Best Podcast Episodes About Gates Foundation
Everything podcasters are saying about Gates Foundation — curated from top podcasts
Updated: Apr 02, 2026 – 24 episodes
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Ridealong has curated the best and most interesting podcasts and clips about Gates Foundation.
Top Podcast Clips About Gates Foundation
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America's founding principles are based on aspirational ideas, not necessarily truths, as seen in the Declaration of Independence. Despite being one of the most powerful nations, many Americans no longer believe in its philosophical underpinnings, such as inalienable rights. This raises questions about the role of belief and delusion in driving innovation and societal progress.
“… they're not just talking about AIPAC, they're talking about this whole different, all these different organizations and individuals. The Heritage Foundation. Yes, yes. Washington Post. No, everybody. Washington Institute for Near East Policy and all of these organizations and then all these individuals who clearly are here to – that is their number one issue. And the thing I almost resent most about them is like – it's like just admit that.”
“… a good, that's a really good term for them. Because, you know, the thing is that, you know, John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt, like they call it the Israel lobby. But then when you say that, a lot of people just think you're talking about AIPAC. But they're not just talking about AIPAC, they're talking about this whole different, all these different organizations and individuals. The Heritage Foundation. Yes, yes. Washington Post. No, everybody. Washington Institute for Near East Policy and all of these organizations and then all these individuals who clearly are here to – that is their number one issue. And the thing I almost resent most about them is like – it's like just admit that.”
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U.S. policymakers are often gripped by a palpable fear of Israel, affecting their decisions and policies. This fear, as discussed by commentator Dave Smith, stems from a complex web of influence that goes beyond just AIPAC, involving various organizations and individuals who prioritize Israeli interests. The implications of this dynamic raise important questions about the true nature of U.S.-Israel relations and the consequences of such an enmeshed partnership.
“I know you mean. I went to the Heritage Foundation. I've talked to those guys about what they want to do. And. Well, wait. Because I saw that as well. I want to hear all about that. But first, a word from our sponsors. The Heritage Foundation. The Heritage Foundation. The Koch Brothers. The Koch Brothers. The Koch Brothers. The Koch Brothers. The Koch Brothers. Still around. Project 2026. Coming to an internet near you. What was it like talking to the Heritage Foundation about Section 20? 230. …”
“I know you mean. I went to the Heritage Foundation. I've talked to those guys about what they want to do. And. Well, wait. Because I saw that as well. I want to hear all about that. But first, a word from our sponsors. The Heritage Foundation. The Heritage Foundation. The Koch Brothers. The Koch Brothers. The Koch Brothers. The Koch Brothers. The Koch Brothers. Still around. Project 2026. Coming to an internet near you. What was it like talking to the Heritage Foundation about Section 20? 230. That's why it's important to know about the two parts of the law. They are more focused on the second part of the law and wanting to change that. And now again, the second part of the law is the part that says platforms are protected. They can make whatever choices they want about how they want to moderate, what content they want to allow or not. …”
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The Prodigy case established that online platforms could be held liable for content moderation decisions, fundamentally shaping Section 230. Unlike CompuServe, which was not liable for user posts, Prodigy's active moderation led to their responsibility for defamatory content. This pivotal ruling is a cornerstone of today's internet landscape, influencing how social media companies operate.
“So the idea is rather simple. That's Adam Hoffer with the Tax Foundation, a nonpartisan tax policy think tank. And it can be quite useful in the public finance sphere of taking a revenue source and allocating it directly to what that revenue is going to be spent on. Economists can be supportive of hypothecated taxes, but it all depends on how they're applied. If the fees are unrelated to the program, most economists are not fans, like grade schools getting money from a cigarette tax. That can cause unintended …”
“So the idea is rather simple. That's Adam Hoffer with the Tax Foundation, a nonpartisan tax policy think tank. And it can be quite useful in the public finance sphere of taking a revenue source and allocating it directly to what that revenue is going to be spent on. Economists can be supportive of hypothecated taxes, but it all depends on how they're applied. If the fees are unrelated to the program, most economists are not fans, like grade schools getting money from a cigarette tax. That can cause unintended problems. Waylon, I put down my smokes and now the kindergarten can't hire more teachers. Oh, no. Well, light them up, Ricky. Think of the children. My God. It's why I quit in the first place. But Adam says that a hypothecated tax can work when the funding and spending programs are directly connected, like a gas tax that pays for roads or, let's just …”
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Passenger security fees meant to fund the TSA have been redirected to pay down the federal deficit, leaving TSA workers unpaid during shutdowns. This shift occurred after bipartisan legislation in 2013 changed how these hypothecated taxes were allocated, separating them from their intended purpose. The result is a disconnect that not only impacts airport security but also highlights broader issues with hypothecated taxes in government funding.
