🧵THREAD: Here are 22 questions @elonmusk should ask Trump tonight, and that reporters should have asked at his ridiculous Mar-a-Lago press conference. (To see in order, reply "unroll @threadreaderapp" or just read the @MotherJones piece below.) motherjones.com/politics/2024/… 1. US voters are split in favor of Democrats and Republicans. But you call Dems “treasonous,” “un-American,” “the party of crime.” You reposted a video where a supporter says, “The only good Democrat is a dead Democrat.” Why should people vote for someone who seeks to divide us?

Thread: I put together some stats to go with @EvanMandery's great @motherjones excerpt on today's SFFA v. @Harvard #SCOTUS case. The book, out last week from @thenewpress, is "Poison Ivy: How Elite Colleges Divide Us." As you'll see, it's a lively read! (1/8) (2/8) The numbers in this thread come from Ivy Plus websites, The Harvard Crimson, Raj Chetty et al. (NBER), Inside Higher Ed; Peter Arcidiacono et al, SFFA v. Harvard (Exhibit A), and Wealth-X.

My book, "Jackpot," is out in paperback today! Pls read/RT this 🧵...

Striking it rich is among the most resilient of American fantasies. We dream of the jackpot, the exit, the big payday. We spent $95 billion on lottery tickets in 2021, more than the GDPs of most nations! But rarely do we think that fantasy through to its conclusion, and ponder the social, psychological & societal downsides of great affluence and the fact so few possess it. This is what I set out to accomplish a few years ago.

Rant: @Sen_JoeManchin disdains "vengeful taxation." That stopped me in my tracks. Why not "corrective taxation," given how much wealth our tax code funnels to big investors, business owners, and retirees at the expense of ordinary Americans? (1/5) bit.ly/3ildsO1 Is it not vengeful to enact tax rules that vastly favor one tribe and leave half the population to languish? We reward passive profits over actual work, and cap taxes on purchase of private jets, yachts, & legal/wealth services—that's regressive. (2/5) bit.ly/3maRsGB

Thread: In capitalism, money invested begets more money. Fair enough. But the system becomes perverted when lawmakers create rules that favor the rich at public expense. Today's Exhibit A: The "Retirement Industrial Complex." (1/10) bit.ly/3jyT50A So, we already know federal tax policy favors the wealthy in many ways, like by favoring capital gains over ordinary wages. (2/10) bit.ly/3t4bF43

Thread: Per a new report, the world's billionaires have gained $5.5 TRILLION during the pandemic. The planet's wealthiest families have hit the jackpot as millions suffer and die. It's the surefire sign of a broken system. Check out the progression...(via @motherjones) 1/14

https://twitter.com/IPS_DC/status/1427276676250079232

In March 2020, the public markets plunged, and ultrawealthy Americans—those with $30 million and up—took a big hit. But those folks made it all back, and then some, with lightning speed. 2/14 bit.ly/2VYCyd0

Thread: “You have to understand, raising income taxes on the wealthy doesn’t really make much difference, because most of us avoid income.” This quote from my book, and cited here, is from a billionaire real-estate mogul. (1/9) bit.ly/3xc96xP He'd managed to buy a building in NYC for ~$10 million when he was in his twenties. The value of the building soared. It is now worth hundreds of millions. But this millionaire has no income. (2/9)

Epic thread! My very first book, “Jackpot,” goes on sale everywhere in the English-speaking world today, and I want to tell you a bit about it. ReadJackpot.com @simonschuster @simonbooks 1/25 Those of you who read @motherjones may have seen some of my work on the wealth topic, like how US billionaires have cashed in on the pandemic... bit.ly/3e2BtGu 2/25

Quickie #GameStop thread: The #Robinhood roller-coaster is a vivid reminder of whom our financial system benefits. Hedge funders like to think they provide social value, when really they are just guys (almost always guys) who have figured out how to game the casino... (1/7) "I'm a fucking genius," is how one family office guy characterizes the hedge-funder mindset in my upcoming book (ReadJackpot.com). I'm enjoying the takes of @HuffPost's @zachdcarter, @DougHenwood at @jacobinmag, and @MrBrownEyes2020 (whoever he is) on all of this. (2/7)