During the savings-and-loan scandal of the 1980s—a scandal whose dimensions, by today’s standards, seem almost quaint—the banker Charles Keating was asked by a congressional committee whether the $1.5 million he had spread among a few key elected officials could actually buy influence.

“I certainly hope so,” he replied.

Source: Of the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1%, Joseph Stiglitz, Vanity Fair

Roger Ebert, writing about the Joseph Stiglitz 1% article, says,

“These facts confirm my impression that greed is now seen as a virtue in America. I’m not surprised by the greed of the One-Percenters. I’m mystified by the lack of indignation from so many of the rest of us.”

Source: The One-Percenters, Roger Ebert’s Journal

Source: Eleven charts that explain everything that’s wrong with America By Dave Gilson and Carolyn Perot, Mother Jones

A New Era for British Columbia, BC Liberals Platform 2001