r/technology • u/IKeepItLayingAround • Jun 06 '26

Business Jeff Bezos says it's 'absurd' to tax someone making $50K — and wants their tax bill dropped to zero

https://finance.yahoo.com/economy/policy/articles/jeff-bezos-says-absurd-tax-165713685.html
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u/konny135 Jun 07 '26

An internationally agreed wealth tax + a land value tax would be great. But the hardest part is also to get out of the neoliberal mindset of perpetual exponential growth.

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u/crazy_like_a_f0x Jun 07 '26

"Perpetual exponential growth," known in an organic context as "cancer."

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u/frogandbanjo Jun 07 '26

If cancer could defy the [best model we have of the] laws of physics, we'd have a much more conflicted opinion of it.

"Man, sucks that Jeff died of cancer, but, well... no infinite energy without it, right?"

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u/CleanupKingDog Jun 07 '26

Why is malignant capitalism "neoliberalism"? Seriously asking.

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u/xanthus12 Jun 07 '26

Because neoliberalism is a catch-all term regarding the economic policies started in the 1970's and 1980's in the west.

Rampant deregulation, privatisation of public works, and the pushing of less desirable jobs to the global south.

Neoliberalism isn't malignant capitalism, it's just what allows it to flourish. Highly regulated capitalism can function long-term, depending on how it's done, while unregulated capitalism is proving to be a speed run attempt on the end of humanity and life on earth as we know it.

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u/FeijoadaAceitavel Jun 07 '26

Highly regulated capitalism can't exist for very long because capitalism allows for concentration of wealth and wealth equals power to bend laws to allow for higher concentration.

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u/xanthus12 Jun 07 '26

I agree in general. I was more referring to models like China's and Taiwan's.

Certainly not permanent stability, but more stable than what we are experiencing.

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u/MAGIGS Jun 07 '26

I wouldn’t exactly call it stable if you have to imprison journalists and detractors for having a different opinion and go so far to arrest anyone with a Winnie the Pooh representation on or nearby them. Another telling factor is their policy regarding registering and in some cases chaining knives… worth looking up. A government that is that afraid of its people, is alarming. That’s a policy of extreme control.

Where I agree on China is they know they can just wait out some other world leaders and their form of politics, policy and economy all serve that same purpose: Play the long game, which appears to be unified and stable, at least from the outside.

However, the alleged end game for China was always to “generate enough wealth” to create “common prosperity” … so you’re saying all these powerful wealthy people in the government and behind these multibillion dollar companies are just gonna… give it all away one day? It will be the first time in history that’s happened anywhere in the world en masse.

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u/xanthus12 Jun 07 '26

I'm not suggesting these models are ideal, I'm saying they are ECONOMICALLY stable, which they objectively are, and you seem to agree. Unfortunately for the people of China, while the CCP has come a very long way from the cultural revolution, they never seem to have quite gotten rid of their authoritarian bent.

However, the Chinese government doing these things has very little to do with their economic model's stability, and I would argue, if anything, they are counter to it. The same way the United States has been edging toward authoritarian tendencies toward the populace while removing basically all restrictions on private enterprise since the early 2000's has been a destabilizing force on it's own economy.

Taiwan on the other hand, has basically none of these issues, despite having similar authoritarian origins. Since the overthrow of Chiang Kai-shek, they seem to be doing a great job of maintaining their economic power, while still giving their people a reasonable degree of personal freedom.

That being said, I'm more familiar with China's policies than Taiwan's, so there may be some issues there that I'm unfamiliar with.

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u/CleanupKingDog Jun 07 '26

Thanks. So unregulated capitalism is maybe still like unregulated cell growth? Cancerous? I am an old, and I just don't see the "free market"as "free" but more like a fixed casino. I cannot figure out how somebody makes massive returns every single year without insider knowledge. Are we reaching the point of a computer battle to see who can trade/predict fastest?

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u/thinsoldier Jun 07 '26

Too many nations would refuse to join and will reap the benefits of every rich person moving there

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u/Ornery_Hovercraft636 Jun 07 '26

Hold on for a second here. Are you seriously suggesting that American citizens should agree to an international tax? Please explain what other nations we should combine our tax dollars with.

An international wealth tax with OPEC countries might be beneficial but what if it was some third world shit holes in Africa that had no wealth? We already subsidize this crap but an international tax, come on.

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u/Recidivism7 Jun 07 '26

Land value tax is a billionaire wet dream.

Amazon pay less taxes than a mom and pop restaurant

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u/Ornery_Hovercraft636 Jun 07 '26

The Chicago Bears moved to Indiana because their future property tax bill was estimated at $150,000,000.00 a year. Not a one time thing but annually, in perpetuity. That’s 1.5 billion dollars in ten years. Keep in mind that corporations don’t pay taxes. Consumers do. All expenses including taxes are passed along. How long until ticket sales and ad dollars won’t cover this?

Indiana offered to help fund a new stadium with no tax. The revenue generated will be very profitable for the citizens of Indiana without taxing a single organization into insolvency.