In 2019, Rutger Bregman went viral. Invited to speak on a panel at the World Economic Forum, the annual self-flagellation session for the super-rich in Davos, Switzerland, the progressive Dutch author railed against the reluctance of the conference’s wealthy attendees to talk about taxation: “Taxes, taxes, taxes. All the rest is bullsh**, in my opinion.” A video clip of his social-media-ready shot at the 0.1 percent was all over Twitter for several days (a lifetime on that platform).
Bregman’s recent book, Humankind: A Hopeful History, is further evidence of his savvy as a salesman in today’s marketplace of ideas: First, take …
This article appears as “Humanity’s Hidden Goodness?” in the January 25, 2021, print edition of National Review.
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