The billionaire class emerged from the pandemic richer than ever. The rest of the world did not. How did this happen — and who is responsible?

In this TBLI Talk, Robert Rubinstein sits down with Peter S. Goodman, Global Economics Correspondent for The New York Times and author of the bestselling Davos Man: How the Billionaires Devoured the World. Drawing on decades of reporting from over 40 countries, Peter has built the definitive case for how a small class of globe-trotting ultra-wealthy — the "Davos Men" — have systematically stripped governments of resources, weakened healthcare systems, evaded taxation, and exploited the pandemic to multiply their fortunes while the world suffered. Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz called it "a biting, uproarious yet vital and deadly serious account." The Washington Post called it "the hijacking of our democracy." Peter's radical truth: the "Cosmic Lie" — that cutting taxes and deregulating markets benefits everyone — has happened, in real life, exactly zero times.

In this episode:

• How the billionaire class exploited COVID-19 to accelerate a 50-year trend of wealth centralisation
• What "Davos Man" is — and how stakeholder capitalism rhetoric masks systematic plunder
• How the hollowing out of healthcare, government, and public infrastructure left the world defenceless against the pandemic
• What the true cost of tax avoidance and deregulation is — and who pays it
• What portraits of ordinary workers — from a Bangladeshi migrant in Qatar to an Amazon warehouse employee in New York — reveal about how global elites shape daily life
• What genuine economic reform would look like — and whether democracy can still deliver it

The key insight: Davos Man deploys philanthropic dollars — a tiny fraction of the taxes he has avoided — to pose as a concerned global citizen, while perpetuating the idea that his continued enrichment is a requirement for society to make any progress at all. Peter Goodman spent years documenting the lie. This is what he found.

⏱️ Episode Guide:

• 0:00 — What Davos Man is and why he matters
• 0:X:XX — How the billionaire class exploited the pandemic
• 0:X:XX — The Cosmic Lie: trickle-down economics and its victims
• 0:X:XX — Stakeholder capitalism: noble vision or cover story?
• 0:X:XX — Who pays for tax avoidance and deregulation
• 0:X:XX — What genuine reform looks like — and whether it is still possible

👤 About Peter S. GoodmanPeter S. Goodman is the Global Economics Correspondent for The New York Times. He previously served as the NYT's European and national economics correspondents, playing a leading role in the paper's award-winning coverage of the Great Recession, including a series that was a Pulitzer Prize finalist. H Amazone has reported from more than 40 countries, has been recognised with two Gerald Loeb Awards and seven prizes from the Society of American Business Editors and Writers, and is the author of Davos Man (2022) and Past Due (2009), named one of Bloomberg's top 50 business titles. H Amazone graduated from Reed College and holds a master's degree from the University of California, Berkeley.

AmazonFor anyone working in impact investing, ESG, economic justice, or the future of capitalism — this episode is essential listening.

ABOUT TBLI RADICAL TRUTHReal experience. Real results. No greenwashing. TBLI Group is the world's leading ESG and impact investing network — educating, advising, and connecting investors for 25 years.🌐 tbligroup.com

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