“… Okay, let's back up one second. I just want to look at CEPI. Who created CEPI? Bring that back up. CEPI was a World Economic Forum and the Gates Foundation. You'll find, I think, the government of Germany and India, I believe, was involved as well. But this is a richly funded, multi-billion dollar organization. You just can't imagine how big these units are. Oh, I can totally. You look at the industrial war complex, and now you start to see it's the industrial medical complex, right? That's the new one that really seems like it's sprouted over the past 20 years. Correct. Right here. CEPI is The …”
“… government. Daszak was at the EcoHealth Alliance. It's a go-between organization that was shuttling money for Barak's projects over to Wuhan. Daszak had been to Wuhan many, many times. He knew that lab well. To create the virus, you mean? Correct. Understood. Okay, let's back up one second. I just want to look at CEPI. Who created CEPI? Bring that back up. CEPI was a World Economic Forum and the Gates Foundation. You'll find, I think, the government of Germany and India, I believe, was involved as well. But this is a richly funded, multi-billion dollar organization. You just can't imagine how big these units are. Oh, I can totally. You look at the industrial war complex, and now you start to see it's the industrial medical complex, right? That's the new one that really seems like it's sprouted over the past 20 years. Correct. Right here. CEPI is The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, a global organization focused on accelerating vaccine – Vaccine development. Okay, sorry. It was created in 2017 through a partnership between the governments of Norway and India, the Wellcome Trust, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Yep. And go back. To disease X, I want to just read what it …”
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In this segment, Dr. McCullough humorously unravels the concept of 'Disease X' as a plan for a pandemic that doesn't even exist yet. His witty commentary on the 'bioindustrial complex' makes for an entertaining critique of how organizations might be orchestrating responses to health crises, leaving listeners both amused and bewildered.
“… so easy to ingest that we've seen about 10 teams all implement them, join start joining the dev nets and do so without even contacting the Ethereum Foundation So the barrier to entry is relatively low And we're in this crazy world where AI development means that you can basically just, to a large extent, vibe code your client. And I think there's a big reason why we have so many clients. and oftentimes we're talking about either single person teams or small two person or three person teams. And I think this is going to have interesting consequences in terms of sustainability, paying for all of these …”
“… simplicity where we want to have the whole state transition function basically be a thousand lines of Python code that some sort of smart high schooler can just read. Right now we have test nets, sorry, dev nets for lean consensus. And the specs are so easy to ingest that we've seen about 10 teams all implement them, join start joining the dev nets and do so without even contacting the Ethereum Foundation So the barrier to entry is relatively low And we're in this crazy world where AI development means that you can basically just, to a large extent, vibe code your client. And I think there's a big reason why we have so many clients. and oftentimes we're talking about either single person teams or small two person or three person teams. And I think this is going to have interesting consequences in terms of sustainability, paying for all of these client teams as well as around governance”
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Ethereum is embarking on an ambitious project to rewrite its consensus layer for post-quantum readiness, aiming for a clean slate by 2029. This initiative, dubbed the Lean Consensus Project, not only targets quantum security but also aims to simplify the codebase, making it accessible for new developers. With numerous teams already engaging with the project, the future of Ethereum's governance and sustainability looks promising.
