The End of the World: A Political Thread. A New Hope coming soon!

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https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/...te-fines-can-become-48-billion-in-tax-breaks/

How $80 Billion in Corporate Fines Can Become $48 Billion in Tax Breaks​
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Over the last three years, federal regulators have won giant legal settlements from companies like BP, Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase, but according to a new study, the outlines of those agreements have freed firms to write off billions as tax deductions.​
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The study by the United States Public Interest Group, a nonprofit advocacy group, examined the 10 largest settlements by five government regulators since 2012: the Department of Justice, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.​
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In that time, companies were required to pay nearly $80 billion to resolve investigations into alleged wrongdoing, but the analysis found that companies “can readily write off at least $48 billion of this amount as a tax deduction.” That translates to a loss of $17 billion in federal tax revenue, more than what the Internal Revenue Service collects each year in estate taxes, according to the report.​
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At issue is the legal language of the deals and how they address what the authors call a “gray area” of the tax code. Corporations are allowed to deduct from their taxable income all ordinary and necessary business expenses. What they can’t do is deduct penalties or fines paid to the government. With large settlements, though, payments are often not a penalty or fine, but rather meant to address some form of liability connected to alleged misdeeds. When that’s the case, firms can typically write that amount off as a cost of doing business.​
 
It almost seems kleptomania writ large at some point. Some of them might even feel like their behavior is fvcked up, but just can't help it. It might even be like a gambling addict who has learned to count cards or rig the game.

I also wonder if this becomes a form of wealth hoarding which dams up the economy slowing down currency circulation.

One of the craziest parts of this is the Philanthropy side. Oh yeah I guess gobbling up the economy is bad so I'll generously give away a few million which barely scratches the surface of their real wealth. Also, in a way this is a private tax imposed by the wealthy on the working class to fund their Philanthropic projects.
 
One of the most disturbing things is when 'self-made' men rise up from modest beginnings or even poverty. They attain wealth and they become horrible a******s. They actually have no empathy at all for the rank & file worker toiling away trying to get ahead.

Not to say this applies to all such people, but it seems common.

There is also a lot denial of luck or good fortune in this. Wealth can come from having the right skills, at the right time, when presented with the right opportunity. I feel like a lot of those who become wealthy embrace a delusion insisting "Well, if I succeeded why can't you do the same as me?".
 
The big problem is that once someone gets a big pile of money, it is easy for them to use that to generate even bigger piles of money.

Also, the more money you make, the more taxes you can dodge. Your small business owner is scrambling for every dollar they make. While your average mom and pop places stuff cash under the drawer hoping the IRS doesn't notice, Amazon and Apple pay nothing in taxes.

While all this goes on, the middle class shrinks and loses purchasing power (our meager wage increases often don't even keep up with inflation), and the national deficit just keeps exploding, all to benefit the very, very top few. If the debt were shrinking and the middle class were at least getting a piece, that would be different.

The rich will fight back calling anyone who brings this up a "socialist anti-capitalist", but of course that's not true. Most of us just want to fix the system to make it more fair. Close your eyes for a moment and try and think how many Apple products are within a 300 yard circle from you. Now think about their tax bill of $0. That's not capitalism, that's corporate socialism. The state exists to benefit big business.
 
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Have a feeling Boris will only stick around until October. Whatever happens with Brexit, most will not be pleased, then he will get the boot. My speculation.
 
Questions that I want to be asked.

If it was someone other than donald trump did what he did would they be prosecuted?

Why did you not interview trump and trump jr.?

Was your special counsel shut down before you feel it should have been due to work still needing to be completed?
 
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