'Murica in one photo

[634-5789]

Yep. These 2 billionaires could have well done a LOT for the world instead of pissing away their massive fortunes on space games. If you think that they're OK, since, you know, it's their own money, that's swell. I personally would have found a way to get the world clean drinking water and use some of that insanely fat wallet fill to alleviae starvation, but HEY...space toys 'n games is so important. 🙄

[brush]

1. How much, what percentage of their wealth would you say is ok?

And would that include of exclude what charities they support?

[634-5789]

6. 75% to charities. Their call on who gets it.

[Bluethroughu]

8. Give more, do more than just create business.

Take less tax incentives. We could end world hunger by taking some of the billionaire stock pile, because they can't seem to figure out how to do that, but someone like Bezos can figure out global logists to make money?

Come on.

He can afford to do and give more, and others like him. Billionaires should not get to decide who lives or dies. Instead of having discussions about how to game the world tax, and keep working wages down, they should be using their knowledge, money and power to better humanity. Not throw pennies of a percentage of their wealth at the commoners and ask for deity status.

[brush]

20. See post 17.

[wnylib]

38. It's against their nature to use their

wealth to improve lives beyond their own. They did not become billionaires through selflessness.

[samnsara]

27. i agree... why do people always think they know whats best for others and try to dictate how they

..spend their well earned hard earned fortune? Its NONE of our business. i just want them to pay their fair share of taxes and many 'bills' have said YES they agree.

If they want to spend their money entertaining us with space travel.. so be it. I loved watching Bransons launch and I will enjoy Bezos just as much.

[Scrivener7]

28. Bezos, the richest man in the world, paid zero taxes last year. So I do judge his space

cadet frivolity.

If he paid his fair share, I wouldn't think twice about it. But he doesn't. And this "big boys toys" fight is rubbing all our noses in the fact that the richest in the country get a free ride paid for by the rest of us.

[FoxNewsSucks]

43. AMEN!!!!!

Well said. If the reality of that post doesn't sink in, I don't know what would.

[FoxNewsSucks]

46. I'd like to see a 100% tax

on wealth in excess of $1B. Along with the rollback of every tax cut since 1980.

Poor people are constantly told to just "live within your means". Tax everything over $1B and tell those people to start living within their means, even if scraping by on a measly $1B is hard for them.

That benefits everyone because when corporate tax rates are high, the value of a tax-deductible expense increases. Wages are a deductible expense, as are employee benefits, R&D, and investing in updated equipment. So those things will increase when taxes are high compared to the situation now. When there is low or no tax, there is no incentive to do anything but rake as much cash as possible out of a company.

[LiberatedUSA]

56. I think instead of a lump sum to charities...

...they should do what they do with their own money. Set up a portfolio just for charities. For them, a portfolio of $100 million would be easy to separate from their insane amount of wealth. That insane dividend amount per month on $100 million could be used to give out every single month. Could even hold free give-a-aways with some of the basically free money (as long as the principle $100 million isn’t touched) to people who need it.

Same way they live, off the interest dividends from portfolios worth $1 Billion. Apply that to a charity account, instead of a lump sum on occasion.

[brooklynite]

2. Sounds like a lose-lose situation...

If they spend money on their own trip, its greed...

I they spend money on building a new travel business, which generates more revenue, its.....greed.

What specifically, do you imagine they should be doing with their money?

[Scrivener7]

4. I imagine they should be paying the same percentage of their money in taxes as the rest of us.

Specifically.

And I imagine they should be paying their employees commensurate with the increases in productivity over the years rather than taking all the difference for themselves.

Specifically.

And really? "A new travel business which generates more revenue"?

Jesus.

[brush]

17. New businesses mean new jobs. And you're wrong about they should pay the same as...

everyone else. They actually should pay way more than what we pay as their many businesses used up more resources than just a worker and his/her family. Their trucks create more need for maintenance from city/county/state taxpayer money. Their businesses do likewise with the power grid, and a much larger share of resources. Also garbage services, water, all the utilities paid for by taxpayer—they use way more and show pay way more.

