In this 65th episode of Third Paradigm, we examine global wealth starting with the 50 richest people, who are one in 100 million, and the Bilderbergers, quoting from the radio show Unwelcome Guests. Then we go to the richest one in 100,000 people with an excerpt called Adjusted Income by Daniel Handler, aka Lemony Snicket. We discuss Michael Parenti’s distinction between a structuralist and a functionalist, and give a functionalist example with a chilling pair of videos called The Banker.
Then we engage in visual economics by plotting net assets by population: if one inch = $100,000, it would require 11 miles of paper to plot the Walton’s assets. The net assets of the middle class would fall into one square inch, with only 10% of the population. To one side, the other 90% of the population would stretch, with assets that barely register on the scale. On the other side, the privileged few would propel off the chart and into outer space.
- Part Two, X from Ranier Maria Rilke’s Sonnets to Orpheus
- A poem by Anna Akhmatova
- A Native American story
- Moonflower by Keiko Matsui from Deep Blue
- Stumbling through the Dark by The Jayhawks from Rainy Day Music
- The Banker by 33rd Degree Films
- The Banker from The Robin Hood Tax
To listen to the show or view the multimedia transcript, click here.