Why Billionaire Philanthropy Won’t Solve Anything – Second Thought

You ever notice how oligarchs like Warren Buffet and Bill Gates are cast as these uber-wealthy saviors who are singlehandedly raising the world out of poverty? That doesn’t happen by accident. In this week’s episode, we’re taking a look at the insidious philanthropy scheme billionaires use to make sure their reputation remains squeaky clean. Hope

Pandemic boosts super-rich share of global wealth

The share of household wealth owned by billionaires has risen by a record amount during the pandemic, with millionaires also coming out of COVID-19 ahead, a study found on Tuesday. The World Inequality Report produced by a network of social scientists estimated that billionaires this year collectively own 3.5% of global household wealth, up from

Super-rich increase their share of world’s income

The share of wealth owned by the world’s richest people soared during the Covid pandemic, a major study on inequality has found. The World Inequality Report said that 2020 saw the steepest increase in billionaires’ wealth on record. Meanwhile, 100 million people sank into extreme poverty, the report from the Paris-based World Inequality Lab said. The

Christian group fights Idaho Covid mandates despite pocketing bailouts

Christ Church leaders and aligned companies received millions of dollars in coronavirus bailouts amid campaign against mandates The controversial rightwing Christ Church – and its pastor, Douglas Wilson – have led an uncompromising campaign of opposition to coronavirus public health measures in Idaho, revealing the church’s powerful influence in its home city of Moscow and beyond.

Chilean president Piñera impeached over Pandora papers revelations

Lower house approval vote sets up trial in Chile’s senate Papers revealed offshore dealings of conservative president Chile’s President Sebastián Piñera has been impeached by the lower house of congress, setting up a trial in the nation’s senate over allegations he favored the sale of a family property while in office. The vote to impeach passed with

Chile’s billionaire president under scrutiny over Pandora leak

Papers gave details about a 2010 stake sale by Sebastian Pinera’s family in a mining project that activists objected to. Chile’s public prosecutor has said it will investigate the sale of a mining project involving the family of President Sebastian Pinera after new details emerged about the transaction in the Pandora Papers leak. Marta Herrera,

Czech prime minister’s party narrowly loses re-election days after Pandora Papers revelations in surprise outcome

Scandal-clouded billionaire Andrej Babis now faces probes over secret luxury property deals exposed in ICIJ’s global investigation based on the biggest ever offshore data leak. In a shock result, billionaire Andrej Babis’ party has narrowly lost the Czech Republic’s parliamentary election days after the populist leader had to contend with revelations from the Pandora Papers,

As Americans Demand Tax Reforms, Analysis Finds Top 1% Hold More Wealth Than Whole Middle Class

By comparison, in 1990 the top 1% held just 17% of the nation’s wealth—less than half of the middle class’ 36%. As the bombshell Pandora Papers continue to expose dubious details about how the world’s superrich hide their fortunes and avoid paying their fair share of taxes, Bloomberg on Friday published an analysis of U.S. Federal Reserve data revealing that Americans in

Texas has raised $54 million in private donations for its border wall plan. Almost all of it came from this one billionaire.

Timothy Mellon is the Wyoming-based grandson of banking tycoon Andrew Mellon. He is responsible for nearly 98% of the donations to Texas’ border wall fund. An out-of-state billionaire who has previously bankrolled attempts to defend controversial immigration laws is responsible for nearly all the donations to Gov. Greg Abbott’s $54 million border wall fund. A member of one

Trump hid over $70 million in losses on his DC hotel, House committee report alleges

Former President Donald Trump’s luxury hotel in Washington, D.C., lost more than $70 million from 2016 to 2020, according to newly released filings that his accountants submitted to the hotel’s landlord, the General Services Administration. While the hotel was losing money, Trump’s annual financial disclosures reported only its revenue, which amounted to $156 million over