Brexit Could Be Delayed until 2021, EU Sources Reveal

THE GUARDIAN: EU reportedly determined to avoid uncertainty of three-month extension requests

Brexit could be delayed until 2021 under plans being explored by the EU’s most senior officials, at a time of growing exasperation over Theresa May’s handling of the talks, the Guardian can reveal.

A lengthy extension of the negotiating period is gaining traction as the EU’s default position should the Commons continue to reject May’s deal, and a request emerge.

Replacing the 21-month transition period with extra time as a member state would allow the UK and the EU to develop their plans for the future relationship with the aim of making the contentious Irish backstop redundant. » | Daniel Boffey in Sharm el-Sheik, and Lisa O'Carroll and Heather Stewart in London | Sunday, February 24, 2019

The Global Economy Is Slowing Down. What Can Governments Do about It?

THE GUARDIAN: A decade after the crash, many nations are still on emergency monetary policies, even before a new downturn strikes

Central banks are getting twitchy. On average, recessions have come along once a decade since the mid-1970s and the nadir of the last downturn occurred almost a decade ago.

The Nobel prize-winning economist Paul Krugman has predicted that there will be a recession in America by the time Donald Trump comes up for re-election at the end of next year.

The darkening outlook for global growth is putting pressure on the US president to resolve his trade dispute with China. When the White House announced its first tranche of protectionist measures almost a year ago, hopes were high that the world economy had at last shrugged off the long hangover from the financial crisis and deep slump of 2008-09. In the months before Trump went toe-to-toe with China’s president, Xi Jinping, it was expanding strongly and the International Monetary Fund was talking about a synchronised upturn. A year later – and with the 1 March deadline for a fresh round of US tariffs fast approaching – the mood has changed. All of which raises three big questions: » | Larry Elliott and Phillip Inman | Saturday, February 23, 2019

Vandana Shiva: We Must Fight Back Against the 1 Percent to Stop the Sixth Mass Extinction

New research finds at least a third of the Himalayan ice cap will melt by the end of the century due to climate change, even if the world’s most ambitious environmental reforms are implemented. A report released earlier this month by the Hindu Kush Himalaya Assessment warns rising temperatures in the Himalayas could lead to mass population displacements, as well as catastrophic food and water insecurity. The glaciers are a vital water source for the 250 million people who live in the Hindu Kush Himalaya range, which spans from Afghanistan to Burma. More than a billion-and-a-half people depend on the rivers that flow from the Himalayan peaks. We speak with world-renowned environmental leader and ecologist Dr. Vandana Shiva about climate change, seed sovereignty and her new book, “Oneness vs. the 1%.” Shiva is an Indian scholar, physicist, and food sovereignty and seed freedom advocate. She was was born in Doon Valley in the Himalayan foothills.

Every Two Days a Millionaire Becomes a Billionaire

Every two days last year, a multi-millionaire in the world became a billionaire, according to a new report released by Oxfam. It's called a rigged global economy and this is how it works:

The American Destruction of Venezuela - The Real Story

Did America create hyperinflation in Venezula to start a Coup and undermine the Maduro Government.

Rutger Bregman on Universal Basic Income | Sydney Opera House

Our day-to-day reality – life expectancy, health, wealth, and education – was considered unrealistic and utopian in the eighteenth century. So, what's next?

Rutger Bregman, Dutch historian and author, explores how utopian ideals like a basic living income and a fifteen-hour work week could become a reality in our lifetime.

Libertarian Takes on Democratic Socialist on Taxes and Loses. Again (2019)

Should we tax the rich at higher rates than we tax the poor? Libertarian Charles Sauer Takes on Democratic Socialist Thom Hartmann... And Loses. Again.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has suggested a seventy percent tax rate on the super profits of the very rich. The very suggestion of the rich paying their fair share has caused controversy among conservatives and in the media. But is taxing the rich at seventy percent really that radical? Libertarian Charles Sauer thinks so, debating Thom Hartmann on the effects and history of higher taxes on the rich. Does taxing the rich at higher rates help democracies function or do they slow innovation, as Charles Sauer believes?

Tucker Carlson Has Complete Meltdown After Guest Calls Him Out

Money, Luxury and Fame - The New Super-rich of India | DW Documentary

Only the US and China currently have more billionaires than India. Some of them are as famous as pop stars and enjoy similar adulation.