Look up what the rich paid back before Reagan and the republicans started cutting their tax rate.

IMO they should be paying what they did back in and before the Eisenhower days.

Google it.

[FoxNewsSucks]

37. You're mostly right,

in that they should pay way more. All tax cuts should be rolled back to pre-Raygun days, corporate and personal. I remember the 60's, marginal taxes were high, the country was prosperous, and "we had nice things". We also still had rich people despite the high marginal tax rate.

However, new businesses do not always mean new jobs. The local stores destroyed by walmart likely employed more people in their small towns than the walmart. Those employees were probably paid more than walmart employees, and there was less cost to taxpayers in the form of food stamps and welfare being collected. Those local stores didn't get special tax abatements, or have highway offramps and traffic lights installed for them at taxpayer expense. They didn't cut deals that let them keep employee withholding tax or the sales tax they collected. Furthermore, far more of the money spent in those stores stayed local, instead of getting sucked into a Roger AR bank account every night.

So, when a "new" business is really nothing more than a different employer hiring for the same jobs that pay less, and fewer of them, that is not an improvement. Nor is it something that we should ever support.

[bluewater]

71. +1000

[634-5789]

7. I already said.

[Bluethroughu]

3. The problem with your statement is...

It's not their money. They've siphoned off all the working class discretionary money from ridiculous tax incentives where they contribute zero to the collective democracy, and get money back earned by the people that built this country and world investing in it everyday they wake up and keep going.

Rump Bezos, and all these others like them, ARE the welfare queens with no skin in the game of humanity, muchless country.

[634-5789]

9. Nope. It's their money, regardless f ow they attained it, and it's poorly spent.

[Bluethroughu]

15. I'm so not impressed with wealth...

And this sportsmanship among billionaires is getting old. Same as it ever was.

They are the typical rich boring people talked about while their here but forgot in history.

How about this before you float outside the atmosphere, you come down to earth and collaborate with the like minded among yourselves to create an equal, fair and just society built on leaving this planet better than it is today...oops they are part of the bail out crowd.

[panader0]

25. Bezos is arguably the richest man in the world.

Last year he paid zero in taxes. Obscene.

[634-5789]

26. Exactly.

And with all the turmoil in the world, these guys could seriously help populations across the globe, but instead, it's rich little boy games. Disgusts me.

[Bluethroughu]

58. Me too.

[sanatanadharma]

40. It is obscene! As an "individual", he benefits but does not put "individual" skin in the game

It matters not how much or many jobs, businesses, foundations, charity, etc are said to be arising from the rich.
The people may gain benefit from the rich, but the rich benefit out of proportion from the people.

The simple fact that a US citizen, richest in the world or not, who is daily benefiting from the commons of the country (farms, education, roads, ports, planes, trains, stock markets, groceries, entertainment, travel, security, fire, police, laws, courts, etc) does not, as a named individual, a winner, the gainer of exponential benefits ....

...does not put personal skin in the game.

Taxes are the only common, applies to everyone truth in the country (ignoring death, as we all try to do).
Those who gain nothing pay nothing. Those who play pay. Those who win should not be exempt from having to ante-up.

Only crooks benefit from ripping off the commons!
Bezos can not claim the benefits of being an American "Has Not".

Wealth accumulated without taxable income is ethically illogical.

[panader0]

50. According to Business Insider, Bezos makes $157,207 dollars per minute!

Howzabout paying some taxes you welfare queen?
The logical endpoint of capitalism is to own everything in the world.
Then you win!
But then you die......

[Bluethroughu]

59. Perfectly said, illogical.

[Scrivener7]

5. Some DUers certainly are waving the palm fronds for these assholes. That's pretty sad.

[634-5789]

10. AMEN!

[brush]

11. One thing I learned a long time ago is to stay out of other peoples' pocketbooks.

[Scrivener7]

12. Yes. These billionaires have been stealing from the pocketbooks of the rest of us since the

Reagan administration. And with greater audacity and greed as the years go by. They need to be made to stop doing that.

