persagen, to random
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

[thread] SCOTUS, Clarence Thomas, Charles Koch

Super secretive, ultra wealthy/conservative, anti-union, climate change denial, subversive funder of neoliberal think tanks, agendae. As dangerous as Leonard Leo; good to see more coverage, unveiling of Koch's influence.

#SCOTUS #ClarenceThomas #CharlesKoch #JudicialMisconduct #DefundBillionaires #DefundCorporations #KochIndustries #neoliberalism #ChristianRight #capitalism #GOP #GOPmenac #ClimateChangeDenial #CatoInstitute #MercatusCenter

https://persagen.com/#q=%22charles%20koch%22%20AND%20%22jane%20mayer%22 "charles koch" AND "jane mayer" Charles de Ganahl Koch Charles Koch Is Trying to Gut the EPA's Power to Limit Carbon Emissions Stand Together Political activities of the Koch brothers Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America 'A Combination of Forces Puts Our Postal Service at Grave Risk' Koch Industries, Inc. The Billionaires Bankrolling the Tea Party John Birch Society When Mega-Donors Dominate Charitable Giving, Democracy Pays the Price Tea Party Movement

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

cont'd
SCOTUS, Clarence Thomas, Charles Koch

Charles Koch: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Koch

  • American billionaire businessman
  • co-owner, chairman, CEO Koch Industries

#SCOTUS #ClarenceThomas #CharlesKoch #JudicialMisconduct #DefundBillionaires #DefundCorporations #KochIndustries #neoliberalism #fascism #neofascism #ChristianRight #capitalism #GOP #GOPmenace #ClimateChangeDenial #CatoInstitute #MercatusCenter

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

cont'd 2/

  • Charles Koch supports think tanks incl. Institute for Humane Studies, Cato Institute, Ayn Rand Institute, Mercatus Center at George Mason University
  • contributes to Republican Party/candidates, libertarian groups
  • funder of think tanks that lobby to oppose environmental regulation

#SCOTUS #CharlesKoch #DefundBillionaires #DefundCorporations #KochIndustries #neoliberalism #neofascism #ChristianRight #capitalism #GOP #GOPmenace #ClimateChangeDenial #CatoInstitute #MercatusCenter

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

cont'd 3/

Charles Koch & family: https://www.forbes.com/profile/charles-koch/?list=rtb%2F&sh=621b0ee857d7
Chairman & CEO, Koch Industries; $54.5 billion USD net worth 2023-09-22

"charles koch" AND "supreme court"
"charles koch" AND "jane mayer"

#SCOTUS #ClarenceThomas #CharlesKoch #JudicialMisconduct #DefundBillionaires #DefundCorporations #KochIndustries #neoliberalism #fascism #neofascism #ChristianRight #capitalism #GOP #GOPmenace #ClimateChangeDenial #CatoInstitute #MercatusCenter

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 3
Seminal ProPublica bombshell article:

Judicial misconduct: Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, billionaire Harlan Crow
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110580597018243738

Above the Law: Supreme Court Rebuff Democrats’ Call for Thomas Probe
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110908441313317762

Justices Clash on Congress’ Power Over Supreme Court Ethics
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110968385691785556

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 3 cont'd

Clarence Thomas’ Billionaire Benefactor Tied To SCOTUS Bombshell
The Supreme Court just gutted wetland protections after lobbying by Harlan Crow’s business interests
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110498162127448374

Harlan Crow’s Minions Keeping Your Rent High
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110753096166749366

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 4

New [2023-09-22] ProPublica bombshell report tying Clarence Thomas To Charles Koch.

Clarence Thomas Secretly Participated in Koch Network Donor Events
https://www.propublica.org/article/clarence-thomas-secretly-attended-koch-brothers-donor-events-scotus

  • Clarence Thomas attended at least 2 Koch donor summits
  • in extraordinary position of having helped political network that brought multiple cases before SCOTUS

persagen, to history
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

[thread] Liberalism, neoliberalism

Liberalism: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberalism

  • political/moral philosophy
  • based on rights of individual, liberty, consent of governed, political equality, right to private property, equality before law

Neoliberalism: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoliberalism

  • modern reinterpretation of 19th-century liberalism
  • assoc. w. free-market capitalism
  • gave rise to conservative & right-libertarian organizations, political parties, think tanks

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

A1 cont'd 2/

They all self-identify as "libertarian," cloaking their neoliberal ideology espoused in this addendum.

