Rationalizing for the Rich: Cakewalk No More

[marmar]

from Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality:



Rationalizing for the Rich:
Cakewalk No More
In a down economy, apologists for the awesomely affluent are having to dig deep for inspiration. In the process, they're getting dirty and looking dopey.

June 22, 2009

By Sam Pizzigati


In tough economic times, work for some people can suddenly become significantly more difficult. Take, for instance, the analysts and academics who have decided, for whatever reason, to devote their careers to justifying the wealth of the wealthy. In normal times, these flacks for grand fortune can waltz through their workdays with the greatest of ease. They merely invoke the prospect of catastrophic economic collapse whenever anyone dares propose anything that might leave the wealthy even just a little less wealthier.

Without the rich getting richer, these shills will note smugly, we’ll have no one to create jobs or keep the stock market humming.

But what can apologists for the awesomely affluent threaten after an economy has already collapsed? What do they do then? Here’s what they do: They get desperate — and even more reckless than usual. They play games with stats. They torture logic. They invent ever more fanciful gloom-and-doom scenarios.

We’ve seen, over recent weeks and months, all this desperation and more.

The statistical games, of late, have revolved around the rich as “refugees.”

The wealthy, fans of fortune have long argued, will flee any jurisdiction goofy enough to raise taxes on high incomes. Over the last year, a number of jurisdictions have raised taxes on the wealthy anyway, and that seems to have upped the pressure on the apologist crowd to “prove” the exodus effect.

Editorial writers at the Wall Street Journal made just such an attempt late last month when they jumped on a news report that one-third of Maryland’s millionaires had disappeared from the state’s tax rolls. .............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.toomuchonline.org/articlenew_2009/june22a.html

[hay rick]

1. Inequality- a core Republican value.

One of the toilers in this vineyard, cited in the article, is Douglas Holz-Eakin, John McCain's chief economic adviser in his 2008 campaign.

One aspect of McCain's biography that was completely overlooked during his presidential run was the fact that McCain came from inherited wealth through his mother's side. Story here: http://salon.glenrose.net/default.asp?view=plink&id=8539

Gotta love the Mercedes story at the end. When McCain didn't know how many houses and cars he had it reminded me of the old adage: the overprivileged apple doesn't fall far from the overprivileged tree...

[Demeter]

2. Let Them Flee

If they are stupid enough to think there is anyplace on earth where the powerful will not prey upon them, let them go there.

At least here they get something for the money.