Episode 73: Is it morally wrong to be rich? Is Matt a liberal, is Sam conservative? Trump's Tariff Proposal, Movie Pass, Movie Crash

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Mailbag: One listener writes, “You'll probably get several of these, but here are a few facts to clear up about two of the country's newest felons.1.The lies Hunter Biden told on his two gun license applications were that he does not use drugs. He was also convicted of possessing a gun while addicted to or using illegal drugs. 2. Where Trump is concerned, in New York, falsifying business records is only a felony if they were falsified in order to commit another crime or to cover up another crime. Trump's lawyer, Michael Cohen, paid Stormy Daniels to be quiet. Then Donald Trump reimbursed Cohen from his own account and called it a retainer for legal counsel. The jury unanimously found that the payments (34 of them) were not for legal counsel, that Trump intentionally falsified the records and that it was to cover up another crime (or commit another crime?)”

Another listener says, “according to this piece from CNBC: Over the past five years, the population of millionaires in the U.S. has grown 35%, nearly twice as fast as China’s. The U.S. is now home to 37% of the world’s millionaires, up from 35% in 2018.” Therefore, it appears that the US still creates more millionaires than China does. Love the podcast, even though you’re clearly being paid by the CCP to spread their Commie propaganda (HA!)

The Thought Provoker:

Sam is up first this week. Is it morally wrong to be rich?

Next up, Shawn. Is Sam conservative? Is Matt liberal?

Finally, Matt. This week, Donald Trump floated the idea of replacing income taxes with an “all tariff policy”. Simple math would suggest that the government may need to impose a 65% tax on all imported goods and services to raise the needed $2.5 trillion the federal government currently collects in income taxes. The last time we raised tariffs by 20% (in 1930) it led to the Great Depression. Is Trump an economic genius, or is this a bad idea?

The Big Question: The film, Movie Pass, Movie Crash documents the rise and fall of the company Movie Pass. In short, two entrepreneurs started a company with 30,000 subscribers who could see unlimited movies for $40/month. When a deal with AMC fell through, investors got nervous and urged these founders to bring on new leadership and new investors. The new team pushed the original founders out of the company, wasted millions of dollars, and ran the company into the ground. We often discuss the best-case scenario of free markets leading to wealth and innovation. We talk less about how corporate greed can destroy great products and ruin lives. Is the Movie Pass scenario an outlier, or is it the most likely scenario in a free market?