I totally agree with you.

They need to be made to pay the same percentage, or a larger percentage of taxes, as the rest of us, and they need their corporations to START paying taxes for all the common resources they use up that you and I have to pay for.

They are stealing from you.

[brush]

14. Make your own billion and give away what you want. Or get elected to Congress...

and pass laws to tax them more. Also see post 13.

[Scrivener7]

16. Wow. So you're ok with the fact that we are more unequal - by a large margin - than

Tsarist Russia? You think that is due to the lack of industriousness among us peasants because we haven't made our own billions?

Because it lets you look at the rich boys' space toys from afar?

Okay, then.

Keep in mind that my argument is that they should bear an equal tax burden to the rest of us. That is what you are fighting me on.

[brooklynite]

18. If that's your concern, then advocate to Biden, Pelosi, Schumer, et al for higher taxes...

Complaining on a blog won't accomplish much.

nb - Branson isn't a US citizen, so Bezos will have to carry the freight.

[Scrivener7]

23. Lol! Given your responses in this thread, I guess you should be advocating to the same

people that they NOT pay their fair share of taxes.

So scoot! Get on it! What are you doing wasting your time complaining on a blog and not accomplishing anything?

[brooklynite]

33. I get it: Rich people don't WANT to pay their legal tax obligations!

Out of curiosity, do you know at what income level this avoidance ends?

[Scrivener7]

34. Bezos paid zero taxes last year. The end.

[brush]

19. Ya don't know what you don't know. They should be paying way more than what we do.

See post 17 and learn.

[Scrivener7]

21. Despite your REALLY disgustingly creepy tone, you are agreeing with me in SOME Of

your posts in that they should pay their fair share of taxes. In your other posts, like the one where you tell me to make my own billion and get elected to congress if I don't like that they don't pay their fair share of taxes, you seem to be disagreeing with me.

So I'm not going to spend any more time on your bizarrely convoluted and conflicting arguments.

Have a lovely day.

[brush]

29. Odd. I'm not agreeing with you. They should be paying a much higher tax rate than one...

equal to everyone else. What you're advocating would short change the IRS.

Do more research.

[FoxNewsSucks]

39. It's not just sad, it's pathetic.

You would expect people here to know better. Some of these posts look like they were written by Sean Hannity or Laura Ingrm

[Scrivener7]

41. I know. And sadly, it is not that surprising, given the sources.

[quickesst]

13. Sir Richard Branson

The billionaire philanthropist reportedly supports over 28 causes including gender equality, LGBTQ rights, environmental conservation, and climate change. He contributes to about 37 charities including Virgin Unite, which is the nonprofit foundation he created in 2004.

“I now spend the majority of my time working with Virgin Unite to make a positive difference in the world,” Branson wrote on the Virgin Unite website. “From supporting projects that I’m passionate about, such as being an advocate for LGBTQ+ rights, drug policy reform and giving ex-offenders a second chance to using my voice and that of the Virgin Group to shine a spotlight on issues that I believe are unacceptable, such as climate change and the death penalty.”


https://marketrealist.com/p/richard-branson-charitable-donations/

Easy to make a case when you only use that part of the story that suits your agenda.

[634-5789]

22. And yet all you hear about DAILY is ths duelling space bullshit.

Funny, Bill Gates is not in some goddamn space game, but actually does things for people instead of having to look up on some 3rd rate website about Branson and his glorious achevements, TBH, this is the FIRST I have ever hard of his avocation for change, so....

[DFW]

30. It seems most of the media looks for sensation these days, not news.

Branson does what he does instead of constantly tooting his own horn. And why should he? He has nothing left to prove to anyone. In his position, I wouldn't give a rat's ass what the press wrote about me either.

