Links: Polarization today; repression in Russia; biggest threat to Biden's agenda

Links: Polarization today; repression in Russia; biggest threat to Biden's agenda 

The ProPublica report's basic premise on "true income" was pure propaganda, not good public policy. There are better ways to attack the issue, ways that the plutocrats fear more than the Wealth Tax, largely because WT can be laughed off. They won't even let the real alternatives be discussed. Wealth is accumulated partly because of the exemption to capital gains and dividend taxes for mutual funds. End that and tax capital gains and income at point of sale or distribution and fortunes are harder to make. The proposals that will really work are never discussed.

Much of wealth is monopoly money. Occasionally the markets react to that fact and the paper fortunes melt away. For real wealth, taxing assets at full value after inheritance while zero rating ESOP sales will shift, rather than destroy wealth. Higher taxes on salaries and consumption taxes will do the rest. The original sin of capitalism is to blame people for their poverty. Original sin is about the human tendency to blame others for evil (not some mythical apple harvest).

Idols have feet of clay, so Trumpism is no long term threat. Those who loved (or would have) loved a guilty Nixon will revere a guilty Trump. The rest will deny they knew him once he faces jail and cries like a baby.

Racism thrives on one-drop rules. Racists will not be convinced by inter-marriage. It is what they fear the most. Especially where their own kids are concerned.

I try to ignore anything coming out of the Register, including trolls who comment on NCR whenever anything is said about them.

Heroism may work in Russia, but only if it radicalizes the masses. So far, this has never really worked in Russia. Poor nations are hard to radicalize into democracy. They only find smarter fascists.