fitzroy95 t1_j2a9cvo wrote
Reply to comment by AllanfromWales1 in We have all the resources we need to solve the world's greatest problems, so long as we can rise above our tribal instincts. by IAI_Admin
agreed, however they are also the ones who own the media and platforms that enable others to push similar agenda.
and, in a number of nations, they own the politicians who are also pushing similar agenda
AllanfromWales1 t1_j2a9vcz wrote
The rich and powerful aren't a single bloc all pushing the same perspectives. That sounds a bit too much like conspiracy theories for my taste.
fitzroy95 t1_j2aavlm wrote
to an extent they are.
They tend to have a common interest in increasing their own wealth and power. How they choose to do those things certainly varies massively between them, however the common factors are that they have zero interest in helping the rest of the population, and will willingly kneecap public initiatives if they can't profit off it.
It doesn't need any kind of conspiracy, it just requires people with influence and greed who are manipulating society in their own interests, at the expense of everyone else
AllanfromWales1 t1_j2ac0y6 wrote
As I said elsewhere, capitalism requires a market. Making more and more people poor removes a significant proportion of that market. Bill Gates can't get rich unless people are buying computer software. Bezos can't get rich if people can't afford to use Amazon. Lower down the chain, Ronald McDonald needs people to buy burgers. And so on. It's far from obvious that the guys at the top don't care about us - they rely on us. Obviously there's a limit to how far they're willing to go, but it's not as black and white as you seem to suggest.
SabotageGoodActually t1_j2al1x7 wrote
This is what is commonly know as contradiction of capitalism (one of many). It’s actually one of the reasons why there are frequent “crises” in the market. These crises were explained in detail by anti capitalists over a century ago, and it was shown that they are actually very predictable. Capitalists don’t care.
Padhome t1_j2d2dqv wrote
It invariably promotes short-term goals over long-term viability. Basically, "I got mine so who cares?"
VitriolicViolet t1_j2fnk98 wrote
and? short term thinking plagues humanity, from election cycles to 70% people eating enough to be overweight to drug dealers killing their customers by cutting products (hell major corporation do it ffs, just slower)
these people are just humans in the end, they want more money tomorrow and so do their investors (not to mention half will be dead by the time it gets bad anyway).
they are not uniquely smart or skilled, every society in human history has had a class like this and every single time they have chosen short term profit (be that financial or power/control based) to the point of destroying the society they are in.
what is happening now is what happened to every major society in history, those with power have enough to run us into the ground trying to get more and so they will.
_Moregasmic_ t1_j2cctt3 wrote
It sounds too much like the iconic men in a dark room smoking cigars planning the demise of anything that stands between them and global domination, I agree... That said, I think that iconic picture is a tool to distract from the fact that the power structures of human civilization have always been inherently conspiratorial... Obviously there's not some single monolithic group conspiring, there are many different people vying for power, and they either work against each other, or together, depending on how they believe it will serve their own agenda best... But "conspiracy theories" is a term that was demonstrably created as a strategy to diminish dissent.
That_one_guy_u-know t1_j2cjjyd wrote
They don't need to all be working together. To bring it down to reality a bit, companies in the US need to be solely dedicated to their shareholders. ->Lobbying is a thing and companies engage in it because it helps them make more money than it costs them. Ladida companies give the government a cut for permission to make more money off of the general population.
Then take this to every other industry. Some of the big ones being Food, Pharma, and Tech. 0 conspiracy theories in this
VitriolicViolet t1_j2fn638 wrote
class solidarity.
no conspiracy needed at all. like how most people on welfare vote for higher payments and most of the middle class vote for tax cuts most of the wealthy 'donate' to both parties for favorable treatment (where do you think Trump got his billion or Biden got his 950 million for their respective campaigns?)
taken in aggregate it means that as a class the wealthy do indeed form what is effectively a single bloc on certain issues ie lower taxes, more corporate rights and power, more subsidies, access to captive markets like healthcare, energy, housing etc.
the easiest way to make more money as a billionaire is not innovation or invention its bribing both parties for favorable treatment (its why the list of the people who own 50% of global wealth gets shorter every year, they fight each other but they tag-team the people).
there is no conspiracy, these people are not friends or a cabal they just have massive power and influence and at that level the easiest ways to get more happen to be pretty much the same.
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