Today UP@NIGHT inaugurates a new series for the new year: On The Road To Plutocracy, which will include links to articles and videos, and original pieces. We will focus on inequality in the U.S., as well as on the ways in which the wealthy manage to game the system to maintain power and prestige.
Some may argue that the title of the series is misguided. We are not on the way to a plutocracy in the United States. We already live in one. No doubt a good case can be made for this claim. But we here at UP@NIGHT would like to keep open the possibility that it’s not a done deal yet, that however much the wealthy run the show there is still a possibility that our democracy can be salvaged.
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The New York Times is currently running a headline story on the ways in which the very wealthy avoid paying taxes. The fact that the wealthy avoid paying their fair share of taxes is not news, but the article provides a detailed account of the “loopholes” that the rich use.
“For the Wealthiest, a Private Tax System That Saves Them Billions”
And while you are reading about how the very wealthy avoid paying taxes, you might keep in mind a couple of charts from a Washington Post article, “This viral video is right: we need to worry about wealth inequality.” The video follows the charts.
UP@NIGHT 