onushka
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AOC: "Extreme level of wealth inequality leads to social instability and drives authoritarianism, right-wing populism, and really dangerous domestic internal politics. That is a direct outcome of the failure of democracies over decades to deliver."
SavageDrums
Yep. The wealthy are 100% of the problem. They must be eliminated.
landisfloatingrock
T Jefferson held the same belief. That's what set him and A Hamilton at odds.
Polymathena
Translation: abolish citizens united. Elizabeth Warren ilhas a bill with Josh Hawley in order to do this.
RigidGristle
Speak!
angusd
That's why I propose, we move every last bit of money into the bank accounts of the 10 most wealthy people. If they own every cent, money becomes worthless and we can start fresh by sacrificing those 10 to the gods.
androgenoide
Concentration of power, authority, wealth becomes a problem long before it becomes a single point. Concentrated power creates fragile systems.
DragonThunderUndertaking
centralizing all the resources and skilled labor also is just asking for things to go wrong in the long run. Everyone is already starting to covet whatever natural resources both they and their neighbors have. There are some deeply embedded problems here, I honestly don't know how much more of this we can really handle as a species before things start looking real bleak real soon.
ThingsThatDontJustifyGenocide
Capitalists don't like capitalism.
They like money.
Capitalism is not as profitable as feudalism, or fascism.
p4r4noid4ndroid
God I hope I can call her madam president one day.
stringgoboom
Have we not done this experiment enough times to understand it’s a bad thing?
GogglesGreek
"The government needs to be just slightly more powerful than the most powerful corporation."
yeahhedugit
And the wealthy don't pay enough taxes to fund the military that protects their money.
chatawillybilly
AOC recognizes the working class is the foundation of democracy, that oligarchs are trying to take that away so they can create their own type of pseudo democracy and become the ruling class.
flordelasantillas
MAGA will call this communistic socialism.
onushka
who gives a fuck. They call Nancy Pelocy a communist.
Froggie243
Maga will be consumed as wage slaves for the billionaire class, they're not special.
Lokster
AOC is great, she really is - but saying "we are starting to see this"? Lady, this has been going on for many decades..
hotforbagels
She's being nice — SHE sees it and other smart people see it, but the average person will be like, "Really? Wow!"
onushka
And how often have nationwide known politicians talked about it?
The most people have eaten the neo-lib propaganda till the end, it is everywhere, every show, every movie, every school taught the people that everyone can be a millionaire if you work hard enough in this crooked capitalist system. For many people understanding that corporations are not our friends are new for many people.
CandiAlchemi
Here's a video of the entire discussion (~45 min) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqMFtTqRtbI It took place yesterday at the munich security conference, which is happening this weekend. You can watch the livestream of the conference on their youtube channel (the same the video above is on)
onushka
Seen it now. Really great interview from AOC, she talked about many things.
CandiAlchemi
Indeed. And it's also great to see her being recognized on the international stage, that will definitely help her getting ahead in US politics.
Shadowkrieger
Tv show continuum shows what our future is
Splinteredbrushpole
Old nations. Killing new at birth. BREATH peeps. Breath deeply.
cmdshift3
Even if she repeated that whole thing in monosyllabic words, conservatives still wouldn’t understand.
TheUnmakingEngine
Megacorps in scifi were warnings not Goals.
keyserv
Well if I'm not a billionaire how am I supposed to buy a flying super-yacht with an olympic-sized swimming pool in it?
meme2zombie
Yeah too many legislators forget that anti-monopoly laws are also laws to defend the state. And too many of the wrong ones remember that and so work to remove them.
reineseele
Germany: Politicians: We must earn each month so much so we are independent, BUT also are allowed to get bribe money legally. <_< cool......
Gotnobrain
We’ve done a very poor job of enforcing our antitrust laws since Vietnam. We’re addicted to our consumptive patterns and are too empty headed to know we’re being robbed blind (monetarily and constitutionally). The rich who own our government have no impetus to change until we make it “uncomfortable”.
