Historian Rutger Bregman Tells Davos To PAY TAXES

[appalachiablue]

Last edited Wed Jan 30, 2019, 08:01 PM - Edit history (1)

"Historian Berates Billionaires At Davos Over Tax Avoidance." Rutger Bregman tells panel that the real issue is the rich not paying their fair share. The Guardian, Jan. 30, 2019. A discussion panel at the Davos World Economic Forum has become a sensation after a Dutch historian took billionaires to task for not paying taxes.

In a video shared tens of thousands of times, Rutger Bregman, author of the book Utopia for Realists, bemoans the failure of attendees at the recent gathering in Switzerland to address the key issue in the battle for greater equality: the failure of rich people to pay their fair share of taxes.

Noting that 1,500 people had travelled to Davos by private jet to hear David Attenborough talk about climate change, he said he was bewildered that no one was talking about raising taxes on the rich. “I hear people talking the language of participation, justice, equality and transparency but almost no one raises the real issue of tax avoidance, right? And of the rich just not paying their fair share,” Bregman tells the Time magazine panel on inequality.
“It feels like I’m at a firefighters conference and no one’s allowed to speak about water.”

Industry had to “stop talking about philanthropy and start talking about taxes”, he said, citing the high tax regime of 1950s America as an example to disprove arguments by businesspeople at Davos such as Michael Dell that economies with high personal taxation could not succeed. “That’s it.” “Taxes, taxes, taxes. All the rest is bullshit in my opinion.”
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/jan/30/historian-berates-billionaires-at-davos-over-tax-avoidance

Davos Experts Say It's Time To Switch To A Four Day Working Week
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/01/2-davos-experts-says-it-s-time-to-switch-to-a-four-day-working-week/

PATRIOTIC MILLIONAIRES, https://patrioticmillionaires.org/

[SWBTATTReg]

1. Thanks for posting appalachiablue...I find the hypocrisy of the ultra rich amazing...

I know that this isn't all of the ultra rich...there are truly some who do care and have proven so by essentially donating their entire wealth, W. Buffet, Gates, etc. Unfortunately there are some who are miserly, don't believe in 'spreading' the wealth, or 'a rising tide raises all boats' thinking.

This lack of apathy on the part of quite a few ultra rich amazes me in that if they via their corporations etc. do not provide decent wages for our fellow citizens, then how are they going to be able to buy our products? How are taxes going to be paid, especially since taxes on income for the wealthy seem to keep dropping? How will desperately needed infrastructure repairs going to be done if the level of income on the vast portion of our population prevents further increases in taxation by governmental agencies?

How stupid and ignorant are these people? There is going to come a time where there will be no place to go run to and hide out in their multi million dollar estates/mansions. There will be no place to go run to and hide billion dollar fortunes in order to escape taxes. They will be dragged into society as the rest of us are, and made to pay their dues like the rest of us do.

[appalachiablue]

2. Astonishing to see how long it's taking to correct the unhealthy system

of power from vast wealth and tax avoidance that has flourished in the last 20-30 years. For ten years, Nick Hanauer of the 'Patriotic Millionaires' group and others have presented similar arguments that you stressed. This lethal racket that's driving mass inequality, suffering and resentment must end or we'll surely decline, slowly and miserably, possibly to a place of no return. How much more harm must societies and the environment endure? Time for major, world action. And no fan of generalizing people, I also recognize the positive actions of very well off individuals who contribute to society through paying taxes, engaging in good works and fair labor practices.
~ To the young Dutch historian for his clear and bold remarks at Davos- bravo!

Patriotic Millionaires
https://patrioticmillionaires.org/

(20 mins.) Nick Hanauer, patriotic millionaire businessman, 'Fellow Plutocrats & Pitchforks Warning' TED Talk, 2014.
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/07/18/to-my-fellow-plutocrats-you-can-cure-trumpism-215347