$500,000,000 per month. Half a billion dollars PER MONTH. For 20 YEARS

[Roland99]

That's how much Jeff Bezos (who just retired from CEO of Amazon) could spend EVERY F*CKING MONTH for the next 20 YEARS!

And he'd still have $75 BILLION leftover!


Disaster Capitalism

[DonaldsRump]

1. Wowser! I'll volunteer to be Bezos for half a month? nt

[Martin Eden]

2. 90% Tax on the Highest Bracket

I'm all for reaping financial rewards for hard work and success, but NOBODY deserves that kind of wealth while people are going hungry, homeless, and without adequate medical care or affordable quality education.

[Roland99]

6. But the taxation needs to be specific. His wealth isn't from his salary

It’s from capital gains on the stock options and stocks themselves he’s accumulated over the years

Capital gains taxes should be progressive and reach very high percentages at astronomical levels like this

[BootinUp]

12. So are you suggesting...

That current income tax brackets are fine? Cause I would have to disagree. I think both that and capital gains need to be addressed.

[Roland99]

17. No, they're still too regressive (esp soc sec tax)

But capital gains taxes are a joke

[BootinUp]

15. The root problem

Is that the wealthy determine not only how much people make but also how much taxes are paid. A generalization that I believe is essentially so.

[Blue_true]

24. Won't work.

He was paid something like $75,000-$100,000 per year. I made lots more than that when I was in corporate America. His deferred stock grants are not taxed at all at issuance. When he sells them after holding them long enough for them to qualify as long term capital gains, the tax rate is less than 20% (less than is paid for regular income).

In order to get to people that have large ownership in publicly traded companies, you would need to eliminate the long term capital gains feature and simply tax the gains as regular income, but, be ready for a massive, long and politically bloody fight that you will likely lose (after losing lots of seats in the House and Senate).

I believe the best approach is to take away the capital gains tax advantage slowly, like applying it only to $200,000 of a stocks sale, with the rest taxed at say 35%, with no exemptions. Even that would be a fight, but some variant may get passed as legislation.

[Duppers]

3. 😱

Damn.

How can anyone rationalize that kind of wealth and what would he possibly do with it?

I would start by
- funding Democratic candidates.
- Then I'd fund food banks around the country and
- CoVid vaccines and distribution.
- Then buy a laptop for every school-aged child w/o one.
- Then fund low-cost housing.

Other ideas?

[I_UndergroundPanther]

28. I'd give to every animal shelter

and trap neuter and release program In the country. I'd give to every program that helps people with mental illness in my state , I'd build an epic Cat sanctuary, I would give money to a lot of social programs and food banks and other non-churchy places that help the poor. I'd set up a dental fund for poor people in my state. I'd lobby for tiny house permits,make tiny home parks and end homelessness in my state. I would build a bus system that is extensive and regularly runs all the time and goes everywhere.
I'd support environmental advocates and river watchers, I would buy land for community gardens and free food forests. I'd support every free store in the country...that's off the top of my head just for starters...

[Duppers]

30. I absolutely LOVE YOUR LIST

OMG, I'm so sorry I left your #1 priority off my list!
-- In fact, hubs & I have been discussing writing our wills; he wants to leave some money to his university alma mater.
Ha! I'll out-live him & inherit all assets. I've told my son & friends I'll make sure the largest amt goes to animal shelters, not to any university! I'm very determined about that. My son won't necessarily need money (he'll inherit our home) & he knows how many homeless critters need help.(He has adopted 2 shelter kitties & a dog). I dearly love all critters and realize the plight of so many.
(Our rescued baby died just 8 wks ago yesterday. We're still grieving.)

[lame54]

4. And he still needs more

[Deuxcents]

5. Maybe he'll have an epiphany

And do good for so many things he can make a difference with. My liberal heart wishes...

[onethatcares]

7. and he probably doesn't have a friend

he can talk to, go fishing with, smoke a joint with, just chill and be himself.

the RichieRiches have to hide behind walls and gates and guards because they're afraid someone will get their precious.

I can't bring my self to feel any sadness for him.

[msongs]

8. because people in the USA buy stuff at amazon. doh nt

[Budi]

11. LOL. Thank You. Pretty simple isn't it! "People buy stuff"

So 30 yrs ago a guy named Bezos started a company & named it Amazon.
It was a success.
End of story.

[Budi]

9. I don't hate him for it. He created Amazon 30 years ago.

I applaud his charities & the direction he's leading other donors to.
There are millionares & billionares who have done some truly callous & selfish things with their wealth.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=15044081

The planet thanks you..
https://www.greenbiz.com/article/what-big-bets-bezos-earth-fund-say-about-climate-action-2021



Emerald Edge, the largest intact coastal rainforest on Earth, spans 100 million acres through Washington, British Columbia and Alaska. It will benefit from the first set of grants by the Bezos Earth Fund.

