THE GUARDIAN: Analysis: why the president wants to build the US economy from the middle and bottom, not top down
Cut taxes on the rich. Unleash a wave of entrepreneurship. Growth will pick up and more jobs will be created. Everybody benefits. That, in essence, is trickle down – a theory of economics that Joe Biden wants to consign to the dustbin of history.
The US president was a young politician when the idea that cutting taxes on the well-off would be good for the poor first came into vogue in the 1970s. Now he has used his first address to a joint session of Congress to call on the US’s top 1% to pay for his $1.8tn (£1.3tn) American families plan – higher spending in areas such as education, childcare and infrastructure.
Anticipating pushback from Republicans on Capitol Hill, Biden had a simple message. It was time, he said, to build the country from the middle and the bottom outwards, not from the top down. Trickle down has never worked,” he said. » | Larry Elliott | Thursday, April 29, 2021
Friday 30 April 2021
Tuesday 27 April 2021
Caspar Hirschi | Krisen über Krisen – das Ende der Welt, wie wir sie kennen?
Weltfinanz-, Euro- und Schuldenkrise, Corona-Pandemie, beschleunigter Klimawandel und Zerfall der liberalen Weltordnung: Die Krisen der Gegenwart scheinen sich zu häufen. Ist das tatsächlich so oder nur eine Frage erhöhter medialer Selbstwahrnehmung? Geschichte verlief immer schon krisenhaft, und oft waren es Krisen, die dem Fortschritt unter Schmerzen zum Durchbruch verhalfen. Wie krisenfest sind wir heute? Wer steht in der Verantwortung? Sind wir wirklich fähig, aus Krisen zu lernen?
Über die Turbulenzen unserer Epoche sowie die Möglichkeiten ihrer Bewältigung und Strategien dazu unterhält sich der NZZ-Chefredaktor Eric Gujer mit dem Historiker Caspar Hirschi.
Sendung vom 21.03.2021
Über die Turbulenzen unserer Epoche sowie die Möglichkeiten ihrer Bewältigung und Strategien dazu unterhält sich der NZZ-Chefredaktor Eric Gujer mit dem Historiker Caspar Hirschi.
Sendung vom 21.03.2021
Friday 23 April 2021
Bitcoin Tumbles after Reports Joe Biden Will Raise Taxes on Rich
THE GUARDIAN: Cryptocurrency falls below $50,000 as White House looks to bring levy on investment gains into line with income taxes
Speculators in Bitcoin have been left nursing heavy losses after reports Joe Biden is planning to raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans to tackle inequality and finance trillions of dollars in higher social spending.
The cryptocurrency price fell more than 6% to below $50,000 (£36,000) a bitcoin, hitting the lowest level since early March, as the White House puts the finishing touches on plans to almost double the rate of capital gains tax for rich individuals.
For those earning $1m or more, the tax on investment income would rise to 39.6%, up from a current rate of 20%, as part of plans expected to be announced next week. A 3.8% tax on investment income used to fund Obamacare would also be kept in place, meaning the new top rate would be as high as 43.4%.
Biden is also preparing to raise the top marginal income tax rate to 39.6% from 37%, according to reports by the New York Times and Bloomberg News, bringing the levy on investment gains into line with taxes on income.
The UK government was urged to bring taxes on investment into line with rates applied on income by the Office of Tax Simplification last year.
The Biden administration is planning a sweeping overhaul of the US tax system designed to make wealthier individuals and big companies pay more in tax, tackling inequality and helping to foot the bill for the president’s economic agenda. » | Richard Partington | Friday, April 23, 2021
Speculators in Bitcoin have been left nursing heavy losses after reports Joe Biden is planning to raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans to tackle inequality and finance trillions of dollars in higher social spending.
The cryptocurrency price fell more than 6% to below $50,000 (£36,000) a bitcoin, hitting the lowest level since early March, as the White House puts the finishing touches on plans to almost double the rate of capital gains tax for rich individuals.