“… by introducing yourself? Awesome. I'm Rowan Cockett. I'm the co-founder and CEO of CurveNote, as well as one of the founders of Continuous Science Foundation. And do you remember how you first got started working in the overall space of data? So I have a background in geoscience. I have an undergrad in geology. I started creating 3D visualization tools for my peers just sort of in undergrad classrooms. And after I graduated, I put those online. Those sort of got picked up and went viral in that space. And so I started a company and my master's degree at the same time, ran that company for about two …”
“Your host is Tobias Macy, and today I'm interviewing Rowan Cockett about building data systems that make scientific research easier to reproduce. So Rowan, can you start by introducing yourself? Awesome. I'm Rowan Cockett. I'm the co-founder and CEO of CurveNote, as well as one of the founders of Continuous Science Foundation. And do you remember how you first got started working in the overall space of data? So I have a background in geoscience. I have an undergrad in geology. I started creating 3D visualization tools for my peers just sort of in undergrad classrooms. And after I graduated, I put those online. Those sort of got picked up and went viral in that space. And so I started a company and my master's degree at the same time, ran that company for about two and a half years. And then we were acquired by a data science company that was trying to go from sort of desktop software in the geoscience space to collaborative online software with version control and data management practices. And so that was in the mining industry and civil engineering. And so we were doing sort of data management of like all …”
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Rowan Cockett's journey from creating 3D visualization tools in geology to founding CurveNote illustrates a groundbreaking shift in scientific collaboration. His early viral success led to the development of data management practices that revolutionized how scientists work together on complex projects. This transformation is crucial for addressing the reproducibility crisis in scientific research.
“But what should be the consequences for Gates now in this moment with these revelations? Earlier this week, I called for the removal of Bill Gates from the Gates Foundation, but also the removal of all of the members of its board. So people probably just know this as a matter of management. If you're a big organization, you're going to have a board of directors or board of trustees. It's about governance, about doing checks and balances, about making sure that whether you're a company or a …”
“But what should be the consequences for Gates now in this moment with these revelations? Earlier this week, I called for the removal of Bill Gates from the Gates Foundation, but also the removal of all of the members of its board. So people probably just know this as a matter of management. If you're a big organization, you're going to have a board of directors or board of trustees. It's about governance, about doing checks and balances, about making sure that whether you're a company or a philanthropy, that what you're doing is appropriate, that it's right, that's within the mission or the values of the organization. And the board of trustees at the Gates Foundation, they've known about the Gates-Epstein affair since 2019, and they've never done anything. And now they just look so incompetent and so impotent that they cannot …”
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Bill Gates' connection to Jeffrey Epstein raises serious questions about accountability and governance at the Gates Foundation. Critics argue that the board, composed of billionaires and elites, fails to represent the needs of the communities they aim to help. This situation highlights the dangers of extreme wealth influencing philanthropy and public policy, calling for potential regulatory intervention.
“… nobody never gonna love you like i love you i'm a great friend i'm just not friendly. I'm a great friend, though. Everybody say they say them Kevin Gates hugs be different. What's your sign? I'm the best sign in the world, silly. Let me guess. You know what I am? What? What you about to say? You know what I sign? I think he is. Just tell me. Just say it. I think he's a Libra. False. No. I thought he was Libra like you. Wait, let me get one more guess. Please give me one more guess. I was a Libra.”
“… for something, they say no. or don't make excuses for anything just be like i know and there's no reason love should be reciprocated the way that i give it i love hard my my i wear my emotions on my sleeve i love hard everybody see it but hey ain't nobody never gonna love you like i love you i'm a great friend i'm just not friendly. I'm a great friend, though. Everybody say they say them Kevin Gates hugs be different. What's your sign? I'm the best sign in the world, silly. Let me guess. You know what I am? What? What you about to say? You know what I sign? I think he is. Just tell me. Just say it. I think he's a Libra. False. No. I thought he was Libra like you. Wait, let me get one more guess. Please give me one more guess. I was a Libra.”
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Kevin Gates shares a powerful lesson on the impact of negative energy from others. He emphasizes the importance of setting boundaries and how surrounding yourself with the wrong people can lead to personal setbacks. Gates reflects on his growth and the realization that true friends uplift rather than drain you.
