment above…

TED’s stance in this definitely rings hollow to me — but then, it would do, I’m biased in favour of the idea that inequality is at an all-time high. We’ve done more than enough forelock-tugging; if we’re all in this together, it’s high time that the wealthiest among us stopped behaving as though they are somehow so very much better than everyone else, and started paying their share. Heads have rolled in the past, for less…

Comment on Inequality, a rich man speaks! by pendantry

pendantry — Tue, 29 May 2012 09:40:24 +0000

Thank you for highlighting that not all capitalists have a totally blinkered view of their own worth!