The 1% and the Rest of Us: A Political Economy of Dominant Ownership

258 Pages·2015·1.72 MB·English

by  Tim Di Muzio

About the author
Tim Di Muzio is a senior lecturer in
international relations and political
economy at the University of Wollon­
gong. He currently edits the journal
Review of Capital as Power.

THE 1% AND THE REST OF US
A POLITICAL ECONOMY OF DOMINANT
OWNERSHIP
Tim Di Muzio
Zed Books
London
The 1% and the Rest of Us: A Political Economy of Dominant Ownership
was first published in 2015 by Zed Books Ltd, 7 Cynthia Street, London
n1 9JF, UK
www.zedbooks.co.uk
Copyright © Tim Di Muzio 2015
The right of Tim Di Muzio to be identified as the author of this work
has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs
and Patents Act, 1988
Set in Monotype Plantin and FFKievit by Ewan Smith, London
Index: [email protected]
Cover image © Gansovsky Vladislav/Getty Images
Cover designed by www.roguefour.co.uk
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any
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the prior permission of Zed Books Ltd.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
isbn 978­1­78360­143­1 hb
isbn 978­1­78360­142­4 pb
isbn 978­1­78360­144­8 pdf
isbn 978­1­78360­145­5 epub
isbn 978­1­78360­146­2 mobi
CONTENTS
Tables and figures | vi
introdUction: towards a gLobaL poLiticaL
economy oF the 1% . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
1 the UnUsUaL sUspects: identiFying the gLobaL 1% . . 21
2 capitaL as power and the 1% . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
3 weaLth, money and power . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
4 diFFerentiaL consUmption: the rise oF pLUtonomy 142
5 society versUs the sUperman theory oF weaLth . . .165
6 the party oF the 99%: resistance and FUtUre
prospects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
Notes | 220 Bibliography | 229
Index | 242
TABLES AND FIGURES
Tables
1.1 High­net­worth populations by region . . . . . . . . . . .40
2.1 Selected firms, their assets and capitalisation, 2012 . . . . .60
4.1 Selected items on the Cost of Living Extremely Well Index,
2012 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .157
Figures
1.1 Wealth pyramid by financial assets owned . . . . . . . . . 31
1.2 The hierarchy of wealth by net worth. . . . . . . . . . . . 33
1.3 High­net­worth categories as a percentage of the global
population . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
1.4 Largest high­net­worth populations by country . . . . . . . 41
1.5 HNWI wealth allocation by region, 2013 . . . . . . . . . . 41
1.6 Ultra­HNWIs by region . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42
1.7 Rise of the billionaire class, 1985–2013 . . . . . . . . . . . 43
1.8 The global hierarchy of wealth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46
2.1 Global financial assets by category. . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

To my parents, Ray and Robin Di Muzio,
who just wanted me, Steve and Teresa to
be happy.
And to Hanna, for help making it so.
INTRODUCTION: TOWARDS A GLOBAL
POLITICAL ECONOMY OF THE 1%1
Of all Classes, the wealthy are the most noticed and the least
studied. (John Kenneth Galbraith 1977: 44)
The fact is that there is far more systematic information avail-
able on the poor, on farmers, workers … than on the men and
women of the rich and the well-born, on those who make up
the ‘upper strata’ – if not the ‘capitalist class’ – of our society.
Yet now it ought to be apparent … that we must discover as
much as we can about those who occupy the upper reaches
of … society if we are to understand … the present as history.
(Maurice Zeitlin 1974: 1112)
Study the rich and the powerful, not the poor and powerless
… not nearly enough work is being done on those who hold
the power and pull the strings. As their tactics become more
subtle and their public pronouncements more guarded, the
need for better spade-work becomes crucial … Let the poor
study themselves. They already know what is wrong with their
lives and if you truly want to help them, the best you can do is
to give them a clearer idea of how their oppressors are work-
ing now and can be expected to work in the future. (Susan
George 2010: 82)
One of the most interesting developments in the global political
economy is our increasing awareness that a tiny minority of
the world’s population is growing obscenely wealthy. Of course,
the fact that there is a gap between the rich and poor is hardly