Re-Balancing Economics with Ethics Pursuit of Corporate Profit vs The Common Good of Society. 2. Maximized Economic Growth, but increased Income Inequality. 3. Re-balnce with “Trickle-Up” Economics, rather than “Trickle-Down.”

1. MIGHT THOREAU’S “CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE”
IMPROVE INCOME INEQUALITY?
Paul H. Carr, PhD

2. On July 23, 1846, Henry David Thoreau left
his cabin at Walden Pond for a brief walk into
town and ended up in the Concord jail for
refusing to pay his poll tax to support
the Mexican War.
A fervent abolitionist, Thoreau explained, "I
cannot for an instant recognize . . . as my
government [that] which is
the slave's government also.“
The next morning, he learned that
someone had paid the tax. He never knew
who. Although Thoreau objected, the
constable insisted on releasing him.

3. The U.S.–Mexican War was an armed conflict from1846 to 1848. It
followed in the wake of the 1845 US annexation of Texas, which Mexico
had claimed.
The war established the Rio Grade river a the southern border of Texas.
Mexico also ceased its claim to the territories of Alta California and Santa
Fe of New Mexico.

4. This jail experience led Thoreau to write a powerful
lecture on the "relation of the individual to the State.“
The lecture was published in 1849 as "Resistance to
Civil Government," and is now known as "Civil
Disobedience."
This masterful essay has influenced generations of
activists, including Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther
King, Jr.
This experience led him to write a
powerful lecture on the "relation of
the individual to the State." The

5. ENIVRONMENTAL CIVAL DISOBEDIENCE
In May 2013, Ken Ward and Jay O’Hara used a little white lobster boat, the Henry
David T, to block a shipment of 40,000 tons of coal to the Brayton Point Power Station
in Somerset, MA, the largest coal plant in New England.
They did this because climate change is a threat to their making a living.
They were charged with conspiracy, disturbing the peace, and motor vessel
violations and faced up to several years in jail. Their trial started on Sept 8. 2014.

6. Outside the Fall River Courthouse, Sept 8, 2014

7. The Bristol County District Attorney, Sam Sutter, dropped the
conspiracy charges and reduced the other charges to civil
infractions, civil disobedience, this morning, saying that he saw the
need to take leadership on climate change. He called climate change
“one of the gravest crises our planet has ever faced” and told a
cheering crowd that he would join them at the People’s Climate
March in New York City in two weeks.
In exchange for having
the state drop their
charges, Ken Ward &
Jay O’Hara agreed to
pay a fine of $2000
each in restitution to
the Town of Somerset
and the State Police.

8. 9/8/2015. District Attorney Sam Sutter holding up Bill McKibben’s 350.org article in Rolling
Stone two years ago.

9. More than 100,000 people march through midtown Manhattan as part of the People’s Climate March on Sunday in New York. John Minchillo/AP Images for AVAAZ
300,000 to 400,000 people march through midtown Manhattan as part of the People’s
Climate March on Sunday, Sept 21, 2014 in New York. John Minchillo/AP Images for AVAAZ

10. The union movement is a form of “disobedience.”
In the past, it helped maintain income equality.
Decline of Unions has contributed to income inequality.
e

11. .

12. "There are a thousand hacking at the
branches of evil (symptoms) to one who is
striking at the root (cause).” Thoreau.

13. 1. Pursuit of Corporate Profit vs
The Common Good of Society.
2. Maximized Economic Growth,
but increased Income Inequality.
3. Re-balnce with “Trickle-Up” Economics,
rather than “Trickle-Down.”

14. ETHICS GOLDEN RULE:
Do unto others as you would
have them do unto you.
ECONOMICS GOLDEN RULE:
Whoever has the gold makes
the rules.

15. 10/9/15
I ask you to ensure that humanity is
served by wealth and not ruled by it.
Pope Francis. Message to the World
Economic Forum 2014.
“This imbalance (between the
rich minority and the rest) is
the result of ideologies that
defend the absolute
autonomy of the marketplace
and financial speculation…
behind this attitude lurks a
rejection of ethics and a
rejection of God.
Pope Francis “Evangelii Gaudium, pars
56,57.

16. ECONOMIC IMBALNCE
• Belief in:
• “Invisible Hand,” Adam Smith (1776), which
guided the pursuit of individual gain towards the
public interest.
“The self-correcting power of the free market.”
( Alan Greenspan’s Laissez Faire Economics )
Ignoring:
• “Tragedy of the Commons,” William Forster
Lloyd (1833), in which the pursuit of individual
gain leads to negation of the common good.

17. Tragedy of the Commons
William Forster Lloyd (1833), Garrett Hardin (1968)
The pursuit of individual gain leads to abrogation of the
common good.
Lloyd was familiar with herdsmen who all grazed their cattle on a common for free.
Each individual gained by adding more cows to his own herd. As each pursued his
individual gain, the commons became overgrazed, resulting in the tragedy
malnourished cows.