Moreover - regarding the U.S. / increasingly Canada - I equate "neoliberalism" with the neofascism agendae / policies of the Republican Party.

persagen, to cars
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

[thread] cars, privacy

Cars Are Worst Product Category Ever Reviewed for Privacy
https://foundation.mozilla.org/en/privacynotincluded/articles/its-official-cars-are-the-worst-product-category-we-have-ever-reviewed-for-privacy
Discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37401563

  • all 25 car brands researched
  • worst product category ever reviewed
  • all collect personal data
  • 84% share or sell your data
  • 92% give little/no control over personal data
  • Tesla only 2nd product ever reviewed to receive all of privacy “dings”

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

m/w

U.S. stocks higher: Tesla soars on AI optimism
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kXR9rFny7s
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/futures-advance-after-dull-week-gains-tesla-2023-09-11

Elon Musk, $269.3 billion USD Net Worth 2023-09-11 up $17.9B; #1 in world
https://www.forbes.com/profile/elon-musk/?list=rtb%2F&sh=3a2342bf7999

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elon_Musk#Wealth

  • Musk draws most wealth (75%) f. Tesla
  • Musk took Giving Pledge, 2012
  • Musk Foundation criticized for trivial wealth donations
  • 2020 Forbes gave Musk philanthropy score of 1: given away <1% of net worth

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Elon Musk, $269.3 billion USD net worth 2023-09-11 up $17.9B; #1 in world
https://www.forbes.com/profile/elon-musk/?list=rtb%2F&sh=2da5720d7999

To put that in perspective: if Musk spent $1 million/day

$269,000,000,000 / ($1,000,000/day) = 269,000 days
269,000 days / (365.25 days/year) = 736.481 years

2023 A.D. - 736 = 1287 A.D.

So, spend $1M/day starting 1287 A.D. would run out this year, 2023.

persagen, to random
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

[thread] Poverty industrial complex | demonization, criminalization of homelessness

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_industrial_complex

  • outsourcing of social services to private corporations

See also:
Prison industrial complex: https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110589789454470156
Medical Industrial Complex: https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110674187440549205

Pacific Prosperity Network | Cicero Institute
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110873929767684022

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 3

Poverty Rate Soared in 2022 as Aid Ended, Prices Rose
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/12/business/economy/income-poverty-health-insurance.html

  • U.S.: increased sharply among children

Poverty increased sharply in 2022 due to safety net cutbacks, inflation
https://www.epi.org/press/poverty-increased-sharply-in-2022-due-to-safety-net-cutbacks-and-inflation-shock-strong-labor-market-signals-a-better-2023

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 3 cont'd

In 1 Year Child Poverty in U.S. More Than Doubled
Staggering rise follows GOP & Joe Manchin’s crusade to kill expanded child care credit
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2023/09/child-poverty-rate-child-tax-credit

Poverty in United States: 2022
https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2023/demo/p60-280.html

https://persagen.com >> search: "joe manchin"

persagen, to Unions
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

[thread] trade unions, labor movement

Labour movement: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labour_movement

  • 2 wings: trade/labor union movement; political labor movement

Trade union: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade_union

  • trade/labor union: organization of workers intent on maintaining/improving conditions of employment

Precarity: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Precarity

  • precarious existence, lacking predictability, job security, material/psychological welfare
  • precariat social class

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 5

NBC Nightly News Spreads Anti-Union Propaganda
Coverage of pot. United Auto Workers strike checks off every anti-labor trope
https://jacobin.com/2023/09/anti-union-propaganda-media-nbc-strike-uaw-consumerism

United Auto Workers: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Auto_Workers
NBCUniversal: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBCUniversal

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 5 cont'd

Automakers Hand Billions To Shareholders While Stiffing Workers
Big Three car companies authorized $5 billion in stock buybacks
https://www.levernews.com/automakers-hand-billions-to-shareholders-while-stiffing-workers/

  • in past 12 mo. Big Three automakers - General Motors, Ford, Stellantis - auth. $5 billion in stock buybacks
  • gives billions of dollars to shareholders that could have gone to autoworkers

Big Three: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Three_(automobile_manufacturers)

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 5 cont'd 2/

[2023-09-13] Big Three Autoworkers Getting Ready to Strike As Negotiations Come Down to Wire
United Auto Workers’ contract w. the Big Three automakers expires tomorrow at midnight
If no agreement is reached, UAW ready to strike to recoup concessions made over past 2 decades, end tiers, & boost wages
https://jacobin.com/2023/09/big-three-auto-industry-strike-deadline-uaw-wages-tiers

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 6

UAW on Strike: In Historic Move, Auto Workers Target All Big Three Automakers at Once
https://www.democracynow.org/2023/9/15/uaw_strike_big_three_automakers

persagen, to random
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

[thread] Rudy Giuliani

FBI Agent Says Giuliani Was Co-opted by Russian Intelligence
Whistleblower probe of Giuliani’s ties to suspected Russian operatives was thwarted
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2023/09/a-new-rudy-scandal-fbi-agent-says-giuliani-was-co-opted-by-russian-intelligence

Previous related Giuliani threads
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110917440311238417

Who Are Trump’s Alleged Co-Conspirators?
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110817665274238377

Trump Team Indictment: Rudy Giuliani
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110913342896834505

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 1

Elon Musk Almost Hired Rudy Giuliani Until He Met Him in Person
Rudy Giuliani was too sleazy even for Elon Musk
https://newrepublic.com/post/175529/elon-musk-almost-hired-rudy-giuliani-met-person

  • Musk wanted to recruit Rudy Giuliani in early 2000s to help turn PayPal into a bank
  • outgoing NYC mayor was too skeezy even for Musk, according to Musk biography

persagen, to random
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

[thread] oligarchy

Oligarchs Don't Just Want to Be Rich But Kill Democracy
Why powerful & wealthiest think your ability to vote is dangerous
https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/oligarchs-against-democracy

  • investigative report tells how morbidly rich families, their companies, & their personal foundations are funding efforts to limit/restrict democracy across U.S.