For those earning $1m or more, the tax on investment income would rise to 39.6%, up from a current rate of 20%, as part of plans expected to be announced next week. A 3.8% tax on investment income used to fund Obamacare would also be kept in place, meaning the new top rate would be as high as 43.4%.
Biden is also preparing to raise the top marginal income tax rate to 39.6% from 37%, according to reports by the New York Times and Bloomberg News, bringing the levy on investment gains into line with taxes on income.
The UK government was urged to bring taxes on investment into line with rates applied on income by the Office of Tax Simplification last year.
The Biden administration is planning a sweeping overhaul of the US tax system designed to make wealthier individuals and big companies pay more in tax, tackling inequality and helping to foot the bill for the president’s economic agenda. » | Richard Partington | Friday, April 23, 2021
Thursday 15 April 2021
Turkish Lira in Freefall over Erdogan's 'Unorthodox' Inflation Theory | DW News
In Turkey, the coronavirus pandemic weighs on an already ailing economy. The Turkish lira plunged to almost record-levels after President Erdogan fired his third central-bank chief in two years ... to install a like-minded critic of high interest rates. A rate decision is due today.
Restaurant manager Rengin Atac is at his wits end. The lockdown forced him to shut his business with its 15 employees for months, and now into Ramadan as well - because of rising coronavirus infection numbers. To make matters worse, inflation is running at a rate of 16 percent per month. A lot of Turks have lost faith in their economy. Many are unemployed and can barely afford anything. As the lira's value plummets, shopkeepers and bakers are forced to constantly raise their prices. Flour and other ingredients are becoming more expensive by the day. The pandemic has also kept tourists away, which for many was their main source of income.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish president says he is "determined to bring the rising inflation back to single digits."
But it isn't the first time Erdogan proclaimed that, and the situation still hasn't improved. Will his new central bank chief really be the game changer everyone hopes for?
Restaurant manager Rengin Atac is at his wits end. The lockdown forced him to shut his business with its 15 employees for months, and now into Ramadan as well - because of rising coronavirus infection numbers. To make matters worse, inflation is running at a rate of 16 percent per month. A lot of Turks have lost faith in their economy. Many are unemployed and can barely afford anything. As the lira's value plummets, shopkeepers and bakers are forced to constantly raise their prices. Flour and other ingredients are becoming more expensive by the day. The pandemic has also kept tourists away, which for many was their main source of income.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish president says he is "determined to bring the rising inflation back to single digits."
But it isn't the first time Erdogan proclaimed that, and the situation still hasn't improved. Will his new central bank chief really be the game changer everyone hopes for?
Wednesday 14 April 2021
Bernie Madoff, Infamous Ponzi Schemer, Dies
Bernard Madoff, whose name became synonymous with financial fraud, died while serving a 150-year sentence in Federal Prison. He was 82 years old.
His death Wednesday at the Federal Medical Center in the prison in Butner, North Carolina, was confirmed by the US Bureau of Prisons. A cause of death was not released.
In February 2020, he petitioned the courts for an early release from prison, stating that he had terminal kidney failure and a life expectancy of less than 18 months. But the US Attorney's office for the southern district of New York said Madoff's crime was "unprecedented in scope and magnitude" and is "sufficient reason" to deny Madoff's request.
Madoff was the mastermind behind a $20 billion Ponzi scheme -- the largest financial fraud in history.
He had a legendary career on Wall Street, famously delivering astronomical returns for his investors, which included director Steven Spielberg, actors Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick and New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon.
His death Wednesday at the Federal Medical Center in the prison in Butner, North Carolina, was confirmed by the US Bureau of Prisons. A cause of death was not released.
In February 2020, he petitioned the courts for an early release from prison, stating that he had terminal kidney failure and a life expectancy of less than 18 months. But the US Attorney's office for the southern district of New York said Madoff's crime was "unprecedented in scope and magnitude" and is "sufficient reason" to deny Madoff's request.
Madoff was the mastermind behind a $20 billion Ponzi scheme -- the largest financial fraud in history.
He had a legendary career on Wall Street, famously delivering astronomical returns for his investors, which included director Steven Spielberg, actors Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick and New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon.
