Jesus, on the rich and the poor

We are living in difficult times. The divergence between the rich and the poor is huge and increasing. Rising inequality as registered by all indicators is as high as it has ever been since the great depression. Many have warned that such inequality will spawn a raft of severe social problems (the book, “Spirit Level”, Joseph Stiglitz, Pikett). Even some of the rich themselves have alerted us and said that this trend needs to be reversed (Warren Buffet, Bill Gates).

How Canada's 1 per cent is pulling ahead [The Globe and Mail (BC edition, 9 Oct 2017)]

"New census data provided to The Globe show the biggest pay raises have gone to the country's highest earners, along with significant regional and gender differences. A look at how the numbers break down."

-- Rachelle Younglai Murat Yukselir

https://www.pressreader.com/canada/the-globe-and-mail-bc-edition/20171009/281642485388035

Basic Income Guarantee (BIG)

What would the world be like if all low income people were given a guaranteed cash income for survival (c.$17,000) with no strings attached? How about if this plan included an incentive to work to increase their minimum income? What would they do with this money? What would be the social consequences of this? This concept will soon have some trial runs in Ontario, Canada. It is called the Basic Income Guarantee (BIG).

Into the mind of a billionaire

I have just finished reading “Brazillionaires; Wealth, Power, Decadence and Hope in an American Country” by Alex Cuadros. Brazil is a country known for its widespread corruption, its wealthy billionaires and its large poor population. It has one of the highest rates of financial inequality in the world. Brazillioniares reveals the lives and activities of some of Brazil’s billionaires (Eike Batista, Esteves, ---) and the role of some of its more recent politicians (Lula, Dilma, etc…). I read this book to try and understand the inner workings of the minds of the superrich. This is a topic that has intrigued me from an early age.

Bombardier executives increase their multi-million dollar salaries while they lay of thousands of employees

The unbridled greed of the super rich continues to infuriate. Here in Canada, in 2016 five executives with Bombardier corporation managed to haul in $32.6 million, thus raising their salaries by 50%. During the same time period they fired thousands of employees and received well over one billion dollars in government subsidies.

It is an outrage! There was no real increase in productivity yet they increased their obscene salaries. They say that these salaries are necessary to attract “competent people”. It is a lie. They are themselves voted into power by fellow cronies on a board of directors. It is a system gone rotten at the top.

Where are we going?

The World we live in

It is not unusual for people to analyze the state of the world in their generation – and to find it in a state of troubling change. The difference today is that the change is happening faster than ever before in human history.

First of all, what is happening?

Economics: Index of Financial Inequality

Index of Financial Inequality

How about the graph below, taken from the book The Spirit Level? Just ponder it for a while. The index of financial inequality results in a host of social and health problems. Piketty’s work “Capitalism in the 21^st Century” only confirms this and tells how this has come about (unequal accumulation of capital) and points towards a solution (raise taxes on capital accumulation).

The Rebellious Seeker

p.s. This graph is a survey of industrialized countries. Guess which one has the highest level of inequality? Guess what will happen with billionaires, military types and climate deniers in charge?

 Index of Financial Inequality