Should We Cherish the Ultra-Wealthy? (a.k.a. ‘The Cornfield’)
· 43 min · S2 E18
Episode Should We Cherish the Ultra-Wealthy? (a.k.a. ‘The Cornfield’)
A certain kind of wealthy American has been griping out loud lately — about taxes, about progressive cities, about how unappreciated they are for the jobs they create, the stuff they buy, and the tips they hand out. A narrative is coalescing around them too: that the top 10% of earners now do so much of the spending, the U.S. economy relies on them. But an economy that depends so much on the people at the top isn't the healthy one the country deserves — it’s just wearing a nice suit. Chapters:
00:00:56 Announcements: Q&A episode questions wanted 00:01:18 Retcon: The 86 debate; FDR's full "calamity howling executives" quote 00:05:32 Terms & Conditions: Wealth Effect and Zugzwang 00:09:26 Big Pilcrow: Should we cherish the ultra-wealthy? 00:36:41 Executive Orders: Retire "mummies"; union credits on red carpets 00:39:34 Spiritual Sponsors: Mellow Cello podcast; enormous floral arrangements Further Reading
Moody's claim that the top 10% of earners now drive nearly half of consumer spending in the WSJ: https://www.wsj.com/economy/consumers/us-economy-strength-rich-spending-2c34a571
The Minneapolis Fed on what the underlying data actually shows. https://www.minneapolisfed.org/article/2026/have-us-consumers-gone-k-shaped-a-review-of-the-data
Wealthy part-time New Yorkers reacting to a proposed pied-à-terre tax in the Financial Times. https://www.ft.com/content/3283eaab-e9cf-41e6-a028-5a02fb6f4615
The Wall Street Journal on second-home taxes spreading from New York City to other states, including the San Diego homeowner who'd like to be cherished. https://www.wsj.com/real-estate/taxes-on-second-homes-are-springing-up-across-america-93a64448
Full reading list at https://optimisteconomy.substack.com
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Links in the notes 10
- https://www.wsj.com/economy/consumers/us-economy-strength-rich-spending-2c34a571
- https://www.minneapolisfed.org/article/2026/have-us-consumers-gone-k-shaped-a-review-of-the-data
- https://www.ft.com/content/3283eaab-e9cf-41e6-a028-5a02fb6f4615
- https://www.wsj.com/real-estate/taxes-on-second-homes-are-springing-up-across-america-93a64448
- https://optimisteconomy.com
- https://www.youtube.com/@optimist_economy
- https://www.instagram.com/optimist_economy
- https://www.tiktok.com/@optimist_economy
- https://substack.com/chat/4604257?utm_source=pub-nav-bar
- https://merch.ambientinks.com/collections/optimisteconomy
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