This is the Insurgent Radio Kiosk for Wednesday, December 11th
Hightower Commentary
Action Calendar
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What’s scaring the bejeezus out of billionaires?
There’s a new political army on the march in America: Tromp-tromp-tromp they came, it’s the Billionaire Brigade!
It’s actually a very small army – only 749 Americans rank as billionaires. But they have a lot of firepower – collectively, they’ve amassed some $4-trillion in personal wealth and are now grabbing nearly all of the new wealth that our economy generates. In response to the extreme inequality their greed has created, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and other Democratic leaders are proposing a widely-popular wealth tax on the opulence of this tiny group. And oh, what wails of anguish this has generated in the lairs of billionaires! They’re indignant that fortunes above $50-million would be assessed a teeny surtax to help fund education, health care, infrastructure, and America’s other essential needs.
So, with a rallying cry of Save the Poor Rich, the Billionaire’s Brigade seeks your pity: Mark Zuckerberg laments that taxing his gabillions would hurt charities; Michael Bloomberg suggests that the tax could turn America into Venezuela; and Wall Street baron Leon Cooperman actually teared up while wailing that a wealth tax would harm his family. As one money manager said, “These tax proposals are scaring the bejeezus out of people who have accumulated a lot of wealth.”
I don’t think there’s much Jesus in these people! The Biblical Jesus would bless Sanders, Warren, and the majority of Americans who favor a wealth tax to benefit the Common Good. No need to cry for the few hundred haughty families whose love of money would be only slightly dinged by this tax – every one of them would still be fabulously rich. Plus, they’ll be privileged to live in a country that’s a little more closely aligned with its people’s egalitarian values. And that’s priceless.
“America’s billionaires take center stage in national politics, colliding with populist Democrats,” https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2019/11/09/americas-billionaires-take-center-stage-national-politics-colliding-with-populist-democrats/, November 9, 2019.
Hightower’s commentaries are brought to you by The Hightower Lowdown, the monthly newsletter with Hightower’s take on what Wall Street and Washington are up to. For information, visit hightowerlowdown.org.
It’s today’s Action Calendar!
The UW-Madison financial aid team will provide information detailing the financial aid process today from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Goodman Library, 2222 South Park Street. Learn how to submit the free Application for Federal Student Aid and apply for scholarships using the Wisconsin Scholarship Hub. For information, phone 266-6395.
Are you a local news junkie? Put it to good use by joining the WORT news team as a reporter. WORT’s 6 p.m. news broadcast needs volunteers to report stories of local interest. No journalism experience needed. WORT will provide training. The ideal candidate will be open-minded, curious, meticulous and a bulldog about nailing the facts. Being comfortable working on deadline is also critical. Shifts are available on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from approximately 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, call the station at 256-2001 and ask for Interim News Director Chali (SHAH-lee) Pittman.
You can make an impact on the life of a senior adult by assisting them to remain independent and living in their own home. Volunteers are matched with a senior and help with light housekeeping or other tasks once a week or bi-weekly. For more information, visit the Madison Coalition of Older Adults at madisonseniorcoalition.org
The Insurgent Radio Kiosk welcomes your commentaries on subjects of interest to the W.O.R.T. listening community. Commentaries are limited to two minutes. If you’d like to do a Kiosk commentary, visit wortfm.org/kioskcommentary.
The Kiosk is available online at wortfm.org/kiosk.
This has been the Insurgent Radio Kiosk heard weekdays at 5:00, 6:30 and 9:00 AM and at 2:00 PM. With Engineer Alida, I am Engineer Alida.
Submit announcements at least ten days in advance of the event at wortfm.org/kiosk/announcements
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