If Branson were to have scrubbed his mission and spent the $851 million (of which none of the income and payroll taxes on the salaries, and sales taxes on the matériel, would then have been collected) on a million Americans in danger of being evicted, they would have collected $851 each. That would have staved off eviction for maybe six weeks? It's Congress that has to act, not Richard Branson (not even American) or Bill Gates. Doing an Enteignung on Jeff Bezos won't alleviate the damage Congressional Republicans are doing by blocking everything. If they continue to do that, no jealousy tax is going to fix it.

My father was a respected member of the Washington print press for most of his life. His contemporaries and friends included people like Helen Thomas, not Sean Hannity. Helen was one of the first to arrive at his memorial service at the National Press Club. My brother and I were at hers, 13 years later. Instead, the White House briefing room now seats idiot non-journalists like Steve Doocy. No wonder all we hear about is, as you so well put it, "this duelling space bullshit."

Even before the 2000 election, the last one he lived through (barely), my dad lamented the American press, and their total loss of focus on what their job was. Throughout the impeachment of Bill Clinton, the press focused on a brief White House affair, and not on Bosnia, Kosovo or Iraq. To the question, "what were they thinking?" my dad's answer was that they had ceased to do so altogether.

[quickesst]

49. I think some people....

.... try way too fucking hard to garner the praise and kudos from the progressive community their self righteous egos crave, hence the complete absence of any credit for the charitable work done by Richard Branson. That would neutralize, and defeat the purpose of the OP and his source's one-sided "opinion".

[quickesst]

70. Can't argue with that

[brush]

64. Exactly. They should do the research before making unsubstanciated accusations.

In other words, they shouldn't fall for the media hype. Just as in elections, the MSM loves to create the horse race narrative.

[quickesst]

72. Something that's always bugged me....

.... about quite a few people here is the tendency to shoot from the hip with speculation and accusation. I am a staunch believer in letting facts lead me to a conclusion rather than guessing at a conclusion without all the facts.

[brooklynite]

54. I haven't heard a link discussed at all...

...except here.

Bezos is going because he wants to personally. Branson is promoting his new passenger space flights.

[Act_of_Reparation]

53. Charity is not a substitute for a social safety net.

It's great that he gives, but individual donations do not have the impact necessary to affect large-scale change.

This isn't about him, it's about how our society is organized.

[hunter]

24. With so many utterly EVIL billionaires in the world, why pick on these guys?

Once upon a time, as Emperor of the Earth, I would have taxed all the billionaires out of existence, but I don't give a shit any more.

[Yavin4]

31. Don't blame the billionaires. Blame your government for allowing the accumulation of vast wealth

without seeing to it that their workers share in the benefits.

[Scrivener7]

35. But the billionaires, since Citizens United, own the government. Everything is set

up for them to continue and increase their grabbing of the wealth of the nation that should be distributed more equitably.

[634-5789]

44. Exactly how would that work?

You can't force these billionaires to do the right thing by ther employees...

[Yavin4]

60. How about making it easier for employees to form unions?

Or, how about a law or regulation requiring publicly traded companies of a certain size that they have employee representation on corporate boards?

There are other proposals out there that would give employees a greater voice in their share of the companies' profits.

[brush]

65. Right. Or that the billionaires are taxed appropriately. And the critics should be...

aware of the big picture and who to blame, other than the billionaires.

It all goes back to the party that works for rich people. The republican party of course, with their trickle down bullshit and chopped tax rates for the rich (and huge loopholes for their accountants to find) back in Reagan's day.

Even before that as that's all that party has ever had—tax cuts for the rich, right wing and stolen judge seat, wedge issue red meat for their low info supporters and opposition to Democratic party policies which help the rest of us.

[Elessar Zappa]

32. Meh.

It’s their money. The real problem is that they don’t pay their fair share of taxes.

[Wingus Dingus]

36. Meh. If my husband had the money, the one thing he'd do is go to space.

(Not me, though, I hate flying.) Can't blame these guys. This harms no one.