HandsomePenguin
They dont forget it. It lines their own pockets and they dont actually care what their constituents have to deal with. Its by design.
damogen
Yeah, this is like the two first rules of capitalism:
1) don't allow monopolies
2) don't allow bribes
meme2zombie
Well not rules of capitalism, rules of protecting democracy from capitalism ;P
damogen
Nope, actual just capitalism. 400 years ago, it was in the "Wealth of Nations". The very first book on capitalism. Written in England when they were still an actual Monarchy
Spanky93
Very true. Problem is, our current laws do not deter them. We are so afraid of losing their wealth from our economy, we minimize our responses. They need to be punished so severely that other billionaires and greedy corporations will think twice about trying the same. Right now, it’s more profitable to get caught than to not risk it.
meme2zombie
Yep, the only time I've heard of a large corporation getting a fine being more than the profit of an action was when one broke National Security laws and used an explicitly banned supplier for a military networking contract. And with Trump even that kind of stuff doesn't get punished anymore.
Spanky93
It needs to soon. For instance what I’d do to that company is jail the major shareholders in GITMO, seize all their assets and sell it to their competitors. Fine the crap out of whatever is left. Unlikely anyone else would fuck around that bad again. Would one or two companies leave? Yes, but the rest are too greedy to abandon the profit. Those that would leave would also be showing what they intended to do.
barstr7
The irony is that their wealth is rarely circulated back into the economy. It often goes outside the country or is held as non-monetary assets that are inherited by their children. I'm one of those 'freeloaders' that lives on disability. 100% of the money I receive monthly goes back into the economy, often back to the government in various forms of tax. Those on assistance actually do more for the economy than the wealthy do.
LespritDeLescalier22
Aren’t there like 6 corporations that basically own almost everything?
unluckyandbored
Blackrock, Vanguard, StateStreet...
LuckyLookingLurker
How about 12:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Infographics/comments/1e1461o/12_companies_that_own_everything/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button
unluckyandbored
And those 12 corporations all own each other.
thisisnotfineffs
Yes.
youreathing
Yep. It's part of the reason why companies like P&G make everything from diapers to razors to detergents to fucking mops.
LespritDeLescalier22
Honestly, that list of products in that order sound like they might be used for self vasectomies
pickinganameistoomuchpressure
hmm, I dont have any of those, mine just stand around
ToSisPoS
We needs more Roosevelt and less Kennedy in the White House
onushka
Don't forget that the strong working class demand a progressive Development from Roosevelt. He was not really free to decide who he should support.
ToSisPoS
Part and parcel certainly.
Huor
This is an absolutely critical issue. And neither party will touch it.
mindstorm8191
You're right; both parties depend on millions in funding in order to run their campaigns, and they can only get it from the corporations. Then once they're in office, they owe them favors and don't want to cross them, or else they'll never get funding in their next election.
We need new blood in politics. We need to be able to get people into office without relying on millions in funding. We gotta have ways to learn about candidates beyond TV ads & whatever other ads they do.
Huor
And it’s also crucial to push aside the people who are still blindly loyal to either party. Imagine a populist movement that takes over both parties …
onushka
I give a fuck about the Republican Party, it must end once for all.
1/3 of the democrats see them self as socialist democrats. We must get rid of the moderate pro corporation Democrats, who are not left at all. Every other country sees the neolibs as right wingers, only in the US they count somehow as left leaning.
Huor
Yeah but those corporate Democrats have the money and the power, it won't be easy.
onushka
They have the money but not the power. How much momentum can someone like Chuck Schumer, the sexy beast, can create? They put every dime to Cuomo against Mamdani and still lost. If a democrat wins in red Trump areas than it is always a socialist Democrat. It won't be easy but as long we organize and work together we have a chance.
haggerton
Inequality has nothing to do with authoritarianism, and everything to do with capitalism. Get the fuck out with your Cold War propaganda, this self-delusional shit is why you dumbfucks still don't have universal healthcare.
https://wid.world/news-article/new-paper-inequality-series-russia/
As much AOC is better than the average US politician, she's still deflecting from the real problem. You guys are royally screwed if this is the best you can come up with.
haggerton
Downvote me all you want, you won't change the truth.
This whole "hurrr democracy better for literally everything and fixes all problems" shit is why your decline will have no brakes. AOC is appealing to 'MURICA PRIDE and you're too dumb to realize why you *like* her discourse even though it makes 0 sense.
onushka
Dude, did I miss something? Are we suddenly on the next step to fully automated luxury gay space communism? Did the people suddenly understand that we can only solve our problems as humanity and not on the shitty concept of nationalism. If you not have hidden a few million communist brigades in your backyard, then we have to work with that what we have.
