TNR: The Koch Brothers' Self-Exposé

[highplainsdem]

This is about the bizarre Weekly Standard piece trying to portray the Kochs as victims of "the buzz saw of the contemporary left" -- which I posted about first here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x754181


Jonathan Chait's comments in The New Republic:

http://www.tnr.com/blog/jonathan-chait/85874/the-koch-brothers-self-expose

The Koch Brothers' Self-Exposé
Jonathan Chait
March 28, 2011 | 11:09 am


-snip-

Continetti likewise conveys the Kochs’ view that the fact that they dramatically grew the business they inherited from their father essentially makes them self-made men, and that their skepticism of climate science is a product of their superior scientific mind, and completely unrelated to their fortune in the dirty energy business. The Kochs are apparently the sole exception to the libertarian theory of virtuous selfishness.

The most fascinating revelation is how simplistic the Kochs’ world view is. They are basically just garden-variety Dittoheads:

-snipping ignorant remarks by the Kochs-

Right! They think Obama’s plan to restore Clinton-era tax rates, implement the old Republican health care plan and John McCain’s climate plan is Kenyan socialism stemming from a deep hatred of the rich. How could anybody disagree? Isn’t this merely a straightforward application of introductory economics?

I think they actually believe this. Which is to say, it is very easy to overestimate the sinister character of the Kochs. These are basically just a couple of not-terribly-sophisticated thinkers who happen to be sitting on a huge pile of money.

[drm604]

1. I love that last sentence.

"These are basically just a couple of not-terribly-sophisticated thinkers who happen to be sitting on a huge pile of money."

That says it all.