18. TRADEGY OF THE
COMMONS
Individual
desire to go
everywhere
gets you
nowhere,
while
polluting.
SOLUTIONS:
-Freeways
aren’t free.
-$8/ gal in
Europe
-Public
Transportation

19. Coal burning pollutes our common atmosphere for free.
This is short term economic benefit for utility companies and customers.
The negative effects of pollution are shared by all.
THE LONG-TERM TOTAL COST OF BURING FOSSIL FUELS IS NOT
INCLUDED IN WHAT WE NOW PAY.
THE CO2 EMISSIONS WILL BE IN OUR ATOMPHERE FOR 100 YEARS.

20. Aerosol pollution from coal burning in Beijing
Schools must sometimes be closed.
World Health Organization safe level: 25 mg/m3
Aerosol level in Beijing: 505 mg/m3
http://scitation.aip.org/content/aip/magazine/physicstoday/news/10.1063/PT.5.4009?utm_source=Physics+Today&utm_medium=em
ail&utm_campaign=5229780_Physics+Today%3a+The+week+in+Physics+12-

21. Long-TermCosts of Coal Burning
1. Fine particle pollution from U.S. power plants cuts
short the lives of over 30,000 people/ year.
- Asthma attacks, cardiac problems and upper and
lower respiratory problems associated with fine
particles from power plants.
2. Deaths of many coal miners
- None from nuclear reactors in the US.
3. Increasing carbon dioxide levels are warming our
planet via the greenhouse effect, raising sea levels and
increasing weather extremes.

22. Why Free Inhalers? Because COAL CARES.
http://www.coalcares.org/index.html
Coal Cares™ is a brand-new initiative from Peabody Energy, the
world's largest private-sector coal company, to reach out to
American youngsters with asthma and to help them keep their
heads high in the face of those who would treat them with less than
full dignity. For kids who have no choice but to use an inhaler, Coal
Cares™ lets them inhale with pride.
Puff-Puff™ inhalers are available free to any family living within
200 miles of a coal plant, and each inhaler comes with a $10
coupon towards the cost of the asthma medication itself.

23. GOOD NEWS
SOLUTIONS:

24. NO FREE POLLUTION
Sweden, one of the few countries that
tax carbon, has reduced its emissions
by about twenty-three per cent in
the past twenty-five years.
During that same period, its economy
has grown by more than fifty-five per
cent.

25. 10/9/15
www.
CitizensClimateLobby.org
- Revenue
neutral carbon
fee with
dividend.
-Dividend would
be returned to
everyone.
-Stimulating
economy &
creating 2 million
jobs.

26. OUR ECONOMY IS THE STRONGEST
IN THE WORLD
• Foreigners are buying our US
Treasury Bonds that pay1.7%
interest.
• Interest rates in Europe are negative.

27. 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
GDP/Capita vs. Economic Freedom
Index of Economic Freedom
GDP/Capita($K)
LAW……………………………………………….…LIBERTY………ANARCHY
Optimum Balance
US
Canada
C
o
n
g
o
N
i
g
e
r
UKFrance
Germany, Japan
S. Korea
Cuba
China
Russia

28. HERITAGE FOUNDATION
INDEX OF ECONOMIC FREEDOM (2009)
Ten Economic Freedoms for United States
91.9 Business Freedom
80.0 Investment Freedom
86.8 Trade Freedom
80.0 Financial Freedom
67.5 Fiscal Freedom
90.0 Property Rights
59.6 Government Size
72.0 Freedom from Corruption
84.0 Monetary Freedom
95.1 Labor Freedom
80.7 AVERAGE

29. BAD NEWS:
INCOME
INEQUALITY

30. GINI INDEX IS A MEASURE OF ECONOMIC EQUALITY
GINI = 00 Income completely equal
GINI = 100 One person owns everything = INJUSTICE
Germany, Scandinavia, Japan, etc. have more income equality than the US.

31. Title of the
presentationInequality of capital
Thomas Piketty, Professor of Economics,
Paris School of Economics
19 December 2014
www.slideshare.net
You will soon see data from this source.

