More than 11% of the world’s more than 2,000 billionaires have run for election or become politicians, according to a study highlighting the growing power and influence of the super-wealthy.

While billionaires have had mixed success at the ballot box in the U.S., billionaires around the world have a “strong track record” of winning elections and “lean to the Right ideologically,” said the study, which is by three professors at Northwestern University.

“Billionaire politicians are a shockingly common phenomenon,” the study said. “The concentration of massive wealth in the hands of a tiny elite has understandably caused many observers to worry that the ‘super-rich have super-sized political influence.’”

      • ohitsbreadley@discuss.tchncs.de
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        1 year ago

        To quote Bubba Gump:

        Anyway, like I was sayin’, [billionaire] is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. There’s uh, [billionaire]-kabobs, [billionaire] creole, [billionaire] gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There’s pineapple [billionaire], lemon [billionaire], coconut [billionaire], pepper [billionaire], [billionaire] soup, [billionaire] stew, [billionaire] salad, [billionaire] and potatoes, [billionaire] burger, [billionaire] sandwich. That- that’s about it.

        • HooPhuckenKarez@kbin.social
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          1 year ago

          First up. I know it’s way too late to respond this comment. I understand the direction taken, but it misses the context of the conversation. I don’t know why, but it’s still getting to me.

          Two points. I was talking about the potential for the preservation of billionaire flesh for future consumption, and Two thousand of them would require no preservation efforts whatsoever.

          In conclusion,… Only billionaires could afford a reasonable portion of billionaire…?

          • ohitsbreadley@discuss.tchncs.de
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            1 year ago

            Oh - that’s quite a deliciously nuanced take, a subtext that I indeed did not catch.

            I’m at times a simpleton; I chuckled at “billionaire jerky” and “pickled billionaire,” as the phrases reminded me of the Bubba Gump quote.

            I hear your point now - compared to the hundreds of millions of cattle, pigs, and chicken processed annually, 2000 billionaires would be small potatoes. The end product would be so scarce, supply/demand would necessarily dictate an ironically immense price, only affordable to those that served as the raw material.