Pete Peterson will fund a tax-exempt organization to increase public awareness of his economic theories, according to this NYTimes piece. Based on his previous statements, these will be the simple-minded laissez faire theories he imprinted on in the 1950s, comporting less with today's economic realities, or with current economic understandings, than they do with, say, creationism.
In looking up the link for the article reporting this today, I noticed that the New York Times has a series of articles, Age of Riches, which explores the effects of wealth concentration to a degree not seen in America since the 1920s. According to an earlier story,
"The new titans often see themselves as pillars of a similarly prosperous and expansive age [comparing to the Gilded Age before WWI], one in which their successes and their philanthropy have made government less important than it once was."
Well, less important to them certainly, but not unimportant because who but government could set the tax rate differentials that create profitable arbitrage opportunities to change one form of business organization to another and then back again? Peterson can put gazillions behind his propaganda mission in large part because his income at the Blackstone Group was taxed at only 15% as a "carried interest." He concedes other tax rates might have to go up but not that one.
Before he decided on this particular "philanthropy," Mr. Peterson should have spent time in a Wal-Mart store, where 90% of Americans shop, and followed a few customers home to see how their families live and find out what would improve their lives. If he were promoting economic theories that would help them--and not just the already super-rich--move ahead, that would be philanthropy.
Attention, Wal-Mart shoppers: Government is not less important for you.