In the Patriot Act: Why Billionaires won't save us, philanthropy as an act of good will was revealed to actually be a way to cheat the law and avoid paying taxes to maintain such wealth. From this we can conclude that billionaires (not unlike Bruce Wayne) have no reason to make systematic change because those very systems are what made them wealthy. Enforcing strong laws is ineffective if they can be cheated or if there is no long-term impact on their profit. Tax loops such as the DAF or the 501(c) make it possible for billionaires to hoard wealth that should be going back into the economy.
This week, I believe that we cannot rely on philanthropy. Even if that was possible, we should not because it means privatizing vital services and changing business models that made the service attractive to the average person. My proposed intervention this week would be to make eliminate the mechanisms that billionaires use to maintain their status as billionaires. For example, a petition to reform the DAF.
I love your post and how you used Bruce Wayne to compare to the billionaires we have in our world today. I think most definately billionaires make themselves out to seem as though they are doing their part to donate and "make the world better" but either the money they donate is not that much for them or they're using various loopholes to ensure their own gain and benefit.
Billionaires love to self mythologize, this is to secure their own legacy and dominance over the people they gain wealth off of by controling cultural narratives of their existence. If the billionaire is the protector of the weak and is "justice", our survival depends on them.Which is billionaire ego propaganda 😭
Hey! I really liked your comment on how billionaires have no reason to make systematic change. It's so true! Enforcing strict laws is definitely a great way to combat this.
Someone once told me that Bruce Wayne isn't as good as he seems, and that even as a masked vigilante that is "trying to save Gotham" is just an act for him to play as a hero. I'm a big fan of Batman movies (especially the trilogy directed by Chris Nolan), and always though of Batman as a real hero. It's an interesting thought experiment to see that with the amount of money Mr. Wayne actually has, even his philanthropy acts don't create real change and only maintains the status quo of the constant struggle seen in Gotham.
Love the title! You make a really good point that billionaires have no reason to make systemic change because its those systems that got them to where they are so why would they right? we can't enforce them to do things out of good will because they have absolutely no obligation to. It's a truly infuriating system
I agree completely that we cannot rely on philanthropy to solve all of the world's problems including the climate crisis. Most philanthropists are not giving out of the goodness of their hearts, rather it is a way to benefit themselves by cheating the system and paying lower taxes for their wealth.
I think cheating the law and avoiding taxes through charity is a way to hinder social sustainability and business sustainability for people who own assets they created, who rely on the external and often fabricated market value of their assets, and report that value for deductions. I agree with your view on the DAF tax cycle, do you see any difficulties in its implementation?
Loved the example you gave.
Charity has always been a very hypocritical thing for me, and so far just a few cases have been relatively real to me.
I think no one is satisfied with their current situation, they will pursue one thing when they don't have money and another when they have money, the desire is endless, in front of the desire, charity really seems very hypocritical.
But I still hope that there can be more charity, although this can let those who have money to avoid taxes, but at least some of the people in need of help get help.
Hi, I was very shocked after watching the video, it seems powerful people not only set the rules for the systems, they could also easily evade from firm reglations. Although I still believe in some true philanthropy, government should have more strict manage and examination for the billionairs doing philanthropy.
Hi! I 100% agree that we can't rely on philantropy and need to make it impossible for them to get through the laws. I love your title!!
You explained this so incredibly well: Billionaires "have no reason to make systematic change because those very systems are what made them wealthy". I am curious how you'd like to see the DAF reformed though. What are the things you'd most like to see changed?
Really well constructed post!!! My visions are and thoughts are parallel and i could have never explained it as clearly and concisely as what your do!!! However one thing i would like to add is i don't think getting rid of DAFs would contribute to maintaining a status of "billionaire". Please I would love to hear your opinion on how you think this would?
Love your title! I agree, we can't rely on billionaires to save us and I like the idea of eliminating mechanisms that allow them to hoard money.
I also agree, I think we can no rely on philantory, especially if there is no transparcy.
Yes!!! Tax the rich and hold them accountable.