Thread by @profplum99

1/n It's amazing to see the "capitalists" wake up to the potential for "taxes on people other than us"

"Shrink the government" to pay for lowering taxes on capital while raising taxes on consumption IS a solution to high debt. It's also a solution for a major contraction in global income.

2/n Marc Andreessen is past his, "I'm really rich and therefore read something other than computer manuals" exploration of philosophy and into his "Ooh... history" phase

https://x.com/pmarca/status/1873880292043481203

3/n Elon suddenly highlighting that taxes are not a source of "return on citizenship" but rather a legal obligation that stems FROM citizenship (or for access to a state's citizens, eg tariffs)

https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1873985688745762862

4/n Tax increases and fiscal contraction, especially in benefits for the poor with a very high propensity to spend, are coming. All of this fits with Trump warning of 1929 for totally unrelated reasons.

5/n While I agree it is necessary to rein in benefit spending and refocus on high productivity potential (ie ON KIDS & INFRASTRUCTURE, NOT BOOMERS), I do not agree that lowering corporate and capital gains taxes (especially while preserving breaks like Carried Interest for PE and VC) is the right path

6/n While I do NOT think Trump is intentionally fascist in the modern context, the term "fascism" originates from the Latin word fasces, a bundle of rods bound together, symbolizing strength through unity. It was adopted by Benito Mussolini’s regime in Italy (1922–1943) as a symbol of the fascist state. (ChatGPT)

7/n Far more compelling is the "ends justify the means" belief of nearly all elites (Democrat & Republican) that was most ineloquently expressed by George Bush in 2008: "I had to abandon free market principles in order to save the free market system."

8/n We do not currently have a "free market" (nor do they ever exist -- all markets are created in the context of the state rules), we have a creeping "Economic Corporatism":

Economic Corporatism
*A state-controlled economy that aligns businesses, labor, and government in a hierarchical structure.
*Suppression of class conflict through government control rather than free-market capitalism or socialism.

9/n And this system has been reinforced by our mandated (liability protected) retirement investments in the equity of "approved" (by a committee and then politicians) indices. Stay quiet, or the market might fall and your retirement evaporate.

Many investment banks have been publishing "Republican Policy" vs "Democratic Policy." These are simply indices that assume "Whatever the other party wants, I'm against" and the correlations of Long vs Long has fallen while Long vs Short has remained near 100%

10/10 This is a recipe for further division not between Dems and Reps, but between "haves" and "have nots" -- with the operative "have" being political connections bought by money and influence. Wonder why corporate leaders are falling in line (or being replaced)?

There are precedents, unfortunately ineteconomics.org/research/resea…