Should We Cherish the Ultra-Wealthy? (a.k.a. ‘The Cornfield’)
Optimist Economy
Kathryn Anne Edwards and Robin Rauzi
4.9 • 829 Ratings
🗓️ 26 May 2026
⏱️ 43 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
A certain kind of wealthy American has been griping out loud lately — about taxes, about progressive cities, about how unappreciated they are for the jobs they create, the stuff they buy, and the tips they hand out. A narrative is coalescing around them too: that the top 10% of earners now do so much of the spending, the U.S. economy relies on them. But an economy that depends so much on the people at the top isn't the healthy one the country deserves — it’s just wearing a nice suit.
Chapters:
00:00:56 Announcements: Q&A episode questions wanted
00:01:18 Retcon: The 86 debate; FDR's full "calamity howling executives" quote 00:05:32 Terms & Conditions: Wealth Effect and Zugzwang
00:09:26 Big Pilcrow: Should we cherish the ultra-wealthy?
00:36:41 Executive Orders: Retire "mummies"; union credits on red carpets 00:39:34 Spiritual Sponsors: Mellow Cello podcast; enormous floral arrangements
Further Reading
Moody's claim that the top 10% of earners now drive nearly half of consumer spending in the WSJ:
https://www.wsj.com/economy/consumers/us-economy-strength-rich-spending-2c34a571
The Minneapolis Fed on what the underlying data actually shows. https://www.minneapolisfed.org/article/2026/have-us-consumers-gone-k-shaped-a-review-of-the-data
Wealthy part-time New Yorkers reacting to a proposed pied-à-terre tax in the Financial Times. https://www.ft.com/content/3283eaab-e9cf-41e6-a028-5a02fb6f4615
The Wall Street Journal on second-home taxes spreading from New York City to other states, including the San Diego homeowner who'd like to be cherished. https://www.wsj.com/real-estate/taxes-on-second-homes-are-springing-up-across-america-93a64448
Full reading list at https://optimisteconomy.substack.com
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi, I'm Frances Fry. And I'm Anne Morris. And we are the hosts of a new TED podcast called Fixable. |
| 0:06.4 | We've helped leaders at some of the world's most competitive companies solve all kinds of problems. |
| 0:12.0 | On our show, we'll pull back the curtain and give you the type of honest, unfiltered advice we usually reserve for top executives. |
| 0:19.1 | Maybe you have a coworker with boundary issues, or you want to |
| 0:22.4 | know how to inspire and motivate your team. No problem is too big or too small. Give us a call, |
| 0:27.5 | and we'll help you solve the problems you're stuck on. Find fixable wherever you listen to podcasts. |
| 0:35.1 | I don't want to read the news. I want Robin to read me her reaction to the news. |
| 0:40.3 | Sometimes in the morning, my poor wife is making coffee, and I'm like, but, yeah, could you keep this thing? |
| 0:47.0 | She's like, hits the coffee grinder button, you know, just like. |
| 0:50.2 | Is there a way to shop for loud grinders? |
| 0:52.6 | Exactly. |
| 1:01.0 | Yeah. Is there a way to shop for loud grinders? Exactly. Hello and welcome to Optimist Economy. |
| 1:03.0 | I'm economist Catherine Ann Edwards. |
| 1:04.7 | I'm editor Robin Rousey. |
| 1:06.5 | On this show, we believe the U.S. economy can be better, |
| 1:08.8 | and we talk about how to get there one problem and solution at a time. |
| 1:17.4 | Well, so today on Optimist Economy, we're only both about 30% sure about what we're talking about, but we're pretty sure it's about rich people. |
| 1:24.9 | It's definitely about rich people. |
| 1:26.9 | What we're going to say about them is a little |
| 1:28.9 | bit up in the air. Part of the conversation is that we don't know how to talk about what we talk |
| 1:35.9 | about them. All right. First announcements. First, we've gotten a lot of great questions so far for |
| 1:40.8 | our next Q&A episode. I think that we will be recording it in two weeks, which means |
... |
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