Amanda

This is such a treat.

I feel like the effort of every power structure is to have us believe that it has always been this way, that this is inevitable and natural and to just accept it and live within it.

And so I wonder if we can set the stage with the brief historical evolution of how this happened, because it wasn't always like this.

The post-World War II period is

Through 1973, we have high taxes on the rich.

We have strong unions.

We have regulated finance, rapidly growing wages that actually are tied to productivity.

Imagine that.

And then 1980s happens and Reaganism happens.

So 1982, U.S.

has 13 billionaires.

Now we have more than 900 billionaires.

billionaires in America.

So what the hell happened there that took us to a place where we have accepted massive inequality as normal?

It seems to me a circular argument because you have to believe that these people who accumulated this tremendous disproportionate wealth came by it through merit and skill and ingenuity in order to believe that those people are uniquely situated

to apply that ingenuity and genius to the world's problems.

If you take a different tact, and if you say, no, actually, these people came to these billions because capital gains are taxed less than labor, because there's no wealth tax, because estate tax exemption, because of weakened and declining unions.

it takes away from their inherent savior status.

They become people who are built because of a system that intended to build them, not people who rose to the top and therefore are uniquely situated to save us from the perils of civilization.

Like if you start to unpack, the only thing unique about these people is they had enough money to buy policies that ensure that they will continue to be rich.