When you hear the word “oligarch”, you might imagine someone like Farkhad Akhmedov, one of the 50 wealthiest Russians. In his book Mastering the Universe, economics professor Rob Larson writes that Akhmedov’s personal superyacht features a pair of helipads, a …
Elon Musk is a danger to Trumpism
Last month, in one of his final acts as outgoing director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Rohit Chopra proposed to restrict financial institutions from dropping customers based on their political or religious views. If adopted, the rule would …
The return of American class politics
In his farewell address, mere days before leaving the White House, Joe Biden made a dramatic intervention. Warning about how an oligarchy of “extreme wealth, power and influence” risked the basic rights of every citizen, he even suggested it could …
How Joe Biden wasted his presidency
In his farewell address to the nation on Wednesday, President Biden warned that “an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power, and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy”. He went on to explicitly echo his predecessor …
Is Ukraine becoming a kleptocracy?
Tanks. Howitzers. Missiles. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the West has delivered a mountain of aid to the beleaguered Kyiv government. The Pentagon alone is estimated to have sent over £50 billion in military support, even as tiny Luxembourg managed …
How Turbo-Wokism broke America
American history can best be understood not as a single continuum but as a series of Republics, each arising from the ashes of its predecessor. The First Republic, born of the American Revolution, ended with Andrew Jackson’s Trumpian assault on …
How Britain became Putin’s playground
On Monday, Liz Truss warned Russia’s oligarchs that there will be “nowhere to hide” their dirty money in London. Which is pretty weird when you think about it, since the statement includes the implicit admission that the money is already …
