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Welcome to You’re Probably Getting Screwed, a weekly newsletter and video series from J.D. Scholten and Justin Stofferahn about the Second Gilded Age and the ways economic concentration is putting politics and profits over working people.
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Welcome to You’re Probably Getting Screwed, a weekly newsletter and video series from J.D. Scholten and Justin Stofferahn about the Second Gilded Age and the ways economic concentration is putting politics and profits over working people.
If you’re into kicking millions of Americans off their healthcare and closing rural hospitals while giving billionaires a bigger tax break, the One, Big Beautiful Bill (aka The “We Are All Going to Die” Bill) is for you.
You can read about how bad it is from this report from the American Hospital Association.
YOU’RE PROBABLY (ALSO) GETTING SCREWED BY:
Tax Cheats
The IRS is not the only agency that ensures the wealthiest Americans pay their fair share, the Department of Justice Tax Division does as well. Unfortunately, the DOJ is proposing to completely eliminate the division.
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Private Equity
If you are a baseball fan you know the sport was rocked by a major trade the Boston Red Sox made over the weekend to ship out their best hitter to the San Francisco Giants in what amounts to a mid-season salary dump by one of the richest organizations in the sport. Joon Lee, who covered the dysfunction in Red Sox Nation here, was on 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston and shared his thoughts on the Wall Street takeover of sports.
Inequality
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Auto Insurance
Opened your auto insurance renewal recently and screamed? As of May, rates are up 84% over the last five years, the largest increase on record. While there are a lot of factors at play, David Dayen wrote last year about some of the ways insurance companies might be using their market power and surveillance techniques to further jack up costs.
Big Pharma
Big Tech
In the aftermath of the tragic assassination this weekend of Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark and the shooting of Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette, right wing influencers pounced at the opportunity to push conspiracy theories on social media. While not the only problem, these kinds of conspiracies are amplified by Big Tech’s business model, which is built on massive surveillance structures that amplify hate, division and conspiracy for profit. It is long overdue that we break up these companies and reign them in.
SOMETHING DIFFERENT
Justin wanted to share a couple of thoughts on the tragic events from this weekend and how Hortman’s legacy is tied into the topics we cover each week.
Like so many other Minnesotans I am heartbroken by the assassination of Speaker Hortman and her husband Mark and the assassination attempt of Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette.
It has been said over the last couple of days that Hortman is the most consequential Speaker in Minnesota history. Part of that is Hortman’s role as a key architect of Minnesota’s historic 2023 legislative session. That session extended Minnesota’s rich history of confronting monopoly power. It is the year Minnesota banned noncompete clauses and captive audience meetings and the year it passed right to repair and cracked down on big healthcare mergers, just to name a few.
This part of Speaker Hortman’s legacy is a reminder of the important role state government plays in creating an economy that works for everyday people.
If you want to know more about Hortman, Justin suggested reading this column by Lori Sturdevant in the Star Tribune.
There are also the powerful words of Melissa and Mark’s children, Sophie and Colin Hortman who have said, “The best way to honor our parents' memory is to do something, whether big or small, to make our community just a little better for someone else.”
SOME GOOD NEWS
Lina Khan Interview
Pablo Torre, who interviewed me last year, sat down with former FTC Chair Lina Khan recently to talk about AI, Steve Bannon, the NCAA, fixing the McFlurry and more.
BEFORE YOU GO
Before you go, I need two things from you: 1) if you like something, please share it on social media or the next time you have coffee with a friend. 2) Ideas, if you have any ideas for future newsletter content please comment below. Thank you.
Standing Tall for All,
J.D. Scholten
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