A Few Hundred Super Novas

Bill Clinton wrapped up his second annual tycoon-fest today with commitments worth $7.3 billion to combat illness, poverty, religious and ethnic conflict and climate change, from 215 do-gooding tycoons. Last year’s event scored more commitments – over 300 in all – but last year’s pledges weren’t as big, totaling just $2.5 billion.

I think it’s wonderful that the world’s biggest tycoons are devoting a portion of their billions to good causes. Yesterday, Richard Branson, who made a mint in the “Virgin” Group, pledged that for the next decade he’ll put all his personal profits from the airlines and a rail company he controls – some $3 billion – into non-fossil based energy development.

In addition, the Google tycoons announced last week they’ll put hundreds of millions into a for-profit “charity” to develop non-fossil energy and public health initiatives. Bill Gates is devoting some of his billions into fighting AIDS in Africa. Warren Buffet is turning over some of his billions to Bill Gates foundation to do more good stuff. Ted Turner gave the UN a billion dollars a few years ago.

Remember George Bush I’s “thousand points of light”? Well, now we have a few hundred super novas.

But I remember a day when government collected billions of dollars from tycoons like these, as well as from ordinary taxpayers, and when our democratic process (in its own halting way) decided what the billions would be devoted to. In 1960, the moguls of America paid a marginal tax of 90 percent on their incomes (an effective rate, after all deductions and credits, of over 50 percent). In 1960, over two-thirds of Americans trusted government to do the right thing all or most of the time, according to survey research.

Now, the moguls pay an effective rate of maybe 10 percent of their incomes – none at all if they have clever enough accountants and lawyers who park it in tax havens. And they’re richer than ever before in history. Today’s release of Forbes Magazine’s annual list of the richest 400 Americans is made up solely of billionaires – for the first time.

And what about government? Now, according to surveys, two-thirds of Americans don’t trust government to do anything right.

So nowadays, a few hundred of the moguls devote some of their billions to doing good things, and we applaud their generosity.

Maybe I’m overly sentimental, but I preferred it the old way.