imaround
Came by to let you know that if you really do believe that Musk won't ask Reform for something in return for his $100 million, here he is telling you straight out that isn't true.
I don't Think the image that imaround posted in the quoted post will be in it, so here it is again.
I think what Musk says is very largely true. Until comparatively recently, before the introduction of universal suffrage, government has been the exclusive province of the 'upper classes'; they were wealthy themselves and had an affinity with the wealthy. So, of course government favoured wealth. It was all about protecting 'property' which includes wealth.
We now have a slightly more diverse mix of MPs/Ministers, but they mostly subscribe to the myth that wealthy people are wealth creators without who we wouldn't be able to manage.
But this is so wrong. Wealthy people dom't create wealth, they accumulate it from the less wealthy, because that is the way the financial system is set up to favour their accumulation. The quote below exemplifies this. Musk as acquired more and more businesses in order to enhance his opportunities to accumulate more wealth.
Yes, his businesses create economic activity by way of providing jobs and wages that can be spent into the economy, but the source of his 'wealth is ultimately the consumer who pays for his products. And the money the consumers use is money put into the economy by the state. Only the state can 'create' money (and banks under licence from the state, but the money they 'create' by way of loans is destroyed when the loans are repaid, so all it's doing is creating more economic activity, there is none left over to add to people's wealth)
In fact, the money that wealthy people have is state money which hasn't been returned to the state via taxation because the wealthy have favourable tax regimes and are adept at avoiding tax. So they are not only milking the consumer, they are milking the state. They are creating the deficit which everyone worries so much about. The deficit being the difference between the money the state issues and the money that is returned to it. It is peoples savings and investments, which those of us with a bit of spare cash can take advantage of, but the 'wealthy' have the lions share.
It makes me sad that revere the 'wealthy' so much when in fact all they are doing is contributing to inequality and taking money out of circulation which could be being used to improve the lives of 'ordinary' citizens.
Putting trust in the promises of the wealthy to improve 'ordinary lives' is foolish because all they're interested is accumulating as much of the public's money as they possibly can and Musk is a Grand Master at that...
Even if Elon were a successful businessman (which he isn't, he's only been successful in leveraging the money he was born into, into even more money), why on Earth would you want your government run like a business? Businesses only care about profits, government should only care about people.
The great economist, Adam Smith, was in the right of it 250 years ago
The interest of this third order, therefore, has not the same connexion with the general interest of the society, as that of the other two. Merchants and master manufacturers are, in this order, the two classes of people who commonly employ the largest capitals, and who by their wealth draw to themselves the greatest share of the public consideration. As during their whole lives they are engaged in plans and projects, they have frequently more acuteness of understanding than the greater part of country gentlemen. As their thoughts, however, are commonly exercised rather about the interest of their own particular branch of business. than about that of the society, their judgment, even when given with the greatest candour (which it has not been upon every occasion), is much more to be depended upon with regard to the former of those two objects, than with regard to the latter.
The proposal of any new law or regulation of commerce which comes from this order, ought always to be listened to with great precaution, and ought never to be adopted till after having been long and carefully examined, not only with the most scrupulous, but with the most suspicious attention. It comes from an order of men, whose interest is never exactly the same with that of the public, who have generally an interest to deceive and even to oppress the public, and who accordingly have, upon many occasions, both deceived and oppressed it.
We and the people in the US should take heed of Smith😆
Sorry for such a long post...
