3 ms·

Just raise taxes on rich people, use the funds to buy stocks in a social wealth fund and distribute the dividends and some proportion of growth to everyone equa

Just raise taxes on rich people, use the funds to buy stocks in a social wealth fund and distribute the dividends and some proportion of growth to everyone equally every year. Plenty of countries do this (even Alaska) it's easy, it's understandable, and it doesn't store away the money.

Thetawaves 6y ago
It would be worth it to look at the State of Alaska financial situation. The world of oil isn't going to last forever, and those dividends will be among the first to perish.
- frgtpsswrdlame 6y ago
  Sure: >Despite a $2.7 billion transfer to the state treasury, the Alaska Permanent Fund earned enough from its investments to grow by $1.4 billion, or 2%, during the just-ended state fiscal year. As of June 30, the fund stood at $66.3 billion, up from $64.9 billion on the same date in 2018. https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/2019/09/08/permanent-fund-grows-in-first-year-of-new-system-despite-spending-billions-on-state-services-and-dividend https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/2019/09/08/permanent-fund-gr... If you'd like to know more look here: https://apfc.org/our-performance/ https://apfc.org/our-performance/ You know how rich people only have to exercise very mild discretion with their spending because of how much money their money makes? A social wealth fund is sort of like that but for everyone. I think those dividends will be lasting quite a long time.
  - Thetawaves 6y ago
    Except they've already been reduced to less than 1/3 of the statutory earnings amount, and the state is rapidly depleting all other savings. The writing is on the wall, all PFD earnings will go to run state government in the very near future.
mixmastamyk 6y ago
> a social wealth fund What is that?
- toomuchtodo 6y ago
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sovereign_wealth_fund https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sovereign_wealth_fund
s3r3nity 6y ago
Given that the age of politicians has been increasing over the past few decades, and the median wealth of a Congressperson / Senator has also been increasing, I'm less and less optimistic as I get older that this would ever happen. I tend to believe that rich politicians aren't going to vote to raise taxes on themselves - they're going to instead gut the middle class (hence the trends you see today.)

Thetawaves 6y ago

It would be worth it to look at the State of Alaska financial situation. The world of oil isn't going to last forever, and those dividends will be among the first to perish.

frgtpsswrdlame 6y ago
Sure: >Despite a $2.7 billion transfer to the state treasury, the Alaska Permanent Fund earned enough from its investments to grow by $1.4 billion, or 2%, during the just-ended state fiscal year. As of June 30, the fund stood at $66.3 billion, up from $64.9 billion on the same date in 2018. https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/2019/09/08/permanent-fund-grows-in-first-year-of-new-system-despite-spending-billions-on-state-services-and-dividend https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/2019/09/08/permanent-fund-gr... If you'd like to know more look here: https://apfc.org/our-performance/ https://apfc.org/our-performance/ You know how rich people only have to exercise very mild discretion with their spending because of how much money their money makes? A social wealth fund is sort of like that but for everyone. I think those dividends will be lasting quite a long time.
- Thetawaves 6y ago
  Except they've already been reduced to less than 1/3 of the statutory earnings amount, and the state is rapidly depleting all other savings. The writing is on the wall, all PFD earnings will go to run state government in the very near future.

mixmastamyk 6y ago

> a social wealth fund What is that?

toomuchtodo 6y ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sovereign_wealth_fund https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sovereign_wealth_fund

s3r3nity 6y ago

Given that the age of politicians has been increasing over the past few decades, and the median wealth of a Congressperson / Senator has also been increasing, I'm less and less optimistic as I get older that this would ever happen. I tend to believe that rich politicians aren't going to vote to raise taxes on themselves - they're going to instead gut the middle class (hence the trends you see today.)