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FDRFTW

(90 posts)
Thu Mar 13, 2025, 02:49 AM Thursday

Killing the Goose That Laid the Golden Egg: Why America's Wealthy Are Playing Themselves

Last edited Thu Mar 13, 2025, 02:45 PM - Edit history (1)

If history has taught us anything, it’s that billionaires who cozy up to authoritarian rulers are about as wise as a turkey voting for Thanksgiving.

Donald Trump and his entourage—let’s call them “oligarch wannabes”—harbor an outright disdain for American democracy, believing a dictatorial state run by a “unitary executive” (read: a king in a bad spray tan) would be far more profitable for the ultra-rich.

But there’s one small problem: that’s not how dictatorships work.

The Dictatorship Myth: When the Rich Get Played

American billionaires seem to think they’ll be running the show under an autocrat, but they might want to have a quick chat with Russia’s oligarchs—or at least the ones who haven’t “accidentally” fallen from balconies.

In Putin’s Russia, the richest don’t own their wealth; they rent it from the regime.

Step out of line, and your assets—along with your ability to breathe—become state property faster than you can say, “defenestration.”

Historically, this isn’t a new trend.

When the Roman Republic collapsed after the Gracchi brothers were killed trying to limit the amount of land the wealthy could own, the empire that followed quickly became a playground for despots. The wealthy thought they’d be safe under imperial rule, but what they got instead was a parade of megalomaniacs like Nero, who famously set fire to Rome (and probably would have called it “fake news” if Twitter existed).

Trump’s Pyramid Scheme for the Rich

Right now, we’re watching a similar illusion play out.

Figures like Elon Musk and other Trump-aligned billionaires have convinced themselves that democracy is an inconvenience to their bottom line.

They see taxation and regulations as a burden, failing to realize that in an authoritarian state, their entire fortune becomes a line item in the dictator’s personal budget.

And here’s the kicker: they know Trump is running a con—at least on his working-class supporters.

These billionaires understand that Trump’s economic promises are as solid as a Trump University diploma.

They know he has no intention of uplifting the average American.

The irony, though, is that these same billionaires are also his ultimate marks.

Once Trump—or any would-be autocrat—controls the levers of power, their wealth is only theirs until he decides it isn’t.

That’s how every dictatorship operates. In Nazi Germany, Hitler strong-armed industrialists into funding his war machine. In Venezuela, Hugo Chávez nationalized businesses at will.

And in modern Russia, billionaires don’t have power—they have permission.

The Big Reveal: Billionaires Aren’t as Smart as They Think

The wealthiest Americans might be clever when it comes to stock manipulation and tax loopholes, but they seem oblivious to one fundamental truth: authoritarian rulers don’t share power.

Trump’s loyalty lasts exactly as long as you’re useful to him.

The moment you’re not? Well, let’s just say the walls at Mar-a-Lago might start looking a little taller.

The super-rich are betting on Trump to dismantle democracy so they can make a quick buck, but they fail to realize that once democracy is gone, so is their safety net.

The American legal system, while annoying to them now, is the only thing standing between their billions and a leader who wakes up one morning and decides they should “donate” their fortunes to his cause.

At the end of the day, they’re not the puppet masters of a dictatorship.

They’re just the next in line for the scam. And as history shows, the house always wins.

But don’t think the working stiffs are going to benefits somehow from an imperial Trump, none of the money will trickle down, either. Put in is worth an estimated 800 billion, and the average Russian makes $600/month, or 600 Trump 2025 eggs.

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FDRFTW

(90 posts)
7. Tony Gilroy wrote that film...
Thu Mar 13, 2025, 02:35 PM
Thursday

He also wrote “Michael Clayton” and “Andor”, that are also very good, btw!

usonian

(16,478 posts)
13. Thanks, I didn't know. Not a film buff. But I like Pacino.
Thu Mar 13, 2025, 03:00 PM
Thursday

In “You Don’t Know Jack” he looks sorta like Jack, but is a ringer for my Dad.


