man, this was DEPRESSING. i began this book pessimistic about corruption and right-wing billionaires, and finished this book 10x more so.
we already know that the wealthy buy elections and lobby for policies that enrich themselves, but Mayer reveals the terrifying extent to which this happens. the villains are not only selfish and ruthless, but also strategic and devastatingly effective.
common threads, aka what the Kochs/etc realized way before most of us:
philanthropy is a shell game that simultaneously saves billionaires from paying taxes, funds conservative propaganda, and hides the source of the money
politics is way bigger than elections: money swings churches, schools, academia, business, nonprofits, etc. this forms a decentralized alliance of super different people toward the same pro-market goals
rhetorical framing matters: calls to "academic neutrality" and "equality of opportunity" can disguise conservatism to the public
violating political taboos (misleading info, ad hominem attacks, etc.) doesn't matter, and usually works
a minor note is that Mayer spends a lot of the first half on mini-biographies of the Kochs and other influential individuals. i didn't find a lot of the childhood details (e.g. nannies, high schools) relevant so the book dragged a bit. but the second half pulls it all together to describe a well-oiled system of influence.
(apr 01, 2020)
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