Unless you are in the tight niches of the internet, like being avid news readers or in smaller circles on social media, there’s a big chance that you haven’t heard about the Pandora Papers. 

The Pandora Papers are a data leak that contained 12 million oversea documents uncovering exactly how much money and legal power the ultra-rich have and are exploiting. They are offshore investments that aren’t susceptible to taxation and are used to essentially hoard money. The data portrayed that some states, South Dakota for example, have been selling financial confidentiality. The documents also included of all of the loopholes that the rich have been exploiting to launder money overseas. The papers reveal the Czech Prime Minister, using an offshore insurance company, bought luxury real estate. And the family of the Kenyan President, Uhuru Kenyatta, owned companies offshore, to name a few. 

It’s no secret that huge corporations and the rich have huge legal power over the common man, but exactly how much advantage they have was unknown until now. This knowledge isn’t to be taken lightly, as many journalists, more than 600, have risked their safety and careers to make it known to the public. The threat to our democracy is apparent. The rich have been puppeteering the lawmaking system and changing laws to be more lenient to them. 

This deepens the already massive divide between the rich and the middle class, and the money continues to funnel to these tax-free sanctuaries overseas. 

This seems like it would be bigger news though, right? Many big news coverages haven’t put out anything related to the Pandora Papers despite it probably earning the top spot for the most interesting piece of news in a long time. 

Money has been around since the dawn of civilization. So have lies, deceit, and selfishness. Entire revolutions have been sparked because of the rich exploiting holes in old systems in need of reforms. At this point, the ultra-rich hoarding funds isn’t a surprise.

It’s fair to say that many big media companies have been silenced by a very hefty cash hush fee. It’s dangerous, money buying new laws and silencing what should be a free press.  

As a capitalist society, we always have potential for corruption and bribery with money. After all, who wouldn’t love a heaping pile of money JUST to pass a silly law or not write about something? The slippery slope is only getting steeper when it comes to the money-hoarding that goes on at the top of the societal food chain. 

Unfortunately, the system that we have in place won’t budge, so late stage capitalism devours the average man. The housing crisis and the worker crisis are consequences of this- housing prices skyrocketing with no higher wage compensation. This leads to strikes among workers protesting the low wages. Even the cost of groceries is going up. 

The Pandora Papers should have inspired a huge wave of outrage. Millions of dollars being kept locked in Middle Eastern countries, safe from any who may need it in the form of government services. The press needs to stay a true figurehead of free speech, uninhibited by corruption, and the people need to be aware.