FDRFTW

(90 posts)
14. "Andor" is out on Disney +, and it deserves some attention, he follows through
Thu Mar 13, 2025, 03:04 PM
Thursday

With the same sociopolitical messaging that’s in “Devil’s Advocate “…

Irish_Dem

(65,861 posts)
3. Exactly. This is how it works.
Thu Mar 13, 2025, 06:39 AM
Thursday

This is what Putin has done in Russia. And fascists the world over have done.

The billionaires think they have equal power with Trump right now.
Or perhaps even more power than he does.

They will learn some lessons the hard way. I have been warning about this as well.

BTW You are the first person who agrees with my estimate of Putin's wealth.
I think he has been the richest man in the world for a long time now.

Not only has he stolen most of Russia's wealth, but he appears to be running
a lucrative sex/drug trade as well.

While the Russians outside Moscow do not have indoor plumbing.

I am curious FDRFTW, what do you think Trump will do in terms of Canada?
Do you think he will invade?
His goal right now seems to be to weaken Canada economically.

ananda

(31,333 posts)
5. Europe will be key.
Thu Mar 13, 2025, 06:54 AM
Thursday

If Canada and other free countries ally with Europe,
I think the game changes both for them and for us.

Trump is playing sandbox bully right now, but he and
his bullybud Musk are really too stupid to see and
understand consequences when smarter people ally
against them.

In the meantime, for us Americans, it's very painful
to suffer economic pain and the widespread harm
and death that will occur as this FUBAR fiasco plays
out.

Bohm and the physicists did predict this, and the work
of Jung also helps in understanding the way fascism has
taken hold in our collective psyche.


We can beat this, but with so much destruction and the
effects of climate change unchecked, it won't be much of a
liveable world left in the end.

FDRFTW

(90 posts)
8. If he invades, there will be civil war in the USA. Most Americans will not
Thu Mar 13, 2025, 02:38 PM
Thursday

go along with invading Canada.

He will if he thinks it will help him so who knows.


He would start with some tiny area on the border he can find some legal dispute for, in my view.

Irish_Dem

(65,861 posts)
9. I could argue against your rational points.
Thu Mar 13, 2025, 02:45 PM
Thursday

Because Trump is not rational.

He seems to be in a "go big or go home" mentality right now.

So going for a tiny part of Canada does not seem to be his thing for the time being.

But yes he has started to talk about the borders being wrong between the US and Canada.
But I think he would go for a big piece of the border.

Yes if he sees it as personally beneficial to him, he will do it.

I do not know if there would be civil war or not in the US over a Canada invasion.
The American people, media, Congress, and judges are either enthralled with Trump
or sleep walking through life.

FDRFTW

(90 posts)
11. Sadly, you could be 100% correct.
Thu Mar 13, 2025, 02:53 PM
Thursday

Who knows how far he will
Take this, or if his followers will ever see the truth.

Irish_Dem

(65,861 posts)
6. I think OP means "jugera." The amount of land which could be owned.
Thu Mar 13, 2025, 07:16 AM
Thursday

The Gracchi brothers in Ancient Rome were upset by the decline in land ownership by small farmers; the land was all held in the hands of the wealthy.

They proposed to the Roman Senate a limit on how much land a citizen could own, to about 300 acres.

The wealthy Romans were furious, they saw this as a direct attack on their wealth.
The Gracchi brothers were killed by the wealthy.

Initech

(104,177 posts)
16. In the old days, the wealthy contributed back to society.
Thu Mar 13, 2025, 03:08 PM
Thursday

They helped build things that REALLY made America great - like the Hoover Dam and the Interstate Highway System, they financed our national parks, state schools, and airports. They stopped at rail though.

These days America's wealthy just hoard all the money for themselves in off shore bank accounts. They do nothing, they don't pay taxes, they just let it sit and collect interest. And now they're taking away our basic social safety nets so they can get even richer while having access to all of our personal and private data.

Let's bring the former back and really make America great.

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