> How does this work, generally? Sure, there are people with "so much wealth they don't really know how to allocate it sanely," as you say. But ultimately what

> How does this work, generally? Sure, there are people with "so much wealth they don't really know how to allocate it sanely," as you say. But ultimately what happens with it? The "super wealthy" don't have it sitting under their mattresses--it's in all kinds of investments: stocks, property, etc. Yes, that's the point, if you're really rich, you don't spend most of your money, you invest it. And that's all very well and good, but there's a problem. In this world there are are all kinds of investments: excellent investments, merely good ones, poor investments, catastrophic ones. And the problem is, currently there is far more money in the hands of the wealthy than there are excellent investments for them to invest in. That means they're constantly on the prowl for new areas to invest in but even so, a lot of investments turn out to be catastrophic, meaning they don't generate wealth, they destroy it. And so, under these specific conditions, that there is far more liquidity than worthwhile places to invest, then yes, I would consider it better for some of that money to be taxed and spent than on just melting away in bad land deals, risky schemes and fraud.