“… some bearish takes about this as well. Yeah, the first one that caught my eye was from Donkrad. Donkrad Feist, who notably was part of the Ethereum Foundation up until recently. He was one of the largest, I don't know if detractors is the right word, but the emphasizing the need or the urgency for Ethereum to go in a newer direction, a fresh direction. Yeah, he was an accelerationist of the L1, should we say, or of just moving faster in general, potentially getting rid of some sacred cows and I don't want to say cutting some corners. I don't know. I don't think he would cut corners. Make you some …”
“… for a lot of nines around crops That right And some of it aspirational Some of it is the North Star that we pointing towards and that the EF wants to guide Ethereum towards All right. So that was the encapsulation of the bullish takes. There were some bearish takes about this as well. Yeah, the first one that caught my eye was from Donkrad. Donkrad Feist, who notably was part of the Ethereum Foundation up until recently. He was one of the largest, I don't know if detractors is the right word, but the emphasizing the need or the urgency for Ethereum to go in a newer direction, a fresh direction. Yeah, he was an accelerationist of the L1, should we say, or of just moving faster in general, potentially getting rid of some sacred cows and I don't want to say cutting some corners. I don't know. I don't think he would cut corners. Make you some trade-offs. having a level of product urgency and promoting product as a core vision, not to the detriment of anything crops related, but to the urgency of actually needing to get people on specifically Ethereum. If people are coming on chain, we need to put them on Ethereum. We need to do some product research about what it's going to take to get …”
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The Ethereum Foundation's recent pivot back to cypherpunk values has ignited controversy, with critics like Donkrad Feist arguing it neglects real-world adoption. Feist, a former member, claims this regression undermines the urgency needed to attract users to Ethereum. As the community grapples with this direction, the lack of focus on product development raises concerns about Ethereum's future relevance.
“… and continuously and actually securing us our first grant for the youth mentorship program. So thank you. Oh, with the Greater Rochester Community Foundation. So you just received your first grant. Wow. Yes. Congratulations. Thank you. So and with that grant money, you said you're working with the youth program. So it was already an existing program So we requested for funds to help within that So we and me and her specifically worked on it And our grant writer who kind of revised it but it was the first one we submitted and we got it. Yeah. So how does that make you feel as far as the work that …”
“… in that. And I think, like I said, the positive outdo is the negative. Yeah. So I have a community that believes and supports me. I have interns that actually took leadership. And I want to thank Julia specifically for trusting and believing in me and continuously and actually securing us our first grant for the youth mentorship program. So thank you. Oh, with the Greater Rochester Community Foundation. So you just received your first grant. Wow. Yes. Congratulations. Thank you. So and with that grant money, you said you're working with the youth program. So it was already an existing program So we requested for funds to help within that So we and me and her specifically worked on it And our grant writer who kind of revised it but it was the first one we submitted and we got it. Yeah. So how does that make you feel as far as the work that you're doing? Do you? We, I think, speaking for all of us, and I myself, I feel accomplished. Being open in a short amount a time frame and not even being a year old and we have worked and we have been in the community actually doing the work and not writing it on paper and saying we doing this we're actually physically out there and showing up that …”
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Hani Ali, a Somali woman and founder of Mental Health Education & Legal Code for Refugee Rights, has faced significant challenges but remains undeterred. With the support of her community, she recently secured her first grant for a youth mentorship program, showcasing the impact of her work in helping refugees navigate legal and social barriers in Rochester. Despite the obstacles, Hani emphasizes that the positive support around her outweighs the negativity she encounters.
“… technology companies. And so we're also on the cusp for neurological data. And so I was doing some work with this group called the Neuro Rights Foundation and focusing on the protection of neurological data. And what does that mean on a state, federal, international”
“… stuff quite well. But you know, that said, that concept, we gave away all of our behavioral data under the guise that we're connecting with our friends from junior high and high school. But really what we were doing were training models for these large technology companies. And so we're also on the cusp for neurological data. And so I was doing some work with this group called the Neuro Rights Foundation and focusing on the protection of neurological data. And what does that mean on a state, federal, international”
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Using AI to optimize biological performance is the future of health and wellness. Thorin, CEO of Brain One, explains how data-driven protocols can enhance everything from nutrition to exercise, making small changes lead to big results. With the right tools, anyone can become a leader in their biological optimization journey.