Their social media accounts have millions of followers - in a country where more than half the population lives below the poverty line and has no electricity or fresh water. India’s super-rich have been dubbed the "new maharajas." The sources of their seemingly unlimited wealth are almost as varied as their values and lifestyles. 23-old Evan Luthra uses his father's seed capital to invest in new ideas in the software industry. He loves luxury, meets the young moneyed elite in fashionable destinations around the world, and is active on all the social networks. Abhimanyu Alsisar, nephew of the Maharajah of Jaipur, runs a chain of luxury hotels in the ancient palaces of India and invests in music events. Kalpana Saroj comes from the lowest caste in India and has worked her way up from destitution to become a multimillionaire - but she never forgets her background, and helps impoverished farmers in her homeland with medical care and gifts of money. Vijay Mallya even bought his own Formula 1 racing team, but faces a long prison sentence for fraudulent bankruptcy and tax evasion should he return to India. The documentary is the result of six months of investigative research and offers a deep insight into the everyday and professional lives of India’s super-rich.

Tucker Carlson Blows Up at Rutger Bregman in Unaired Fox News Interview | NowThis

Fox News refused to air this full interview with historian Rutger Bregman after Fox News host Tucker Carlson lost his temper, calling his guest a 'tiny brain...moron' during the interview.

Karl Lagerfeld: Ex-Vogue Editor Alexandra Shulman Remembers the Fashion Icon - BBC Newsnight

Iconic fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld died aged 85 in Paris.

114 Years After Her Birth, Ayn Rand’s Supporters Think Russia Is Ready for Her Ideas

THE MOSCOW TIMES: Young Russians are increasingly turning to the American writer in their search for a political alternative.

In a glitzy hotel lobby in central St. Petersburg on Saturday, a band of young anarchists clad in black gathers around a middle-aged economics professor clutching a briefcase.

They make small talk — about the icy cold weather outside and their exams. But the real reason they’re here is Ayn Rand, the renowned and reviled advocate of unbridled capitalism and the free market. Or, as she is referred to here: “the Goddess of the Market” and “a real-live hero.”

Soon after, they cram into a nearby conference hall, where they will remain for some eight hours of uninterrupted discussion on Rand’s teachings and how they apply to present-day Russia in honor of her 114th birthday.

A star in America, forgotten in Russia

Despite the hype around the conference, Rand, who was born in St. Petersburg on Feb. 2, 1905, largely remains an obscure figure in her hometown.

There is no museum dedicated to her life in the city, no street named in her honor and no plaque proudly stating where she lived or studied.

While she is a household name in the United States, where she emigrated as a young adult and rose to become a best-selling author and conservative icon, most people in Russia admit they have never heard of her or read her work. » | Daniel Kozin | Thursday, February 14, 2019

60 Minutes Australia: Work Till You Drop (2017)

While he doesn’t look it or feel it, Charles Wooley is nudging 70. It’s led him to some serious introspection about his existence, and even more sombrely, contemplation of the “R” word. No, he still loves reporting for 60 MINUTES, but shouldn’t he have retired at 65? Shouldn’t his constant companion these days be a fishing rod instead of a typewriter? But as Wooley discovers, retirement is a word most Australians can no longer afford to dream about. The more likely reality, as former federal treasurer Peter Costello – who is now Wooley’s boss at Channel Nine – has been warning us about for more than two decades, is that we’ll have to work until we drop. Reporter: Charles Wooley Producer: Jo Townsend

UK's Richest Man Moves to Monaco to 'Save £4bn in Tax'

THE GUARDIAN: Brexiter Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s company Ineos is reportedly working with PricewaterhouseCoopers to reduce bill

Britain’s richest man, the Brexit supporter Sir Jim Ratcliffe, and two of his key lieutenants at chemicals firm Ineos have reportedly been planning to save up to £4bn in tax after moving to Monaco.

The company, which is valued at about £35bn, is working with tax experts at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to create a new structure for the business to dramatically reduce the tax paid on its global revenues, according to the Sunday Times.

Ratcliffe, who has lobbied to weaken green taxes and reduce restrictions on fracking, owns 60% of Ineos, which made profits of more than £2.2bn last year and employs 18,500 people. His top two lieutenants at Ineos, Andy Currie and John Reece, each own 20% of the company worth £7bn and were also reported to be moving to Monaco and involved in the tax avoidance plan. » | Sarah Butler | Sunday, February 17, 2019

Recession Looms as Subprime Borrowers Default Loans

A record 7 million Americans have stopped making car loan payments. Rick Sanchez reports on this supreme example of the continuing plight of American working people, who have by and large been left behind by Wall Street’s recovery from the brutal 2007-2008 financial crisis. Economists warn that the next recession to impact the US may be even more disastrous. What happens to these people if the next one hits? Economist and co-founder of Democracy at Work Prof. Richard Wolff joins Rick Sanchez to weigh in. He discusses the “very, very painful” circumstances of those facing unemployment, dwindling savings, and a deteriorating quality of life for American workers.