Thursday 8 April 2021
Yanis Varoufakis: Capitalism Has Become 'Techno-feudalism' | UpFront
A recent Oxfam study found that since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, the world’s richest 10 billionaires have seen a wealth increase of half a trillion dollars – enough to pay for every person on the planet to get a vaccine.
In this UpFront special, Marc Lamont Hill discusses with economist and former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis what is driving the staggering wealth inequalities and how governments are offering socialism for the rich, and austerity for the rest.
In this UpFront special, Marc Lamont Hill discusses with economist and former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis what is driving the staggering wealth inequalities and how governments are offering socialism for the rich, and austerity for the rest.
Monday 5 April 2021
From the 60 Minutes Archive: Steve Jobs
Saturday 3 April 2021
‘Raise My Taxes – Now!’: The Millionaires Who Want to Give It All Away
THE GUARDIAN: Abigail Disney has parted with $72m – and thinks the rich need to pay far more tax. As Covid widens the inequality gap, she and an international league of the super-rich are urging governments to take their money
Abigail Disney has always been very, very rich, or, as she describes it, “too rich”. The money came with her name: she is the granddaughter of Roy Disney who, with his brother Walt, founded the Walt Disney Company in 1923. Disney, 61, refuses to say how much she has, but acknowledges she would have been a billionaire in her own right had she not realised in her 20s that it was her fortune that was making her miserable, and decided to start giving it away.
She has been donating to good causes ever since – $72m (£52m) and counting, mostly to groups helping women in prison, women living with HIV, and victims of domestic violence. But giving it away is no longer enough. She wants the tax collector to take more money, not only from her, but from “all of the absurdly rich people across the world”.
“We’ve long known that the world is hugely unequal,” says Disney. “But now the pandemic has really shown it to all of us, and no one in all conscience can continue to ignore it.” Disney is speaking over Zoom from a pristine white sofa in her San Francisco home. Today, she looks more hippy chic than heiress: her light-brown hair falls in long, gentle curls, and there is a discreet peace dove tattooed on the inside of her wrist.
“It is like when your kids have a bath, and you pull the plug out and slowly all the little toys at the bottom are revealed,” says Disney. “That is what has happened here: now we all know what is going on under the surface.” As well as killing more than 2.5 million people, the pandemic and global lockdown response has plunged some 150 million more into “extreme poverty”, according to the World Bank. The Washington-based institution described Covid-19 as “a heat-seeking missile speeding toward the most vulnerable in society”. » | Rupert Neate | Saturday, April 3, 2021
The Patriotic Millionaires »
Abigail Disney has always been very, very rich, or, as she describes it, “too rich”. The money came with her name: she is the granddaughter of Roy Disney who, with his brother Walt, founded the Walt Disney Company in 1923. Disney, 61, refuses to say how much she has, but acknowledges she would have been a billionaire in her own right had she not realised in her 20s that it was her fortune that was making her miserable, and decided to start giving it away.
She has been donating to good causes ever since – $72m (£52m) and counting, mostly to groups helping women in prison, women living with HIV, and victims of domestic violence. But giving it away is no longer enough. She wants the tax collector to take more money, not only from her, but from “all of the absurdly rich people across the world”.
“We’ve long known that the world is hugely unequal,” says Disney. “But now the pandemic has really shown it to all of us, and no one in all conscience can continue to ignore it.” Disney is speaking over Zoom from a pristine white sofa in her San Francisco home. Today, she looks more hippy chic than heiress: her light-brown hair falls in long, gentle curls, and there is a discreet peace dove tattooed on the inside of her wrist.
“It is like when your kids have a bath, and you pull the plug out and slowly all the little toys at the bottom are revealed,” says Disney. “That is what has happened here: now we all know what is going on under the surface.” As well as killing more than 2.5 million people, the pandemic and global lockdown response has plunged some 150 million more into “extreme poverty”, according to the World Bank. The Washington-based institution described Covid-19 as “a heat-seeking missile speeding toward the most vulnerable in society”. » | Rupert Neate | Saturday, April 3, 2021
The Patriotic Millionaires »
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