RubbleTrouser
If you are advocating the flip side of Capitalism, which is Communism I have news. They are the two sides of the same coin. Both own the land and means of production. Oligarchs and Billionaires. They don't make a single difference to the working masses. AOC is so right. But she's a brown intelligent female so despised by the billionaires and MAGA
onushka
She is literally talking about the authoritarianism of corporations. And she is saying by that, that capitalism leads to fascism. Always. They would do everything to maximize their profit, and the best way to fight the working class, environment rules and unions is fascism.
haggerton
She's literally talking about political authoritarianism. If you have to literally change all her words to make it fit YOUR narrative, it ceases being HER narrative.
Historically both democratic and authoritarian governments have successfully reigned in capitalism.
onushka
AOC: "Extreme level of wealth inequality leads to social instability and drives authoritarianism, right-wing populism, and really dangerous domestic internal politics." This says: Capitalist exploit people -> People get hungry -> Hungry people voting fascist.
I have no idea how I can make it more understandable.
JohnWickdidnothingwrong
She`s going to make an amazing president. Not this next go-round prolly, but I don`t see any way she doesn`t get there.
somebackup
I respect the fantasy, but I don't see a way that America survives and she becomes president.
JohnWickdidnothingwrong
Oh, I agree we need to survive for this to happen, and that that's rather less certain than it's ever been, really. I think our chances are good, though.
Well, not for *all* of us, for sure. Lotta people gonna die before this is over. As a going concern that is at least based off of representative democratic republic-type principles, though, I think we have a solid chance of coming out the other side of this. If *that* happens, AND she hasn't already been disappeared by the SA, she's a lock =]
DevilsAdvocat
I hope you're wrong, while wishing I had any confidence that you aren't...
meme2zombie
I think America as a whole has a lot more growing to do before they elect a woman as president.
TK421isAFK
No idea who down voted you, but you're not wrong. It's just not going to happen until the Boomers die off and bigots suffer war losses.
JohnWickdidnothingwrong
We have a bit of surviving to do first. If we manage *that*, I think the survivors will be ready for a change.
onushka
This is by far the worst analysis why the big Donor money takers, Genocide supporters, US Imperialist Hillary and Kamala had lost.
vwzzjxv6f9101
We would not be where we are today if we had elected a woman in 2016! The pandemic response would have been better and price gouging would not be a rampant as it is today. Women overall make better decisions for their communities. Matriarchal societies far much better than Patriarchal ones.
DorkJedi
not so much "growing" as "ancient bigoted old fucks die off".
meme2zombie
If that was the solution it'd be fixed by now.
Skawomplious
Plenty of new bigoted fucks to take their place though.
TK421isAFK
I really hope so, but I think it's going to take 10 or 12 years of extreme hardship and war to eradicate enough American fascists first.
onushka
Not sure about it. If we learned anything from Trump, it is that the people are finished with the status Quo. Next to his ugly racism, Trump mainly run with affordability and ending wars (no promises kept btw. ) The people are ready for change.
TK421isAFK
Unfortunately, I think you greatly underestimate the stupidity and easily-fed hatred of millions of Americans.
onushka
You mean all the ones who are out there on ICE-watch, all day long, to defend their neighbors. Or the millions out for the NO Kings protests last year. Or the millions out their for BLM fighting anti-Blackism.
You sound like someone who was never organized, try it out, give it a simple try, you will be surprised.
TK421isAFK
You have no idea who I am, nor anything I've done. I was part of AOC's campaign team in Northern California for 2 years. Fuck off with your drama; I'm not disregarding the people that are trying to make changes, I am acknowledging the people that are resisting the change and the actual problem instead of pretending 3% of the population that have zero control nor money can change the 30% that have money and power they are not willing to give up.
sundaymondayhippyday
He also ran on releasing the Epstein Files to save TRAFFICKED CHILDREN and EXPOSE PEDOPHILES!
****What A Little Liar!
“Accuse Others Of That What You Are Guilty Of !!!””””
onushka
Exactly, his "drain the swamp" blabla was nothing else then saying, that he would change the system, that he would stop the power of the ones who are doing politic in hidden backrooms. (We all know, at least here, that he has done the total opposite.) But the ones who voted for him believed him and wanted a change. How are the chances for a democratic candidate who runs with going back to the pre-Trump time, to the old Status Quo.