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 5

Peter Thiel Startup Plotting Libertarian Paradise
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2023/09/praxis-society-city-dryden-brown-peter-thiel/

  • free-market Mediterranean city-state
  • CEO interested in fascism/occultism; touted book arguing Black people intellectually inferior
  • Praxis: https://www.cityofpraxis.com

Tech Bros Plot Autonomous City
https://www.curbed.com/article/inside-the-peter-thielbacked-praxis.html

https://persagen.com >> search: "peter thiel"

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 6

Elon Musk, $269.3 billion USD net worth 2023-09-11 up $17.9B; #1 in world
https://www.forbes.com/profile/elon-musk/?list=rtb%2F&sh=2da5720d7999
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/111049243450567496

If Musk spent $1 million/day:

  • $269,000,000,000 / ($1,000,000/day) = 269,000 days
  • 269,000 days / (365.25 days/year) = 736.481 years
  • 2023 A.D. - 736 = 1287 A.D.

#Musk #ElonMusk #DefundBillionaires #WealthConcentration #WealthInequality #DefundCorporations #plutocracy #meritocracy #oligarchy #capitalism #neofascism #transphobia #TransLivesMatter #CultureWars

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 7

Economists, Millionaires, Elected Officials to G20: Tax Extreme Wealth
"Accumulation of extreme wealth by world's richest individuals has become an economic, ecological, human rights disaster"
https://inequality.org/research/g20-tax-extreme-wealth

Open letter: G20 Leaders must tax extreme wealth
https://taxextremewealth.com

#G20 #DefundBillionaires #WealthConcentration #corporations #DefundCorporations #plutocracy #meritocracy #oligarchy #capitalism #neofascism #TransLivesMatter #CultureWars #ExtremeWealth #socialism

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 8

Billionaires Cash In On Abusive Farm Worker Scam
To staff agricultural properties, Bill Gates, Rupert Murdoch, other tycoons use controversial visa program linked to labor abuses, human trafficking
https://www.levernews.com/billionaires-cash-in-on-abusive-farm-worker-scam

#DefundBillionaires #WealthConcentration #corporations #DefundCorporations #plutocracy #meritocracy #oligarchy #capitalism #ExtremeWealth #socialism #HumanRights #HumanTrafficking #WorkersRights #LaborAbuse #FarmWorkers #migrants #BillGates #RupertMurdoch

persagen, to Canada
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Canada Bread fined $50M for role in bread price-fixing scandal
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada_Bread

Canada Bread Co. has been fined $50 million after pleading guilty to its role in a criminal price-fixing scheme that inflated the wholesale price of bread in Canada. The Competition Bureau of Canada says it's the highest price-fixing fine ever imposed by a Canadian court

Canada Bread: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada_Bread

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

Addendum 5

[2022-06-13] Food giants reap enormous profits during times of crisis
https://theconversation.com/food-giants-reap-enormous-profits-during-times-of-crisis-184223

  • Oxfam International: 62 new “food billionaires” created during COVID-19 pandemic

Pandemic creates new billionaire every 30 hrs
A million people could fall into extreme poverty at same rate in 2022
https://www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/pandemic-creates-new-billionaire-every-30-hours-now-million-people-could-fall

Profiting f. pain: Urgency of taxing the rich amid a surge in billionaire wealth & global cost-of-living crisis
https://www.oxfam.org/en/research/profiting-pain

persagen,
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

A6 cont'd

Billionaires, you can't take it with you. Your legacy lasts forever however.

David Sobey, transformed Sobeys into national grocery juggernaut, dead at 92
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/david-sobey-who-helped-transform-sobeys-into-national-grocery-juggernaut-dead-at-92-1.6971465

Empire Company: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empire_Company

Canada's richest grocers
https://canadiangrocer.com/meet-some-canadas-richest-grocers

  • Sobey Family: total net worth $3.19 billion

persagen, to Fox
@persagen@mastodon.social avatar

deleted_by_moderator

    •
    persagen,
    @persagen@mastodon.social avatar

    Addendum 4

    Murdoch Succession: No one had bigger impact on modern American media, politics than Rupert Murdoch
    https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/22/briefing/rupert-murdoch.html

    Murdoch’s Legacy Includes Giving Airtime to Climate Denialism & Far Right
    https://truthout.org/video/murdochs-legacy-includes-giving-airtime-to-climate-denialism-and-the-far-right

    • 92 y.o. right-wing media mogul will step down as chair of Fox Corporation & News Corporation 2023-11

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