Rutger Bregman in Conversation with Terrence McNally at Live Talks Los Angeles

Trump Offers Socialism for the Rich, Capitalism for Everyone Else

THE GUARDIAN: To a conservative mind, socialism is getting something for nothing. Yet this is what the president promotes for the wealthy

“America will never be a socialist country,” Donald Trump declared in his State of the Union address. Someone should alert Trump that America is now a hotbed of socialism. But it is socialism for the rich. Everyone else is treated to harsh capitalism.

In the conservative mind, socialism means getting something for doing nothing. That pretty much describes the $21bn saved by the nation’s largest banks last year thanks to Trump’s tax cuts, some of which went into massive bonuses for bank executives. On the other hand, more than 4,000 lower-level bank employees got a big dose of harsh capitalism. They lost their jobs.

Banks that are too big to fail – courtesy of the 2008 bank bailout – enjoy a hidden subsidy of some $83bn a year, because creditors facing less risk accept lower interest on deposits and loans. Last year, Wall Street’s bonus pool was $31.4bn. Take away the hidden subsidy and the bonus pool disappears. » | Robert Reich | Monday, February 11, 2019

Rutger Bregman's Viral Tax Speech Did Not Go Down Well in Davos

When Dutch historian Rutger Bregman suggested wealthy people should pay more tax at last week's World Economic Forum in Davos, his speech went viral. But he says his comments did not go down well with those in the room at the event, which was attended by world leaders and heads of business.


READ THE ARTICLE HERE »

The David Rubenstein Show: Jeff Bezos

September 19, 2018 -- Jeff Bezos, Amazon Founder, entrepreneur and owner of the Washington Post, talks to David Rubenstein about his background, how he came up with the idea for Amazon, building the company, some of the key businesses including Prime and Whole Foods, the space race and philanthropy. The world's richest man says his most important decisions are made not with quantitative analysis but "with instinct, intuition, taste, heart." Bezos speaks in the latest episode of "The David Rubenstein Show: Peer-to-Peer Conversations." The interview was taped on September 13 in Washington.

Jeff Bezos In 1999 On Amazon's Plans Before The Dotcom Crash

Jeff Bezos explained his ambitious vision for Amazon in a 1999 interview. He made clear the company’s focus was on “great customer service” and discussed his real estate strategy. Bezos said, “There’s no guarantee that Amazon.com can be a successful company. What we’re trying to do is very complicated.” He added, “Scale is important to us and we’re going to go after that kind of scale.”

Why This ‘Patriotic’ Millionaire Wants to Raise Taxes on the Rich

‘We own Congress. We own the White House. We wealthy people are running the country.’ — Here's why self-described Patriotic Millionaire Stephen Prince wants to raise taxes on the rich.

Stephen Prince is a multi-millionaire who made his fortune as the CEO of National Business Products, a company that manufactures plastic gift cards for retailers across the country. Unlike most millionaires, however, he is calling to reform the tax code and make the wealthy pay their fair share. By taxing the rich, Prince believes we can provide Medicare for All, mandate a living wage for workers, and eradicate income inequality. Prince got brutally honest in this video for NowThis explaining that the rich are in charge — in Congress and in the White House — and they are acting in their own interest for their own benefit. Prince believes that raising the minimum wage will increase consumption and we're better off putting money into the hands of people who will spend it in the economy than those at the top who already have plenty of money. Prince also says that the wealthy people in charge do not car if the economy improves just if they're making more money.

Bernie Gives a Reality Check about Trump's "Booming Economy"

The economy is "booming" for Trump and his billionaire golfing buddies at Mar-a-Lago, but for the 80 percent of workers who are living paycheck to paycheck, this is not an economy to be proud of.

Republicans Want to Cut Taxes on Billionaires

Shock, shock, shock. I know you cannot believe this, but after passing a trillion dollar tax giveaway for the top 1 percent and large corporations, Republican leaders have introduced legislation to repeal the estate tax for the richest 1,700 families in America.

Historian Says Billionaires Should Stop Talking Philanthropy, Start Talking Taxes

Historian and author Rutger Bregman made waves at the World Economic Forum in Davos when he told billionaires in attendance that large marginal tax rates, like those suggested by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), are better for the public good than philanthropy. Bregman joined CBSN to discuss how tax policy could be used to reduce inequality.

More Dovish Fed to Help Global Economy Fight Uncertainty

Why We Should Give Everyone a Basic Income | Rutger Bregman | TEDxMaastricht