Peter Thiel lashes out, seems to indicate we need massive taxes and regulations on wealthy investors
This post was originally published on this site
Oh, Peter. You petty billionaire who created a Hulk Hogan conspiracy lawsuit to change laws for your own ends; donated millions to pro-Trump groups; backed conservative candidates like Josh Hawley; and rails in favor of libertarian causes. What on Earth have you gotten yourself into now? Thiel’s newest claim about what is stopping Crypto-currency is a jaw-dropping one, considering the implications.
Peter Thiel is arguing that there is a plot by billionaires Warren Buffett, Jamie Dimon, and Larry Fink to oppress a market tradable item—Bitcoin—and because of their wealth, these men are able to so successfully manipulate the market that they are blocking the advancement of an entirely new form of currency.
Thiel accused the trio of using investing practices focused on environmental, social and governance goals as a “hate factory” to undermine Bitcoin and other businesses.
This is interesting. Mr. Thiel is openly proclaiming that three market funds and the CEOs behind them are using “hate factory” practices and are destroying the market for a “revolutionary” product. Now, I have my own feelings about Bitcoin. Admittedly, with no nation-state behind it, and no taxable structure in place that truly governs it, and the fact that the times I see it come up with my friends in IT revolves around ransomware requests demanding payment in Bitcoin, I’m not likely the first investor in Bitcoin. I may have some other issues, too: Producing Bitcoin through mining via ASIC or PC hardware is power intensive and not great for the environment.
Listen and subscribe to Daily Kos’ The Brief podcast with Markos Moulitsas and Kerry Eleveld
Thiel’s argument really boils down to market manipulation. If you have people who are so wealthy they can manipulate the market and control the outcome for all investors, the answer would be to limit their ability to control the market, as Thiel alleges. This is interesting, considering Thiel’s multi-billion-dollar 401k fund, which was used to buy into startups and grow to gargantuan size, as ProPublica discovered:
And thanks to the Roth, Thiel’s fortune is far more vast than even experts in tallying the wealth of the rich believed. In 2019, Forbes put Thiel’s total net worth at just $2.3 billion. That was less than half of what his Roth alone was worth.
The solution to this is simple: If all of the power is concentrated in three organizations, as Thiel seems to allege, and the market is shifted against “the people,” then that would be a call for regulation, and for taxes that make it less lucrative to behave in such a manner. While I believe Thiel, at least in the case of Bitcoin, is just crying sour grapes about a volatile market, the way he is making his case leads to only three possible conclusions: regulate, tax, or both.
He doesn’t really want that, though. He just wants to complain and blame others rather than admit that the market controls itself and that the market needs reform that may or may not be conducive to Bitcoin, in the same way that it would impact all investment instruments.
While the reality of his policy would impact everyone, what Peter imagines are taxes hitting his “enemies” but he, himself, not being impacted. Just enough to knock down other investors.
Conservative voters, the overwhelming majority of whom do not own multibillion-dollar stock portfolios, will cheer him on, imagining one day they could be just like him if everything went just perfectly for them. Wake up, suckers.