Friday, January 06, 2012

Super Rich have excessive power by Louis Evan Palmer


On December 5th, 2012, the Globe and Mail ran a story called "Seven Millionaire Myths" by Claire Bradley of Investopedia.com


It is basically an apology for millionaires and seeks to cast them as ordinary and like us in that they pay taxes and work for their money. But millionaires are really a red herring in this case as a million in assets is not that much. The real message of this Globe and Mail propaganda piece is to agglomerate the super rich in with the ordinary millionaires so as to be able to include them in the statements that the "rich" are being unfairly characterized in the media and we should accept the assertions in this article and applaud them and their economic contributions. Among other things, this is a roundabout way of denigrating the Occupy movement and other similar organizations or persons who call out the massive economic distortions and targeted sweet-heart policies. However, the real issue is the definition of "rich" and the undue and unreported influence of a very small "super rich" group on all levels of government, the economy and society.

Referring to a University of California study at the following website http://www2.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html which reflects American statistics for the year 2005, there is a surprising and remarkable differentiation of wealth even in the top 1%. At the very top, a mere 400 households "earn" almost $90 million dollars income per year each mostly via financial manipulations and transactions. The continuing trend of consolidation and enrichment means it's only worse now, six years down the road, especially with unnecessary and barely legal bailouts for the chief transgressors in the recent financial debacles.

The same dangerous accumulation of wealth and power is undoubtedly happening in Europe and Asia. And then, there's other incomes that can be used to amass power and influence and manipulate events - undeclared income and assets, illegal income and assets and appropriated or seized income and assets. Again, focusing on the top of the top (i.e. the top 1/5000th of 1%), there's ample scope and an expectation for massive undue power and influence including corruption in undeveloped or developing countries and globally in government or corporate sectors where key power levers are exercised. There are also rogue government agencies, especially intelligence groups, that are creating and increasing their funding and power - and they have the added benefit of sophisticated armaments and personnel - in some ways, operating in a manner similar to organized crime. There are several groups wielding undue power but the key group in the advanced nations (and thus the world) is the super rich especially when we factor in the numerous corporations they control and which provide an enormous multiplier effect on their reach and capability. The issue becomes the excessive, often unmerited, accumulation of wealth and power by the super rich and its guaranteed abuse over time which always includes a debasement and impoverishment of the 99.9%

As an aside, there is no bio of Claire Bradley at Investopedia which appears to be her main (only?) publishing venue. As of August 2010, Forbes sold Investopedia to ValueClick. Investopedia is based in Edmonton, Alberta.

Super Rich have excessive power, Louis Evan Palmer, The Way It Can Be, http://twicb.blogspot.com

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Support his art, ideas and worldview, Order books by Louis Evan Palmer: the novel "Oaklane Woods"; short stories "Tales Told to a Tree"; poems "40 Poem Fragments". Order via Kindle link below or at right of screen

Copyright 2012 Louis Evan Palmer
He lives in Ontario Canada. His short stories have appeared in numerous publications.

BUY BOOKS BY LOUIS EVAN PALMER

No comments: