Public trust in government remains low, as it has for much of the 21st century. Only two-in-ten Americans say they trust the government in Washington to do what is right “just about always” (2%) or “most of the time” (19%).
A median of 62% of adults across the 14 countries surveyed this summer generally believe most people can be trusted.
Trust is essential for community, wellbeing, and effective cooperation. How does trust vary between different societies and locations and what matters for levels of trust?
time lags involved in building dynastic fortunes ... Inequality of income must precede growing inequality of wealth, since wealth is simply the cumulative excess of income over consumption.So, given the current era of highly unequal incomes and social immobility, we can expect inheritance to play a much bigger role in explaining inequality for the generations now entering adulthood. That will include direct transfers of wealth, mainly via inheritances, as well as the effects of increasingly unequal access to education, early job opportunities and home ownership
Are we creating a society Jane Austen might recognise?
馬英九的競選政見本來只說要將遺產稅免稅額及扣除額，提高到2600萬元，反而是謝長廷承諾要將免稅額提高到3000萬元，並將遺產稅最高邊際稅率由50% 降低到10%。但7月23日，工商協進會與劉兆玄早餐，要求將遺產稅先調降至20%，將來完全廢除。劉兆玄表示贊同
過去十幾年中華民國政府所推政策中最爛最爛的是哪個政策？我可以毫不猶豫地告訴你：就是在2008年將原本50%最高邊際稅率的遺產稅率，一舉降為10%。這個政策背後有太多太多的可疑之處
1：資本集中的必然趨勢[啟動LINE推播]每日重大新聞通知法國皮凱提（ThomasPiketty）教授的新書CapitalintheTwentyFirstCentury（我暫譯為《廿一世紀資本論》）獲得《紐約時報》極佳書評，而諾貝爾經濟學獎得主克魯曼甚至誇讚，此書是今年甚或最近十
intergenerational transfers, such as inheritances and inter vivos gifts, play a significant role in underpinning wealth inequality. When inheritances and gifts exceed a certain threshold, the opportunities to accumulate more wealth are greatly expanded
Wealth inequality can limit people’s ability to accumulate human capital, carry out business projects, or cope with major economic crises. Focusing on France, Spain, the UK, and the US, this column shows that intergenerational transfers, such as inheritances and inter vivos gifts, play a significant role in underpinning wealth inequality. When inheritances and gifts exceed a certain threshold, the opportunities to accumulate more wealth are greatly expanded.
跨國企業菁英與超級富豪階層也順勢取得了無以倫比的政治權力，他們可以凌駕政府、支配社會遊戲規則，並一步步的支解立意在保護弱勢群體、勞工與中產階級權益的經濟管制措施與社會保障體系。他們排斥任何限制其行動自由與資本回報的全球治理或監管機制，他們可以影響美國法律與國際規則，也可以左右國際貨幣基金與美國聯邦儲備理事會的觀點與政策
全球化的紅利與風險之分配嚴重不均
主流政治人物紛紛失去這批選民的信任，因為這些熟面孔不是已經被利益集團徹底綁架，就是面對經濟與社會難題束手無策，選民寧可寄希望於毫無從政經驗的新手
新自由主義思維頌揚個人自由，但也同時獎勵自私、自利與貪婪，並鼓勵對物質欲望無止境的追求。美國富裕階層的所得稅率在發達國家中是最低的，而且跨國企業都盡可能將利潤隱藏在國外租稅天堂，他們自私自利到連最基本的社會義務都設法擺脫
本書以臺灣的社區治理為探討主軸，輔以非營利組織、地方治理以及國外治理個案比較等研究，充分體現臺灣公民社會及地方治理實踐的現況。社區作為人民自治最基礎的單位，是公民社會組成的一環，也是培養公民及共同體意識最佳的範圍，更是人民直接參與公共事務及自我治理的場域。臺灣的公民社會，透過對安全社區、醫療照護與社會福利服務、文化產業與節慶、地方教育政策、宗教治理，以及非營利組織治理網絡等地方治理議題的關心與投入，展現了臺灣的民主生機。
Often inertia is rooted in the conceptions and prejudices held by decision makers, even when their own material interest is not at risk. In Malawi, researchers found that ideas about ‘the poor’—the ‘deserving’ vs. the ‘undeserving’ poor—had a significant impact on individuals’ readiness to support cash transfers to people living in poverty. The elites interviewed—which included civil society, religious leaders, and academics as well as politicians, bureaucrats, and private sector leaders—all believed that redistributive policies make the poor lazy (or lazier). The overwhelming evidence for the effectiveness of cash transfers made no difference; neither did the fact that the elites stand to lose little from such reforms (and could even gain electorally, in the case of politicians)....he informed us that, while he was happy to discuss UK trade policy, we should first agree that there were certain ‘universal truths’, namely that trade liberalization leads to more trade; more trade leads to less poverty. Both claims were highly debatable, but no-one was going to change the mandarin’s habit of regurgitating what he had learned at university some decades back... Not much room for evidence-based policy making there.It is always possible, of course, that madmen in authority can be persuaded to change their minds, but it is uphill work: a steady drip-drip of contrary evidence, public criticism, pressure from their peers, and exposure to failures and crises all help. In the end, I fear that really deep-rooted ideas only change with generational turnover
conceptual flexibility
Belief perseverance (also known as conceptual conservatism[1]) is maintaining a belief despite new information that firmly contradicts it.[2] Such beliefs may even be strengthened when others attempt to present evidence debunking them, a phenomenon known as the backfire effect (compare boomerang effect).[3] For example, in a 2014 article in The...
信念固着是指人们一旦对某项事物建立了某种信念，尤其是为它建立了一个理论支持体系，那么就很难打破人们的这一看法，即使是相反的证据与信息出现时他们也往往视而不见。[1]...