.."The organizations that made the cut, and I see no reason not to list them all because they deserve as much attention as possible these days":
The Climate and Clean Energy Equity Fund, ClimateWorks Foundation, Dream Corps Green For All, Eden Reforestation Projects, Energy Foundation, Environmental Defense Fund, The Hive Fund for Climate and Gender Justice, Natural Resources Defense Council, The Nature Conservancy, NDN Collective, Rocky Mountain Institute, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, The Solutions Project, Union of Concerned Scientists, World Resources Institute and World Wildlife Fund.
**********

Poking more specifically into where the money is dedicated tells us a lot about where we can expect big corporations to prioritize climate action during 2021. With that in mind, here are three of my takeaways from Bezos’s big bets.

1. Climate equity and environmental justice is getting much-needed funding

2. Anticipate more attention to the potential of ocean carbon sequestration

3. Don’t underestimate the potential of satellites in the fight against climate change
Details of the 3 focuses are listed at above link.
****

He's given to homeless charities, food banks, school education programs, etc in the US & much more around the world as well.

Thanks Mr Bezos..

[HipChick]

16. Exactly...

Who was with him when he was building this out in his basement/garage?
Amazon made a fortune of a supply chain model that Sears should have been able to run with...

[Budi]

20. Now that he's stepping down from his 30 yr postion, ...

...it'll be interesting to watch where his passions lead him.

Clearly appears to lead to a serious focus on the planet & survival of all that thrives within.

Grateful for his forsight & generosity

[NYC Liberal]

32. Mommy and daddy were. They gave him almost $300,000.

Turns out having rich parents helps. See: Trump, Romney, Gates, Musk.

[Maraya1969]

22. They also have that thing where you can sign up and they will donate 5% to

the charity of your choice. They let you know how much of what you have spent has gone to charity.

[Blue_true]

25. The guy started off selling books from his home.

Then he saw that book buyers asked about other stuff, like bookmarks, then he went from there to offer other things.

Now, he is ultra-rich.

But people don’t look at the reality that here were times early on when his bank account was almost nothing and he lay awake at night hoping that the banks would release the payment money from book buyers.

I always argue that anyone that rails against capitalism should come up with and make work an alternative. I believe the best way forward it to develop a large cadre of capitalists who are more interested in doing good and fairly pricing their products than they are in being multi-millionaires, or billionaires.

[Chainfire]

10. I guess he won't have to turn the thermostat down in the Winter.....

[ananda]

13. That is SO wrong!

I wish i didn't need Amazon to survive right now.

Oh well...

[Blue_true]

27. The problem is that as a society, we over value somethings and grossly undervalued others.

I believe that public school teachers are at the very top of what profession is most valuable to society, name any other profession, teachers had a hand in the early training of those professionals. But our society value teachers very poorly. If our societal values were different, hyper-billionaires would not get the adulation that they get today, and public school teachers would be the most valued members of the communities that they live in.

[ananda]

33. That is so true. Also, the Reeps value only money and power..

.. even over life.

Deaths and suffering.. just collateral damage.

[Blue_true]

34. Yep.

They call themselves the party of Lincoln, doubtful that he would own them if he somehow cane alive today to witness their behavior. They ARE the party of Jesse Helms, Strom Thurmond and Bull Connor.

[RANDYWILDMAN]

14. This is the problem

and how much do those drivers I see all over the place make ?

[stillcool]

18. funny how one thing leads to another...

first there was Main Street, then there was the mall, then there was the Big Box stores, and along comes Amazon who puts it all together on-line and makes an obscene amount of money, after a few decades. Kind of hard for me to find fault, when he built a better mousetrap. The problem I have is with the lack of regulations that encourage cannibalistic behavior, and reward creative accounting, along with the myriad of tax laws with loops.

[Blue_true]

29. Our tax laws are messed up.

As a sole proprietor, I don’t enjoy remotely the tax options that I would get from incorporating, setting up a pet rock Board of Directors, and offering highly restrictive stock to employees. But, I simply don’t have the time or the money to lobby tax writing legislators. Organizations that I can join to do the lobbying for me frankly are way down the food chain, doubt that they get “meetings” with tax writers.

Yes, it would be nice if everything was on an equal footing, but it isn’t.

The Web is powerful for a startup that know how to use it, a person or company can go from having maybe 150 people look at products each day to having tens of thousands worldwide looking at those products each day.

[Wicked Blue]

19. And he still stiffed Amazon drivers of tens of millions in tips

Raw Story article that I posted on DU earlier today

Amazon to fork over $61.7 million in withheld tips in settlement with delivery drivers: report
https://www.rawstory.com/amazon-pays-back-worker-tips/

[Bengus81]

23. Like Pizza Hut delivery places were getting driver tips online for delivery orders.....

And then not paying it to the drivers.

[Maraya1969]

21. That's why we need some sort of wealth tax.

[Buns_of_Fire]

26. The latest Publisher's Clearing House grand prize? nt

[Flaleftist]

31. Of course, that is assuming he makes no interest on his current wealth.

Even at 5% he could spend that and come out ahead.