I still find it had to accept that 85 people hold the equivalent assets to the poorest half of this world. That means that 85 individuals own as much as 3.5 Billion people – 3,500,000,000,000.
Am I alone in believing that is obscene?
I do not believe that it is possible for anyone to ‘earn’ that magnitude of wealth. That amount of wealth can only be accrued through the ‘exploitation’ of other fellow human beings.
That exploitation is a matter worthy of discussion but not the main thrust of my present argument; the issue I wish to pursue is what these superrich people do with these unimaginable resources. My contention is that what they do is horrendous for all of us.
Perhaps I should extend this slightly before I get started for it is not merely 85 people that I am talking about here. There is a superrich club of thousands who between them own most of the world. That is the reality. 99% of us live off the 1% they leave us. They, and their corporations, effectively control the world and run it for their own ends. That means they set up mechanisms to keep the power for themselves so that they can control what goes on and accrue more.
So how do they achieve this?
They exploit global markets.
They exploit tax loopholes.
They control the media.
They buy off politicians.
They lobby, bribe and pressure.
They threaten.
The end result is that this tiny minority of individuals run the world for their own profit without regard for the environment, ordinary people, wildlife or the future. They are a law unto themselves.
This is surely madness!
It is manifestly a recipe for disaster!
It is my contention that many in this group instigate conflict, wars, unrest and social inequality in order to create markets and maximise profits.
War, poverty, starvation, slavery, extreme hardship, deforestation, climate change, ecological destruction and pollution are the product of their lunacy.
We are controlled and indoctrinated with the view that there is nothing that can be done about war, famine and poverty. It is human nature. It will always be with us.
I do not accept that.
Human nature has two distinct sides. There is the negative selfish, greedy, vicious, cruel and destructive side that we read about so often in the news as people and animals are attacked, robbed and sadistically tortured for amusement. But then there is the altruistic side exhibited by the majority who really care about the world, individuals, other creatures and are helpful, friendly, honest and selfless.
Over the course of time, through the invention of civilisation, human society has come a long way. The world is a safer, more pleasant place despite the efforts of the negative players and all their thoughtless cruelty, greed and selfishness.
In general societies have introduced laws that restrict the worst of their activities and these laws work to a degree.
If we manage to survive long enough we will create a better world – of that I am certain. The only problem is whether we will be able to do this in time before the greedy minority succeed in destroying the planet through their insatiable desire for profit and power.
In order to prevent them we must put a stop to this incessant mantra for more. It is my contention that there is no need for further growth and expansion; there is only a need for greater fairness.
Just imagine how beautiful the world would be if there was a virus that destroyed human ego so that nobody wanted to be more important than anybody else, own more and show off?
Imagine all the world’s resources being used intelligently and benignly to solve problems universally rather than to accrue more yachts, mansions and control?
Imagine all the energy deployed by the gangs of lawyers, lobbyists, thugs and bully-boys employed by the elite to bribe, threaten, coerce, misrepresent, obfuscate and confuse, used productively to promote global progress.
We could solve inequality, poverty, war, disease, overpopulation, pollution, and all the rest of the world’s ills. They are not insoluble as some would have us believe.
All that is required is that we find a global way of controlling the tiny exploitative minority so that they cannot mindlessly run the world for their own selfish ends.
Here is a simple 10 step plan to prevent the venomous greedy from controlling us:
1. We stop voting in politicians who are mentally ill sociopathic, psychopathic, paranoid schizophrenics (we seem to make a habit of doing this – Hitler, Mao, Pol Pot, Thatcher, Reagan, Bush, Trump etc..)
2. We do away with institutionalised religion. It is used as an excuse by the wealthy. We do not want pie in the sky and the poor do not always have to be with us.
3. We jettison all tribal nonsense – such as hatred for other people, nations, religions and races. We ban xenophobia and begin thinking with our brains and not our glands.
4. We discard the outdated idea of countries and nations and replace it with a global government with global powers to protect people and the environment, to tie up the loopholes and put an end to multinationals exploiting us and the absurd financial gambling that creates boom and bust. With one market and one currency we immediately remove speculation and all the stupidity that goes with it.
5. We replace the stupid outmoded markets that gamble on the world’s resources for profit and create exploitation. We reward people fairly for their efforts. A new global system should not be hard to devise with one market and one currency.
6. We enforce the United Nations charter of human rights as the basis of universal law to ensure that all men, women, children and creatures are treated fairly with rights and responsibilities and respect.
7. We create a universal tax and welfare system so that all are treated fairly, have a safety net of sick pay, pensions and unemployment benefit so that none are needy.
8. We limit our global population to 3 billion – a level that is sustainable without creating environmental mayhem.
9. We have universal laws to control pollution, conservation and environmental degradation to create a world where all life can thrive and everyone has clean air, water and food without destroying the world.
10. We unify our efforts and research to accelerate scientific advances to fight disease, solve potential global destructors posed by asteroids, viruses and volcanoes and create paradise on Earth.
All of this is perfectly feasible! I told you it was easy!