Been idly compiling a “billionaire political ideologies” dossier (Koch, Soros, Mercer, Thiel...)
Starting to think billionaire-vs-billionaire is not the best way for a society to do its political thinking
How do you advance political thought without billionaire $ fueling it?
Conversation
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The axis here is populism vs elitism. Do you really want more populism?
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Ideologically populism is actually just wealth-elitism in disguise since it has no indie intellectual capacity (vertical horseshoe theory)
Cultural elitism is middle-class in funding (tax-funded higher education) and roots.
Ie it’s middle class ideology vs rich ideology
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Huh? See a lot of elites hanging out on Alex Jones?
Trump rode the Koch brothers out of the controlling class of the GOP. Ironically, the Kochs' long-running institution bankrolling (Cato, American Heritage, etc) saved them. Few Trumpy cabinet members & no junior / senior staff
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to your original question, making progress (in any direction) without billionaire $ = figuring out how to bankroll institutions without billionaire $
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That’s what public funded universities have been for 70 years
Now getting dismantled
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meh. taxpayer funded institutions like universities are too sclerotic to drive change.
i'm thinking publications like mother jones. prob must be a direct to consumer product, otherwise how to get middle class mindshare.
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They weren’t always. I just meant them as existence proof that ideological thought development need not be wealthy-funded.
Other examples: early monastic orders of most religions, before institutionalizations and patronage kick in.
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