3302 - "Limitarianism": The Case Against Extreme Wealth w/ Ingrid Robeyns

The Majority Report with Sam Seder

Happy Monday! Sam and Emma speak with Ingrid Robeyns, humanities professor at the Utrech University in The Netherlands, to discuss her recent book Limitarianism: The Case Against Extreme Wealth. First, Sam and Emma run through updates on the passage of a UNSC ceasefire resolution, Congress averting a government shutdown, the terror attack in Moscow, Mike Johnson’s speakership, Congress’ killing of an important internet subsidy, Donald Trump’s legal woes, Mifepristone, New Jersey’s senate race, and Ronna McDaniel’s NBC gig, before parsing through the details of the first UNSC ceasefire resolution not vetoed by the US. Professor Ingrid Robeyns then joins, diving right into the concept of “limitarianism” as a political belief that emphasizes the central importance of limiting wealth inequality and concentration in a functioning society, with the extreme stratification seen in the West (and particularly in the US) pushing severe social and political ills with little to no moral grounding. Expanding on the former, Professor Robeyns dives into the problems that arise in the relationship between money and politics under extreme inequality, with various factors, from campaign finance to political lobbying, giving a very wealthy few immense political power, before she, Sam, and Emma explore how extreme wealth concentration can give these same individuals the freedom to dictate social programs and overtake the public sphere to the detriment of everyone else, and the environment. After briefly touching on the particular role capitalism’s ills play within these issues, Ingrid walks Sam and Emma through the moral philosophical grounding of “limitarianism” as a refutation of modern society’s supposed meritocracy, bringing into question the role of the individual in coming out the victor of countless natural and social lotteries. Next, Professor Robeyns tackles the role of wealth inequality in creating an inequality division between capital and labor, allowing the former to dictate the rules of the latter, and parses through what solutions are needed – particularly in terms of welfare, social and housing programs, and unionization – to rebalance that dichotomy, before wrapping up the interview looking at the importance of taking fiscal action against tax havens and unregulated free trade, and why changing the public perception on wealth is so necessary in this battle.

And in the Fun Half: Sam and Emma discuss Bibi’s response to the US not vetoing the UNSC ceasefire resolution, the state of Israel’s ethnic cleansing of Gaza, AOC’s direct callout of Israel’s genocide, and Chuck Todd’s direct callout of his NBC employers over their hiring of Ronna McDaniel. Fox News gears up against MTG and Matt Gaetz as another speakership coup attempt takes root against Mike Johnson, and Mike Lindell comes forward with evidence of – get this – voter fraud in 2020, plus, your IMs!

Check out Ingrid's book here: https://astrapublishinghouse.com/product/limitarianism-9781662601842/

Become a member at JoinTheMajorityReport.com: https://fans.fm/majority/join

Check out Seder's Seeds here!: https://www.sedersseeds.com/ ; use coupon code Majority and get 15% off; ALSO, if you have pictures of your Seder's Seeds, send them here!: [e-mail]

Check out this GoFundMe in support of Mohammad Aldaghma's niece in Gaza, who has Down Syndrome: http://tinyurl.com/7zb4hujt

Check out the "Repair Gaza" campaign courtesy of the Glia Project here: https://www.launchgood.com/campaign/rebuild_gaza_help_repair_and_rebuild_the_lives_and_work_of_our_glia_team#!/

Get emails on the IRS pilot program for tax filing here!: https://service.govdelivery.com/accounts/USIRS/subscriber/new

Check out StrikeAid here!; https://strikeaid.com/

Gift a Majority Report subscription here: https://fans.fm/majority/gift

Subscribe to the ESVN YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/esvnshow

Subscribe to the AMQuickie newsletter here: https://am-quickie.ghost.io/

Join the Majority Report Discord! http://majoritydiscord.com/

Get all your MR merch at our store: https://shop.majorityreportradio.com/

Get the free Majority Report App!: http://majority.fm/app

Check out today’s sponsors:

Cozy Earth: IF you’ve never tried Cozy Earth, I've got awesome news! You can SAVE up to 35% off Cozy Earth right now! But hurry... this offer won't last. Go to https://CozyEarth.com and enter my promo code MAJORITY REPORT at checkout for up to 35% off on your first order! That's https://CozyEarth.com promo code MAJORITY REPORT. Blueland Cleaning Products: Blueland has a special offer for listeners. Right now, get 15% off your first order by going to https://Blueland.com/majority. You won’t want to miss this! https://Blueland.com/majority. That’s https://Blueland.com/majority to get 15% off.

Sunset Lake CBD:

Follow the Majority Report crew on Twitter:

@SamSeder

@EmmaVigeland

@MattLech

@BradKAlsop

Check out Matt’s show, Left Reckoning, on Youtube, and subscribe on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/leftreckoning

Check out Matt Binder’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/mattbinder

Subscribe to Brandon’s show The Discourse on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/ExpandTheDiscourse

Check out Ava Raiza's music here! https://avaraiza.bandcamp.com/

The Majority Report with Sam Seder - https://majorityreportradio.com/