• hemko@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
    622·
    4 months ago

    I mean the term oligarch has a clear definition that differs from billionaire, but to be honest pretty sure many billionaires meet the criteria…

    Quickly from wikipedia

    A business oligarch is generally a business magnate who controls sufficient resources to influence national politics.[1][2] A business leader can be considered an oligarch if the following conditions are satisfied:

    uses monopolistic tactics to dominate an industry;
    possesses sufficient political power to promote their own interests;
    controls multiple businesses, which intensively coordinate their activities.

    Edit: also this smells a bit like tankie propaganda pointed towards liberals and conservatives

  • TankovayaDiviziya@lemmy.world
    31·
    4 months ago

    I don’t know about you, but when I hear “oligarchs”, I always get a nebulous image of faceless, rich and powerful crowd who are into sex cults like Eyes Wide Shut. I kid about the last bit but I am serious about the other descriptors

    I think the reason we don’t immediately think of oligarch when we see Zuckerberg, Gates or Musk is because we see them on individual basis. Whereas “oligarch” usually refers to a faceless collective of politically influential, rich folks.

    • ExcrubulentEnglish
      6·
      4 months ago

      It’s more than that, it’s that we have a very sophisticated media machine that manufactures consent for these ghouls every single day, and it never takes a break.

      You think of them as just a bunch of guys, just silly beans who happened to get rich because they and their friends own the media corporations that build the narrative that we believe. We’ve got these very respectable newsreaders who give them nothing but softballs, and frame every story as favourably as possible for them.

      Also I lost count of how many times some piece that was critical of US oligarchs and corporations was deleted from the reddit front page. I’m fairly certain they were either taking money for this service or just looking after their friends. Maybe a PR manager working for whoever was being criticised contacted the reddit office and asked politely and that’s all it took.

    • GladiusB@lemmy.world
      5·
      4 months ago

      I think of two things. The goofy ass oligarch commercial from a few years ago and Jeremy Irons when he is monologuing about how the %1 always hides. And it’s true. The ones that really pull the strings are behind the curtain.

    • Tja@programming.dev
      3·
      4 months ago

      Because none of those pictured here are oligarchs, just the only billionaires your average teenager knows.

      If you made the meme with the Koch brother(s), Paul Novelly, Harlan Crow or Michael Bloomberg it would be much closer to the truth, but not something that would get upvotes because they aren’t constantly on TV (by design).

  • Patapon Enjoyer@lemmy.world
    12·
    4 months ago

    Yeah but my favorite billionaire has a tax haven charity therefore he deserves to hoard more money than everyone I have ever known and their families going up 10 generations have ever seem in their lives.

  • dan42O@infosec.pub
    113·
    4 months ago

    Remember if you see these folks anywhere: They may have some charity stuff, but only to still benefit themselves.

  • gedaliyah@lemmy.worldEnglish
    71·
    4 months ago

    How do the google guys manage to keep themselves out of pictures like this? I know they keep a low profile but isn’t it one of the most evil corporations on the planet?

  • fidodo@lemmy.worldEnglish
    5·
    4 months ago

    The difference is that oligarchs are in the government’s pocket, while the government is in the pocket of billionaires.

  • cantstopthesignal@sh.itjust.works
    411·
    4 months ago

    It’s not fair to compare people who are shrewd at business and take advantage of a tax system that is rigged in their favor to people who are literally stealing from their own people.