In kasta oo dadka Maraykanku ay hadda la kulmaan waqtiyo adag, iyada oo shaqo la'aantu ay kor u kacday heerarka buufiska weyn oo aad u weyn tirada dadka buka ama dhimanaya laga soo bilaabo cudurka faafa ee coronavirus, taajiriinta aadka u sarreeya ayaa ah ka reeban caan ah.
Dhaqaale ahaan, they are doing remarkably well. According to the Institute for Policy Studies, between March 18 and April 28, as nearly 30 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits, the wealth of America’s 630 billionaires grew by nearly 14 percent. During April 2020 alone, their wealth increased by over $406 billion, bringing it to $3.4 trillion. According to estimates by Forbes, 400 ee ugu taajirsan Maraykanka ayaa hadda haysta hanti badan oo ay haystaan ku dhawaad saddex-meelood laba meelood qoysaska Maraykanka marka la isku daro.
Qaar ka mid ah kuwa ugu taajirsan have fared particularly well. Jeff Bezos (the wealthiest man in the world) saw his wealth soar between January 1 and early May 2020 to $142 billion―an increase of $27.5 billion. During that same period, Elon Musk’s wealth grew by $11.4 billion to $39 billion and the wealth of Steve Ballmer (ranking sixth in wealth) increased by $8 billion to $66.1 billion. The gains of Mark Zuckerberg (ranking third) were more modest, but his wealth did rise to $79.3 billion.
Although some billionaires lost money, this was not likely to put them out on the streets. The wealth of Bill Gates (ranking second) dropped from about $113 billion to $106 billion, while the wealth of Larry Ellison (ranking ninth) slipped from $58.8 billion to $58.7 billion.
During this time of economic crisis, two features of the U.S. government’s economic bailout legislation facilitated the burgeoning of billionaire fortunes: first, the provision of kaalmo toos ah kuwa hodanka ah iyo shirkadahooda, iyo, labaad, hadiyadda canshuur dhimis weyn to rich Americans and their businesses. Consequently, although the U.S. economy continues to deteriorate, stock prices, helped along by this infusion of cash, are once again soaring.
In terms of health, American billionaires are also doing quite nicely, with no indication that any of them have been stricken with the coronavirus. When news of the disease hit, billionaires immediately began kireynta maraakiibta waaweyn at fantastic prices to ride out the pandemic. As one yacht broker explained, a yacht “in a nice climate isn’t a bad place to self-isolate.” Such yachts can carry supplies that will last for months, and “clients are arranging for their children to be schooled on board, with cooking lessons from the yacht’s chef and time with the crew in the engine room learning about technology.” Kuwa kale ee ugu qanisan Maraykanka waxay gabaad ka dhigteen dhulkooda qalcadaha la mid ah ama waxay ku duuleen diyaaradahooda gaarka ah oo aaday meelo la moodo oo cidla ah.
Of course, the ability of the rich to stave off a serious or fatal illness is enhanced by their easy access to the best of medical care. On Jasiiradda Fisher―a members-only location off the coast of Florida where the average income of residents is $2.2 million per year and the beaches are made from imported Bahamian sand―the residents, unlike other Floridians, had no problem purchasing thousands of rapid Covid-19 blood tests. To secure immediate and near-unlimited access to healthcare, including such tests, billionaires often employ “dhakhaatiirta qaabilsan"- lacag sanadle ah oo aad u badan.
Dabiici ahaan, iyada oo ay ugu wacan tahay maalkooda sare u kacaya iyo caafimaadkooda ammaankoodu sugan yahay, bilyaneerada Maraykanku waxa ay awoodaan in ay sii wataan nooca qaab nololeedka ay caadeysteen.
Housing is not a major problem. Although journalists have trouble keeping track of the bewildering array of mansions purchased by America’s billionaires, Jeff Bezos reportedly owns 14 guri, oo ay ku jiraan $165 milyan oo doollar oo dhowaan la iibsaday oo Beverly Hills ah. Mid kale oo ka mid ah hoygiisa quruxda badan, oo ku taal qayb gaar ah oo Washington, DC ah, waxay ka kooban tahay 11 qol jiif iyo 25 musqulood. Inkastoo Mark Zuckerberg sida muuqata wuxuu leeyahay 10 guri oo kaliya, Larry Ellison wuxuu iibsaday daraasiin guryo qaali ah oo qaali ah iyo hanti ma-guurto ah, oo lagu daray (qiimaha $300 milyan) jasiiradda Hawaiian.
Inta guri ee uu Bill Gates leeyahay weli ma cadda, as he has made a number of secretive real estate purchases. Nevertheless, they include multiple luxurious horse ranches scattered across the United States. He spends most of the time, though, at Xanadu 2.0, his $127 million, 66,000 square-foot mansion in Medina, Washington. Requiring 300 workers to construct, this behemoth contains very unusual high tech features, a trampoline room with a 20-foot ceiling, six kitchens, a dining room able to seat up to 150 people for dinner, a 22-foot wide video screen, a home theater, garages for 23 cars, and 18.75 bathrooms. There is also a lakefront shore containing large quantities of sand delivered every year by a barge from the Caribbean.
The super-rich have more than enough wealth to squander upon a variety of extravagant items. Their doonyaha waaweyn cost as much as a billion dollars each, and boast such fixtures as night clubs, swimming pools, helipads, and even missile defense systems. In 2019, the United States ranked aduunka ugu horeeyo in superyachts, with 158 in operation. Many billionaires also own private superjets, sida $403 milyan ("kahor shaqo kasta oo is-habayn") "Queen of the Skies," oo leh xafiis buuxa, qol jiif, iyo "qol qadayn oo heer sare ah oo loo rogi karo qolka shirarka ee shirkadda." (Labada Jeff Bezos iyo Bill Gates are superjet owners.) Moreover, the ultra-affluent possess luxury car collections, multiple passports (available for millions of dollars), and gold toilets.
Bilyaneerrada waxay la kulmaan dhibaatooyin, dabcan, oo ay ku jiraan murugo, helitaanka guriga lagama maarmaanka ah "I caawi," ka hortagga caqabadaha ka imaanaya Shaqaale quus ah oo sii kordhaya, Iyo siyaasiyiinta ka adkaanaya kuwaas oo ku dhiiraday in ay ku guulaystaan cashuurta hanti badan si ay u maalgaliyaan adeegyada bulshada ee muhiimka ah.
Nevertheless, the vast gulf separating the lives of the super-rich from those of most Americans raises the issue of whether this small, parasitic stratum of U.S. society should be maintained in such splendor. Many Americans might already be wondering about this as they cope with economic collapse and ever-widening death.
Lawrence Wittner (https://www.lawrenceswittner.com/ ) waa borofisar Taariikhda Taariikhda SUNY / Albany iyo qoraaga La-dagaallanka Bam (Jaamacadda Stanford Press).
ZNetwork waxa lagu maalgeliyaa oo keliya deeqsinimada akhristeyaasheeda.
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