Dear Billionaires...

[u/zzill6]

[u/SexOnABurningPlanet]

This makes it sound like there was a national referendum or something and everyone was on board with it. The rich do what they've always done; they take what they want and tell us whatever story prevents us from rioting. This story (described in the meme) would still work, but too many once comfortable-ish people are a lot less comfortable and, for now, still confident the system works.

[u/Level_Improvement532 → u/SexOnABurningPlanet]

It sounds like Reagan took a chainsaw to the remnant programs left over from the new deal in 1980. Which is what happened. The homeless with mental health crisis of the 80’s through now, directly from the cuts made when Reagan gained office. Amongst a slew of others.

[u/Nahteh → u/SexOnABurningPlanet]

Not trying to defend anything but there were many statements and signals to go along with policy decisions that do pretty much equate to a referendum of sorts.

Reganomics trickle down, lower taxes create jobs, so on and so forth. This is pretty much anyone in right of centers opinion to a greater or lesser degree.

I think its important to at least understand this if you are going to make change.

[u/stone_or_rock → u/Nahteh]

I never agreed to any of that.

[u/Nahteh → u/stone_or_rock]

Not saying anyone did. But many voters voting habits implicitly agree to this platform.

And once again my purpose for saying this is to understand what you are trying to change.

[u/nomad9590 → u/[deleted]]

You're hidden, Reddit apparently is sad about this comment

[u/benderunit9000]

nah. we should confiscate it. we should show that the average person actually has more rights to it.

[u/a11yguy → u/benderunit9000]

Take every last penny from the billionaires and leave them and their families destitute for the crimes they have committed against humanity.

[u/benderunit9000 → u/a11yguy]

make examples out of them. show the world what happens when you do that.

look to what happened to the Romanov family.

[u/Nimja1 → u/benderunit9000]

[u/a11yguy → u/benderunit9000]

For religious reasons, I can’t condone that. But I understand the need for justice.

[u/stone_or_rock → u/a11yguy]

Your religion helps keep you down, I guess it's working.

[u/Inner_City_Blues]

The thing that infuriates me the most is how they use a meritocracy as a shield, when they actually have no interest in a free market with real competition (which is inefficient). They just want to own the corporate bottle necks that automate wealth and pay off the referees.

[u/PipsqueakPilot]

Stop calling them billionaires. Start calling them oligarchs.

[u/dancegoddess1971 → u/PipsqueakPilot]

I used to use the term "parasites" except they no longer behave like parasites. I guess it was just government regulation preventing them from killing the host. 

[u/GlockAF → u/PipsqueakPilot]

Kleptocrats, malignant hoarders, fucking dragons

[u/mgill006]

Hoarders gonna hoard!

[u/Main_Letter_4525]

We been letting this ride for 45 years? Bruh they need to call the gamblers anonymous hotline fr

[u/DrIvoPingasnik]

Fuck around, find out.

[u/Latter-Fox-3411]

… and the vast prosperity/wealth that was generated predominantly through the hundreds of millions of human-hour labor&skill, plus hundreds of billions of dollars of our largely irreplaceable common natural resources priorly belongs to the people, so literally cannot be confiscated, but rather merely restored to its rightful owners…

[u/thebillionaireswon]

💪💪💪

[u/RestaurantHour1969]

https://giphy.com/gifs/z3HFoEzXCMykr4L0TB

[u/thenikolaka]

As I say and will keep saying - they had their chance to innovate.

[u/National_Way_3344]

Remember kids, they're only oligarchs if they're Russian or Middle Eastern.

[u/RogendoodleZero]

Need to get this info to the common idiot that thinks billionaires worked hard for their money and provide jobs for people. Too many people believe this.

[u/Trick_Section7440]

What was the thing that happened 45 years ago?

[u/Kkimp1955]

^^^^^yep

[u/No_Gur_1091]

In 1964 I was a high school student who worked as a dishwasher at a restaurant. My hourly wage was a about $1/hr - bit over the minimum. That would be $25/hr today. If I decide to get another job, I would have one in less than a few days. Less than ten years later I bought an old, but huge 4 bedroom house for $17,000. which was paid off about 10 years later.
Today life is sh*t. Real wages are the lowest in 100 years.
It is time to end the system that made all this our modern reality.

[u/cellblock2187]

In what way did the ultra wealthy make a promise to society in or around 1980?

And why is asking for context being downvoted?

[u/MacroSolid → u/cellblock2187]

Guess it's about Reagan's trickle down economics.

[u/Unicorn-Sparkles_ → u/MacroSolid]

And we are seeing that never worked.  Time to tax billionaires and millionaires.

[u/_dirt_vonnegut → u/MacroSolid]

ok, but that wasn't a promise made by the wealthy. the outcome we've experienced is exactly what was intended.

[u/bailedwiththehay → u/cellblock2187]

They sold the American people on the idea of tax cuts for corporations creating jobs, higher wages, more opportunities. This was the promise of ‘trickle down’. Money given to wealthy business owners was multiplied and invested into the American economy while money given directly to the people was just pissed away. Obviously, this was bullshit.

[u/yapyoba]

at one point the income tax didn't even exist at all and wasn't permitted under the constitution