[ck4829]

48. I think we're missing the text at the bottom of the picture

Quite the jarring juxtaposition.

[Wingus Dingus]

51. No, I got that. But one doesn't have much to do with the other.

[Ziggysmom]

42. A person only needs so much money

[ck4829]

47. K&R

[panader0]

52. A stat I just read when I googled space flight carbon footprint:

Last edited Fri Jul 16, 2021, 09:29 AM - Edit history (1)

Bezos' SpaceX flight will generate the annual carbon footprint of 278 average world citizens.

So a less than one hour flight is as polluting as 278 people for a year.
I can't understand the defense of Branson and Bezos here on DU. Bezos pays no US taxes,
neither does Branson, a UK citizen, but his pollution was in New Mexico.
As The Magistrate pointed out the other day, F-15s have flown higher than either billionaire will do.
Thus, there is no scientific benefit to these ego boosting space games. WTF?

Edit to say: I was wrong about the F-15, It was the X-15,
The X-15 reached an altitude of 354,206 feet and Branson went 283,480 feet.
Thanks to Celerity for correcting my error.

[Dial H For Hero]

57. Per this link, Bezos' upcoming flight is calculated to emit around 93 tons of CO2.

https://www.treehugger.com/what-is-carbon-footprint-of-space-tourism-5192322

With 4 passengers, the per person carbon footprint is about 23 tons. To put that in perspective, my upcoming flight to Thailand (in business class) will have a per person carbon footprint of 12 tons. This equates to, in his case, the annual carbon footprint of 6 world citizens (in my case 3 of them).

(BTW, I saw the stat you got from Google. That calculated the carbon footprint of a SpaceX flight which reaches orbital velocity. The billionaire boys' efforts are quite modest in comparison.)

[Mosby]

67. Those co2 numbers are redic.

Are they including the electric bills of the workers who built the plane? Emissions from manufacturing aluminum and plastic?

Explain to me how a single flight from Thailand to wherever produces 24,000 pounds of co2 per person.

Please.

[Dial H For Hero]

73. I presume it's based upon the emissions of the jetliner. Obviously, it does not take into account

The carbon emissions produced by those who built the plane or its manufacture, which are virtually impossible to calculate and would have to be spread out over the lifetime of the plane as it makes thousands of flights.

[BannonsLiver]

63. Do you have a link to that post?

I’m curious as to how an F15 achieved an altitude of 280,000. The previous record was about 100,000. Thanks.

[Baked Potato]

55. The trickle down from their rockets will be felt some day? $arcasm.

[FoxNewsSucks]

61. Good ol' trickle-down

Seems like too many here need to think about that one for a while.

[FakeNoose]

66. Classic "chyrony"

You guys know what a chyron is, right? It's pronounced "KYE-ron" and it's the special graphics computer that is used to create the text overlays on video. It's used a lot on news shows, as we all know.

So someone's job is typing those headlines and subheads. Usually it's a graphic designer but not always. Often the headlines are composed on the fly while things are happening on the screen. A mistake or typo can happen in the blink of an eye, to everyone's embarrassment

Occasionally the chyron operator is a person with a cool, ironic sense of humor, who knows how to get one over almost everybody. He doesn't want to get fired of course, but he might play a quick joke that only extremely observant, intelligent people would even catch.

On the other hand, some chyron subheads are written by a person who's not even watching the screen, and has no idea the irony he's creating. This example in the OP might be a "whoops!" or it might be an "Oh my God, can you believe he got away with that?!"

[Mosby]

68. Branson is British not American.

Kind of a weird mistake.

[634-5789]

69. What mistake? No mistake here.

Instead of pissing money away for some Big Boy Billionaire ullshit, he should be helping his fellow man ...plenty who does no have food, water, shelter. All these ego saturated rich fuckers are the same, and they disgust me. I give 2 red rat fucks if this guy is British, or from Spain, or wherever.