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defrogA few interesting nuggets of data to add to the 1% v 99% “discussion”:
What happens when the 1% becomes the 100%?
An interesting thought experiment from Charles Stross on what it’s like to live like the 1% (in terms of Maslow's Needs pyramid) and what that would mean in a possible future in which wealth is redistributed to the point that we are all the 1% (or as close enough as makes no odds).
A series of unfortunate events for the 1%
Lemony Snicket makes a short list of observations about the nature of the #OWS debate.
Selected gems:
Disproportionate power of the 1% proven by science
An analysis of the relationships between 43,000 transnational corporations has identified around 147 companies, mostly banks, that hold disproportionate power over the global economy, reports New Scientist.
Which isn’t surprising, but two key findings of note: (1) a key problem isn’t so much the concentration of wealth itself but the tight-knitted relationships between those companies, which means that – as we found out in 2008 – if one fails, it is more likely to take others down with it, and (2) none of this is the product of a conspiracy – it’s just the way the system has evolved.
The last point is pretty important – partly because conspiracy theories are easy to propagate but hard to prove, but mainly because one of the challenges of the #OWS movement is being able to point to a specific group of people and saying, “This is their fault.” So far they’ve narrowed it down to Wall Street and Republicans. Which is a little too vague to be accurate.
Yr Total Coincidence Graphic of the day
Which obviously has nothing to do with anything. And you’d be a fool and a Socialist to suggest that it does.
#OWS = Merchandising opportunity
Robert and Diane Maresca of Long Island have applied to the US Trade & Patent Office to trademark the phrase “Occupy Wall St.” so that they can place it on "a wide variety of goods, including bumper stickers, shirts, beach bags, footwear, umbrellas, and hobo bags."
See what they did there?
Okay, I’m done now.
Money talks,
This is dF
What happens when the 1% becomes the 100%?
An interesting thought experiment from Charles Stross on what it’s like to live like the 1% (in terms of Maslow's Needs pyramid) and what that would mean in a possible future in which wealth is redistributed to the point that we are all the 1% (or as close enough as makes no odds).
A series of unfortunate events for the 1%
Lemony Snicket makes a short list of observations about the nature of the #OWS debate.
Selected gems:
4. People who say money doesn’t matter are like people who say cake doesn’t matter—it’s probably because they’ve already had a few slices.
5. There may not be a reason to share your cake. It is, after all, yours. You probably baked it yourself, in an oven of your own construction with ingredients you harvested yourself. It may be possible to keep your entire cake while explaining to any nearby hungry people just how reasonable you are.
7. Someone feeling wronged is like someone feeling thirsty. Don’t tell them they aren’t. Sit with them and have a drink.
5. There may not be a reason to share your cake. It is, after all, yours. You probably baked it yourself, in an oven of your own construction with ingredients you harvested yourself. It may be possible to keep your entire cake while explaining to any nearby hungry people just how reasonable you are.
7. Someone feeling wronged is like someone feeling thirsty. Don’t tell them they aren’t. Sit with them and have a drink.
Disproportionate power of the 1% proven by science
An analysis of the relationships between 43,000 transnational corporations has identified around 147 companies, mostly banks, that hold disproportionate power over the global economy, reports New Scientist.
Which isn’t surprising, but two key findings of note: (1) a key problem isn’t so much the concentration of wealth itself but the tight-knitted relationships between those companies, which means that – as we found out in 2008 – if one fails, it is more likely to take others down with it, and (2) none of this is the product of a conspiracy – it’s just the way the system has evolved.
The last point is pretty important – partly because conspiracy theories are easy to propagate but hard to prove, but mainly because one of the challenges of the #OWS movement is being able to point to a specific group of people and saying, “This is their fault.” So far they’ve narrowed it down to Wall Street and Republicans. Which is a little too vague to be accurate.
Yr Total Coincidence Graphic of the day
Which obviously has nothing to do with anything. And you’d be a fool and a Socialist to suggest that it does.
#OWS = Merchandising opportunity
Robert and Diane Maresca of Long Island have applied to the US Trade & Patent Office to trademark the phrase “Occupy Wall St.” so that they can place it on "a wide variety of goods, including bumper stickers, shirts, beach bags, footwear, umbrellas, and hobo bags."
See what they did there?
Okay, I’m done now.
Money talks,
This is dF
