America has experienced “gush-up” rather than “trickle-down.” The shame is on the adherents of unregulated free-market capitalism, who have assaulted us with the message of “winner-take-all” wealth over the common good. George Will perpetuates the neoliberal myth by quoting one of his idols, John Tamny: “Income inequality in a capitalist system is truly beautiful…it provides the incentive for creative people to gamble on new ideas..”
But in the realm of reality, there are many reasons for embarrassment:
1. Just Because They’re Rich, Billionaires are Trusted to Design Our Education and Health Systems
Bill Gates leads the way here. He got rich in questionable ways from technology, and as a result much of America feels he’s qualified to be a great humanitarian. Because of his corporate-endowed foundation, says Arundhati Roy, Bill Gates can “find himself designing education, health, and agriculture policies, not just for the U.S. government but for governments all over the world.”