32. 32
Data from
Capital in the 21st century
(Harvard University Press, March 2014)
This book studies the global dynamics of income and wealth distribution since 18c in 20+ countries; I
use historical data collected over the past 15 years with Atkinson, Saez, Postel-Vinay, Rosenthal,
Alvaredo, Zucman, and 30+ others; I try to shift attention from rising income inequality to rising wealth
inequality
•The book includes four parts:
Part 1. Income and capital
Part 2. The dynamics of the capital/income ratio
Part 3. The structure of inequalities
Part 4. Regulating capital in the 21st century
•In this presentation I will present some results from Parts 2 & 3, focusing upon the long-run evolution of
capital/income ratios and wealth concentration (all graphs and series are available on line: see
http://piketty.pse.ens.fr/capital21c)

33. 33
1929
Recession
2008
Recession

34. 10/9/15

35. A RISING TIDE FLOATS ALL BOATS ?
TRICKLE-DOWN ECONOMICS
The objective of the top tax cuts from
70% in 1980 to 28% in 1988 was to
stimulate the economy, ie increase GDP.
It was expected to result in an increase in
the tax revenue to the government.
1. No GDP increase.
2. Increased income inequality.
3. Increased our national debt.

37. YACHT,
NEWPORT, RI

38. The Reagan Tax Cuts, 1980-1987 decreased growth from 3.5% to 3.0%
GDP growth peaked at 4% per year in 1959 and has decreased to 2% at
present

39. Reagan Tax Cuts
70% to 28%
OUR NATIONAL DEBT INCREASED IN 1980
WWII Ends
Won Cold
War
Recession from
deregulation of Banks

42. WWII POSTER
How we defeated
Hitler Germany and
Japan’s Rising Sun
(1945).
Paid off WWII, Korean
and Vietnam Wars
debt (1980), Landed
Man on the Moon (‘69)
Patriotism against
enemies is the
Social Capital
that bound us
together.

43. "The Moral Equivalent of War (MEOW)"
“One of the classic problems of politics: how to
sustain political unity and civic virtue in the absence
of war or a credible threat...and ...sound a rallying
cry for service in the interests of the individual and
the nation."
American psychologist and philosopher William
James, 1906,
COMPETITION
We had a dedicated national effort to land a man on
the moon in 1969, because the Russians were
adhead of us in space.

44. 44
Economist Piketty’s Solution
• The history of income and wealth inequality is always political, chaotic and unpredictable;
it involves national identities and sharp reversals; nobody can predict the reversals of the
future
• The ideal solution: progressive wealth tax at the
global scale, based upon automatic exchange of
bank information
• Other solutions involve authoritarian political &
capital controls (China, Russia..), or perpetual
population growth (US), or inflation, or some mixture
of all.

45. TRICKLE-UP ECONOMICS MORE
SUCCESSFUL THAN TRICKLE-DOWN
• The top 1% now pay 70% of our US Taxes,
Comparable to 1970 before Reagan Tax Cuts.
• Ordinary family- median income rose 5.2% last
year for the first time in decades. This income
will “trickle-up” increasing growth.
• Median income people spend on goods and
services in the US stimulating our economy,
which “Trickles Up.”
• Decline in poverty rate last year.

47. FEDERAL DEFICIT INCREASE:
Committee for Responsible Budget
Clinton Tax Proposals: $ 0.25 Trillion
Trump Tax Proposals would lower the
top income tax bracket, eliminate
inheritance tax, increasing deficit by
$ 11. 5 Trillion

48. “It is difficult to get people
to understand something,
when their salary
depends on their not
understanding it.”
Upton Sinclair 1934
didate for Governor: And How I Got Licked by Upton Sinclair 1934
“

49. • Wages of those with
education beyond a
bachelor’s degree has
doubled since 1964.
High school dropouts are
earning less now than in 1962
Average US Income in
2012 dollars.
Top 10% $254,449
Bottom 90% $ 30,439

50. PHILIP KOTLER
hilip Kotler is the S. C.
Distinguished Professor of
International Marketing at the
Kellogg School of Management.
Ph.D. degree in economics (1956)
from the Massachusetts Institute
of Technology (M.I.T.), and has
received honorary degrees
• He has been a consultant to IBM,
General Electric, Sony, AT&T,
Bank of America, Merck,
Motorola, Ford, and others.
• The Financial Times included him
in its list of the top 10 business
thinkers.

51. 10/9/15
Bill Gates Recommends this.

52. SOLUTIONS TO:
1. Tragedy of the Commons
-Pay for the use of freeways with higher gasoline taxes.
-Pay for the total social cost of polluting our common
atmosphere.
2. Income Inequality
- Economist Piketty’s progressive wealth tax
- Lower educational tuition
3. “Trickle-up” economics more successful than
“trickle-down.”

53. RISE Course No. 2098
Science & Religion: Henry D. Thoreau & the Future
Wednesdays 10:45-12:15, October 19 – Nov 16, 2016
1. Thoreau: From Mystical to Mathematical Beauty
2. Thoreau’s Search for Place, Creative Example, & Climate Change.
3. Might Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience” improve income inequality?
4. Has religion helped or hindered the development of science?
5. The Future of Religion and Science: Beautiful Music, Math, Myth.