The Koch brothers Charles and David are among the wealthiest people in the country--clearly part of the super-privileged small group of uberrich who have benefited from the reaganomics of privatization, deregulation, militarization, and tax cuts (especially for the top) as they've made money from use and abuse of public resources through ranching, mining and other resource extraction and processing. They've used that money well to ensure their continued privilege. The current debate over the need for sacrifice of earned benefits (phrased as "entitlement reform" by the right) versus the need for a more fair share of the cost of governmental programs being borne by the rich (phrased as "class warfare" by the right) cannot be understood without looking at the influence of these billionaires on tax policy and other policy through propaganda and "think tank" efforts.
Mother Jones has been following the Koch brothers saga for some time. And now animator Zina Saunders pulls together an animated cartoon about the Koch brothers' corporatist agenda and its impact on the U.S. The August 2, 2011 cartoon video is "Koch Brother Pirates Hijack the Country" (sorry--I couldn't embed directly; just click on the link and then on the forward arrow at the bottom to run the animated cartoon).
For some background on the Koch brothers, you might want to read Kate Sheppard's piece: The Koch Brothers' Vast Right-Wing Media Conspiracy, Mother Jones (Feb. 4, 2011) (noting that "they have much at stake when it comes to efforts to cut climate-changing emissions" and "have spent $31.3 million since 2005 on organizations that deny or downplay climate change"). Glenn Beck, an attendee at the Koch brothers' semiannual event for conservative propagandists and politicians, thanked Koch on air for "information" he'd used in one of his monologues on the economy. Sheppard notes that the brothers' media presence is enormous, and little recognized by those who may hear pundits propagating their views.
The Kochs' influence over the conservative media may be obvious at such powwows. But to the general public, it's not always apparent that the pundits they read about in blogs and see on TV have a direct relationship to the company. So says Derek Cressman, regional director of state operations with Common Cause, the group that organized the protests outside the Koch Bros gates. "They don't see that connection between the pundit and the fact that it's funded by an oil company," says Cressman. "The global warming deniers aren't being candid that their funding is coming from people with an enormous financial stake in how we deal with climate change."
If you want to know more about those who go to the Koch brothers' semi-annual retreats--and how earnestly they want to keep their involvement in funding the Koch brothers' causes secret--go to Gavin Aronsen, The Koch Brothers' Million-Dollar Donor Club, Mother Jones (Sept. 6, 2011). There's an "inside account of the Koch brothers' Vail seminar, and ...the exclusive audio." The article lists various donors who attended the Koch event, with information about the source of their wealth and their political contributions.
There's often a "balance" attempt to note that there are billionaires on both the right (Koch brothers frequent target) and the left (George Soros is usually used) and that each funds the agenda that interests them. But there's a considerable difference in their backgrounds and in their charitable interests: the Koch brothers, heirs of the founder of the John Birch Society, tend to fund activities that support the continuing redistribution upwards to the uberrich, while George Soros, self-made billionaire, tends to fund projects that increase democratic participation and assist the least privileged. Here's a timeline of these billionaires' lives: George Soros: You're No Koch Brother-Infographic , the other 98% (Feb. 16, 2011).
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