Buffett the socialist

[i]

A lot of his views on tax are clearly socialist.

Investing in the railways is entirely compatible with left-wing ideology. It's better for society, for the environment and for the economy. It's also an act of patriotism by Buffett. I do wish British entrepreneurs were as canny and political astute as him.

Yes Harry, but he could pay 90% tax and still have more than the rest of us put together. Easy to be socialist when you are minted.

[b]

Yes Harry, but he could pay 90% tax and still have more than the rest of us put together.

And that, in a nutshell, captures the entire Leftist ideology. If the super-wealthy aren't benefitting from their own amassed fortunes, why not put the money to use helping those less fortunate?

Agree, he could start by giving away £20bn.

Ahhh but hold on, he's too busy trying to make some more, he quite clearly get by on the £20bn he already has.

he has given away 32 billion.

he will leave next to nothing to his family. It will all go to charities primarily the Bill gates foundation.

Also Mr Buffet believes in a progressive tax system as well as an inheritance tax system.

Therefore that makes him a progressive and not a conservative.

As the saying goes '..from each according to their ability... to each according to their need...'

Buffet has signed up to this left, right and centre.'

Spoken like Blair actually and he is not a socialist, but we could say that the US economy has taken a buffetting.

Wrong again baz I'm afraid, you only have to say you're a socialist to become one, nothing else counts

Dr J
But you can't base a tax system on an analysis involving the second wealthiest man on the planet.
Socialists want to have a dig at anyone on even a modest £100k pa or so.

I am blue to the core, but if I had billions I would happily give the bulk of it away.

To have it taken away by the State and then having to watch it wasted on ideology ( copyright G.Brown) would be entirely different.

Socialists believe nanny knows best. I know that I know best.

I am blue to the core, but if I had billions I would happily give the bulk of it away.

Yes, that's exactly the sort of self-reassuring bullsh*t that most right-wingers comfort themselves with, overboard.

"If only I was a bit richer, I'd be more philanthropic..."

Philanthropy and tax are entirely different issues, if I paid less tax to wasteful schemes I'd have more money to give to good causes.

I listened to Bill Clinton at a dinner the other night.
There are now over a million foundations in the US half of which have started in the last 12 years. His foundation has raised $57 billion dollars so far (Rwanda and Haiti are special regions for him but doing a lot more) He speech was about governments not being able to do it all and he exhorted well heeled people like his audience to fill the gap saying that the giver gets more out of the process than the reciepient. Pretty inspiration stuff even for an old cynic like me.
The left does not like charity and prefers coercion by taxation. This leads to squandered resources IMO-I'm with Bill.

Actually good Doctor, not that it's any of your business , I do give a good deal of money to charity and local sports, clubs etc.
Each to his own.
I presume you are the sort that swerves the British Legion pensioners selling poppys?
And yes, if I had even more, I would probably give even more. That's because I am a Tory in the true sense---- entirely self reliant but supportive of those in need. But not of those who are not actually in need----which is where your lot have got it so horribly wrong. You have created a nation who expect to hold their hands out and have it filled from the Welfare State. And you all hate those who have made money through their own endeavours.

That's because I am a Tory in the true sense---- entirely self reliant but supportive of those in need.

Translation:

That's because I am a Tory in the true sense---- entirely self-serving and stubbornly oblivious to the structural inequities in society from which I benefit.

Dr J 04 Nov 14:36

And that, in a nutshell, captures the entire Leftist ideology. If the super-wealthy aren't benefitting from their own amassed fortunes, why not put the money to use helping those less fortunate?

Nutshell is right. By that reckoning we should have forced organ donation by the chavs who aren't putting their lives to good use, but of course there's an idea of freedom of choice that gets in the way a bit.

at least Dr J realises that true socialists are so devoid of talent that he has to adopt an arch-capitalist as one of his idols :D

I don't really care how other people label Buffett - his views on taxation, equality of opportunity and wealth redistribution are damn near identical to mine.

To resent him because he's rich would be churlish.

understood Dr J - as long as he ticks a couple of lefty boxes, you can ignore his entire life, career and outlook being based on and supporting free-market capitalism (including investing and supporting some of the most right-wing ultra-free-market companies in existence)

the dumb lefty mindset really is fascinating :D

My own preferred model of Leftism would be market-based (and government regulated), sub, so why I should have issues with Buffett's wealth I'm not sure.

Politics of Envy?

Sorry, not me.

:(

supporting, propping up and profiting from Goldman Sachs though Dr J?

just one example... how does this fit into that nice little lefty agenda?

You have got your facts wrong here, overboard, you say you have created, when you ACTUALLY mean that Thatcher created a slice
of the British population which became dependent on welfare as you put it, but she said it was a price worth paying, I do wish you people would pay attention and apportion blame in the PROPER place, there are people on the dole who were put there by Thatcher, SHE
STOLE THEIR JOBS AND ALL THEIR HOPES WITH THOSE JOBS, what is more as a proud christian, how many times must she have quoted the phrase , that the devil makes work for idle hands and blythely overlooking the fact that SHE was that instrument of EVIL.
She still believes that WE are as thick as SHE is.

Too many people on here have strange ideas about socialism, as if modern socialists are against people making money or believe all the means of production should be state controlled. Ideologies don't stand still and it isn't the 1970's, fools!

Nice to see noddys repeat the classic fallacy about rich people giving their money away willingly, as if the tiny percentage of philanthropists is somehow representative of the general population...and they call lefties naive!

again alfie, this isn't just free-market capitalism buffett is involved in

he is involved in, supporting and profiting from some of the most ultra-right liberal-free-market companies around

but hey, its no wonder tw!ts like you were so easily duped into supporting New Labour :D

Again subversion, I never voted or supported NL.

I don't see a problem with Buffett working within the system while active campaigning for a fairer, more equal society.

and he wouldnt pay for his daughters kitchen extension...hehe.

What is an ultra- right- liberal- free -market company?

That's great, bazzar. Maggie stole the jobs. Not the employees who forced management to pay them more than their work was worth and put them out of the market. It was Maggie wot dun it. Fantastic.

and the best bit is the people still on the dole who were put there by Maggie. After we passed in the 90s through a period of the lowest unemployement in a generation as a result of the economy she pioneered, there are still some no-hopers in Benwell living on benefits which are more than twice the wage of a large proportion of the world's poor. Fantastic.

Nasty maggie putting millions of hard working people on the dole for otis years

yet some on here thing she is not the Devils work
nasty maggie isa true blue nasty torty

you can get on with living life and providing for your family.
Or curl up blaming Maggie for all your ills until your last breath.
Choice is yours mate.

Oh dear BAZAAR. You fool you. UK plc moved on and we no longer had any jobs for those with nothing to offer. Hardly Maggie's fault if someone opted not to partake of our education system.
Our local Tescos is still looking for more people to work there, stacking shelfs and the like. I presume it is the same in the old mining areas . Don't you love miners? They spent all their time saying how much they hated being miners and striking at the drop of a hat and then they whined like girls when we stopped them being miners. I reckon we did them a favour. Horrible dangerous work.

I'm off to Haydock now for a spot of capitalist gambling. I shall be trying to beat the markets and show a profit.

Hope no-one tells subby wubby...

Good luck Dr J.
Be sure to put a couple of quid in the poppy collector's tin.

Buffett shows what can be done for personal enrichment and for the good of society. Pity we dont have many business leaders like Buffett

For the benefit of Mr Kite 05 Nov 02:23
What is an ultra- right- liberal- free -market company?

Goldman Sachs, for example

basically, the extreme end of 'anything goes' capitalism