“… may be more accomplished than we are. And I had a group of religious scholars, theologians, that were led by the current president of the Templeton Foundation. And they came to Harvard and he asked me to address the question of whether finding extraterrestrials will change religious beliefs. And I said, I don't think so because I have two daughters. And when the second one was born, it didn't take away the love that I have to the first one. So, imagining God as being able to attend to one child is very limiting. If you really believe that God is all capable, then there must be many children in our …”
“Didn't you give a talk somewhat recently about the Messiah could be an alien intelligence? So one of the reasons that I'm really interested in finding siblings in our family in the Milky Way Galaxy is because we can learn from them and they may be more accomplished than we are. And I had a group of religious scholars, theologians, that were led by the current president of the Templeton Foundation. And they came to Harvard and he asked me to address the question of whether finding extraterrestrials will change religious beliefs. And I said, I don't think so because I have two daughters. And when the second one was born, it didn't take away the love that I have to the first one. So, imagining God as being able to attend to one child is very limiting. If you really believe that God is all capable, then there must be many children in our family within the Milky Way galaxy, and we would not lose anything out of that. In fact if we ever met a more accomplished sibling the only thing that it can trigger is jealousy that they reached a higher level But we know that siblings have jealousy but that not a big deal It's good to find them because right now, if you look at textbooks about …”
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Avi Loeb, a renowned astronomer from Harvard, suggests that discovering extraterrestrial siblings in the Milky Way could redefine our emotional connection to the universe. He argues that finding intelligent life wouldn't diminish our understanding of God but rather expand it, just like having more children enriches a family's love. This perspective could inspire humanity to aim higher and foster a deeper connection with the cosmos.
“… not saying sufficient. I'm saying that they've done better than that. And even then, there's been no accountability. Think about the fact that Bill Gates, one of the 10 richest people in the world is profoundly humiliated right now He basically socially ruined by everything that come out The richest man in the world Elon Musk he got embarrassed by what came out of the files because of the exchanges he was having with Epstein's team. I believe the general counsel of Goldman Sachs, I think, got forced out of his job. That's a pretty elite position. What I would say, and what the president warned …”
“… in agreement we want them prosecuted, but we do disagree a bit on what's sufficient disclosure. I would say, I would first of all point out that we have more Epstein transparency now by about two orders of magnitude maybe than we had before. I'm not saying sufficient. I'm saying that they've done better than that. And even then, there's been no accountability. Think about the fact that Bill Gates, one of the 10 richest people in the world is profoundly humiliated right now He basically socially ruined by everything that come out The richest man in the world Elon Musk he got embarrassed by what came out of the files because of the exchanges he was having with Epstein's team. I believe the general counsel of Goldman Sachs, I think, got forced out of his job. That's a pretty elite position. What I would say, and what the president warned about, what the president warned about when this was all ramping up last summer is if you just release everything in a blanket way, there are going to be people who are going to be assumed guilty of crimes who aren't guilty of anything. And I think that's been borne out because there is an element where people have just demanded anyone whose name …”
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The shadow of Jeffrey Epstein looms large over powerful figures like Bill Gates and Bill Clinton, raising questions about accountability and influence. While some argue for mass arrests of those associated with Epstein, others caution against guilt by association without evidence of wrongdoing. The conversation highlights the need for transparency and the implications of elite connections in politics and society.
“… watching this on YouTube, you can go to agency.org. That's the place for the landing page for the open source collective. It's part of the Linux Foundation as well. But coming back to this example, what Agency allows you to do is it allows you to first discover these agents. So all of these four can get discovered. It then allows you to provide appropriate identity and access management attributes to each one of these. And we can spend some time on that but that a complicated topic And then once you do that then you can actually start communicating with each other So traffic starts flowing between …”
“… start doing things like this. So that's step one. And so to do that, we had launched this whole notion of the Internet of Agents, almost like a year ago and we launched an open source project called Agency. That's spelt A-G-N-T-C-Y. And again, if you're watching this on YouTube, you can go to agency.org. That's the place for the landing page for the open source collective. It's part of the Linux Foundation as well. But coming back to this example, what Agency allows you to do is it allows you to first discover these agents. So all of these four can get discovered. It then allows you to provide appropriate identity and access management attributes to each one of these. And we can spend some time on that but that a complicated topic And then once you do that then you can actually start communicating with each other So traffic starts flowing between all these agents They get connected. They're communicating with each other. And so there are things like MCP, protocols like MCP, the protocols like A2A that allow you to have agents talk to tools through MCP or allow agents to talk to each other through A2A. So that happens. Communication happens. And finally, there's an observability pillar …”
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Imagine if your insurance, diagnostics, and pharmacy could seamlessly communicate to provide the best healthcare for you. With the launch of Agency, a new open-source project, these previously isolated agents can now connect and share vital information, enabling smarter healthcare solutions. This transformation is crucial for creating an effective multi-agent system that enhances patient care.
“… on the Bill Maher show recently. Jonathan Haidt went on the Bill Maher show and said that the ultimate goal is to raise the age to 18, Heritage Foundation collaborator, Jonathan Haidt, who's an anti-trans, you know, in the Epstein files as well. And conveniently, he's never talked about Epstein, you know, despite the fact that he's built his whole brand on, you know, the harm, the alleged harm to children. I'm really feeling disheartened. I think the media coverage like truly broke me. It's like I would expect journalists to do the work and ask tough questions. And I think one thing I've realized …”
“… that you exist in because you will not have education or the ability to look outside them. This is like a Handmaid's Tale-esque fantasy of the future is like denying children access to the internet. Well, that's what Jonathan Haidt said that he wants on the Bill Maher show recently. Jonathan Haidt went on the Bill Maher show and said that the ultimate goal is to raise the age to 18, Heritage Foundation collaborator, Jonathan Haidt, who's an anti-trans, you know, in the Epstein files as well. And conveniently, he's never talked about Epstein, you know, despite the fact that he's built his whole brand on, you know, the harm, the alleged harm to children. I'm really feeling disheartened. I think the media coverage like truly broke me. It's like I would expect journalists to do the work and ask tough questions. And I think one thing I've realized is like it's not even malicious intent. It's just ignorance. And it's the way that like I found out actually that one of my old articles was used in one of these cases. It was an Atlantic story that I wrote back in 2018 on bullying on Instagram It was honestly a kind of a dumb story that I just wrote because my editor kid was bullied And she was …”
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Many grieving parents are pushing the narrative that social media is to blame for their children's deaths, but this perspective is deeply flawed. One mother, for instance, claims her daughter was 'murdered' by social media for realizing her trans identity, while ignoring the actual circumstances of her daughter's tragic death. This segment questions the motives behind these narratives and highlights the dangers of overlooking real issues affecting vulnerable children.
“… new donors, back into the donor pool. Filers who do itemize tend to have higher incomes and make bigger contributions, says Erica York at the Tax Foundation. Under the new law, they need to give at least half a percent of their adjusted gross income. You have to give above that floor in order to kick in that itemized deduction. York says the law also limits itemized deductions for the highest bracket. So instead of someone in the 37% tax bracket getting to deduct their itemized deductions against that 37% rate, they deduct it against the 35% rate. Ultimately, York says changing incentives may …”
“… level for their giving. But now the law lets a single filer deduct up to $1,000 of contributions. That, Bergdahl says, should encourage more people to start making small donations. We see it adding a significant number of new donors, around 8 million new donors, back into the donor pool. Filers who do itemize tend to have higher incomes and make bigger contributions, says Erica York at the Tax Foundation. Under the new law, they need to give at least half a percent of their adjusted gross income. You have to give above that floor in order to kick in that itemized deduction. York says the law also limits itemized deductions for the highest bracket. So instead of someone in the 37% tax bracket getting to deduct their itemized deductions against that 37% rate, they deduct it against the 35% rate. Ultimately, York says changing incentives may impact taxpayers on the margins. But overall, it's not going to be a massive effect. The Indiana University study estimated that the changes would result in about a 1% decrease in giving. And that's not great news for nonprofits in today's environment, says Ray Madoff at Boston College. Funding for all sorts of organizations has been drastically cut by …”
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New tax laws are poised to decrease charitable donations by $5.7 billion annually, despite potentially increasing the number of donors. While 8 million new small donors may emerge due to new deductions, overall giving is expected to drop by 1%. This shift poses challenges for nonprofits already facing funding cuts.
“… seeing happening in the markets is trading around the sentiment towards that coalition. Moving on, in 2010, billionaires led by Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett signed a giving pledge promising to donate the majority of their wealth to charitable causes. But many who signed may have been crossing their fingers behind their back because the giving hasn't quite materialized. Signups have slowed to a trickle and some are backing out altogether. The New York Times did a deep dive into the origin of the pledge and its subsequent fall from grace. Times reporter Teddy Schleifer emphasizes …”
“… stock futures are slightly down right now. It really is kind of tied around if Trump and these countries, NATO countries, can kind of get this coalition to escort ships to the strait, which is the big question mark right now. So a lot of what you're seeing happening in the markets is trading around the sentiment towards that coalition. Moving on, in 2010, billionaires led by Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett signed a giving pledge promising to donate the majority of their wealth to charitable causes. But many who signed may have been crossing their fingers behind their back because the giving hasn't quite materialized. Signups have slowed to a trickle and some are backing out altogether. The New York Times did a deep dive into the origin of the pledge and its subsequent fall from grace. Times reporter Teddy Schleifer emphasizes how of the moment it was, signing the pledge was fashionable in the early days, bringing positive media coverage and helping those who gave back earn the label of, quote, good billionaire. Aaron Horvath, a sociologist who has also studied the giving pledge, called it a time capsule of that era, but now it feels old school, he continued. The numbers …”
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The Giving Pledge, once a hallmark of billionaire philanthropy, is losing its allure as sign-ups dwindle dramatically. In just a decade, the number of new pledges has plummeted from 113 to only four in 2024, reflecting a shift in attitudes among the ultra-rich, particularly in the tech sector. This decline raises questions about the future of wealth distribution as the top 1% now holds as much wealth as the bottom 90% combined.
“… actually two. That was one email box. And the other email box was Mosaic was actually created under – it was also funded by the National Science Foundation. So it was actually not – the original license said you couldn't be used for commercial use. It was for academic and research and individual use. And so we had this thing. we did a deliberately ambiguous license. And we said, if you want to use the browser commercially, you need to email us to arrange terms. Now we had no concept at all of what those terms would be, but we just said we need to create the same coming flow. So I was getting …”
“… report or whatever you have a question submitted here. And that went to an email box and that email box was me. And so I became tech support for the internet for like three years and got all the emails. How many emails were you getting? Well, there were actually two. That was one email box. And the other email box was Mosaic was actually created under – it was also funded by the National Science Foundation. So it was actually not – the original license said you couldn't be used for commercial use. It was for academic and research and individual use. And so we had this thing. we did a deliberately ambiguous license. And we said, if you want to use the browser commercially, you need to email us to arrange terms. Now we had no concept at all of what those terms would be, but we just said we need to create the same coming flow. So I was getting bombarded with tech support requests. And by the way tech support for the internet means your tech support for everything So it like you know the old PCs had you know they had CD trays You press the button the CD tray comes out you put the disc in the thing The problem is a lot of people thought that those were cup holders, right? So you press the …”
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Netscape's early days were marked by overwhelming tech support requests and a pivotal realization about commercial potential. Marc Andreessen, the co-founder, discovered a flood of businesses wanting to license their browser, leading to the first internet advertising model. Despite initial skepticism that the internet would remain free, this moment set the stage for Netscape's transformation into a commercial powerhouse.
“… any one group, you can't say, well, that's bad. So again, United Democracy Project. It sounds good. The other one is the American Israeli Education Foundation. Education's good. We can all agree that education is good, right? Well, what does it fund? The only thing it funds is trips for congressmen and senators to go to Israel. Are you shitting me? That's all it funds. And almost every congressman and senator is gone. They have free, all-expense-paid trips to take them to Israel, parade them around and show them how wonderful Israel is, not going into Gaza or West Bank and then send them home. That …”
“… of these groups. This is kind of like swarm technology. What's harder to defend against? One incoming missile or 100? It's hard to shoot down a swarm. It's hard to get your hands around a lot of smaller groups that are all doing different things. And any one group, you can't say, well, that's bad. So again, United Democracy Project. It sounds good. The other one is the American Israeli Education Foundation. Education's good. We can all agree that education is good, right? Well, what does it fund? The only thing it funds is trips for congressmen and senators to go to Israel. Are you shitting me? That's all it funds. And almost every congressman and senator is gone. They have free, all-expense-paid trips to take them to Israel, parade them around and show them how wonderful Israel is, not going into Gaza or West Bank and then send them home. That is the American Israeli education foundation. We got one of those letters. Oh, I don't doubt it. Oh, they want you to go see, let us show you how good we are. I'm sorry. I don't need any more fucking propaganda. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I don't know if it was from that organization. I can remember Like I said there are hundreds of them There are so many …”
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Ridealong summary
Michael Lester reveals the extensive influence of AIPAC and similar organizations on U.S. politics, asserting that 80 congressmen rely on these groups for campaign funding. He argues that these organizations use seemingly benign names to mask their true purpose: promoting U.S. military support for Israel, often through funded trips that present a biased view of the region. This segment highlights the complexities of political influence and the implications for U.S. foreign policy.
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