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No one's talking about hating the rich here but you. We can all care about societal inequality, and how it probably suggests that the levers of civilization ne

by Frondo 9y ago

No one's talking about hating the rich here but you. We can all care about societal inequality, and how it probably suggests that the levers of civilization need to be jiggered a bit, without hating anyone. I think housing in the PNW is way unaffordable but that doesn't mean I hate either the developers, the planners, or the numerous other social and geographical factors that have led to this situation. In short, please don't bring up things like "hate the rich" when no one else is.

Consultant32452 9y ago
Your primary complaint could have all the wind taken out of its sails if we just magically took all the money away from wealthy people and burned it. Because wealth inequality would go down. It wouldn't actually help anyone, but wealth inequality would go down. Affordable housing is a problem best addressed by the people who live in the areas that have a lack of affordable housing. It's not something that needs addressing on the national scale.
- your-nanny 9y ago
  It might help, actually. Your assumption is that what the rich do with their mmonet doesn't actually hurt the poor; but it can. Itcab be used to purchase narratives and political influence in ways deeply harmful
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
  - Consultant32452 9y ago
    You're still focusing your attention on supposed bad behavior of the rich rather than the wellbeing of the poor. If you think the poor need something, like say more funding for inner city schools, then say that and suggest a reasonable tax, perhaps a tax on luxury goods that would disproportionately affect the wealthy. Or if there's a specific bad behavior, such as pharmaceutical advertising, talk about that. But just complaining about wealth inequality sounds more like hating the rich than caring about the poor.
    - your-nanny 9y ago
      But rich people largely advocate against policies that favor poor people, like generous welfare and equitable taxation. Rich people advocate for policies that protect their status and the value of their properties and investments. They advocate against redistributive inheritance taxes, so that their own children continue to have enormous advantages over anyone else. They advocate policies that guarantee they can continue to extract wealth from rents rather than productive avtivities, dragging down the economic well being of all. And the rich are more likely to cheat on their taxes, try to bribe officials, or flat out disregard the law. And the rich have disproportionate power to do so, and work very hard to make it stay that way.
      - Consultant32452 9y ago
        >But rich people largely advocate against policies that favor poor people, like generous welfare and equitable taxation. Rich people advocate for policies that protect their status and the value of their properties and investments. Do you suppose it's possible for you to advocate for a specific amount of welfare that you feel is "generous" without attempting to villainize the very people you hope to pay for it? >They advocate against redistributive inheritance taxes, so that their own children continue to have enormous advantages over anyone else. First, one of the major motivations of achieving success in life is so that your children will be better off. So all you've established is that rich people are good parents. Secondly, you're still just upset that someone has a lot, rather than focusing on a specific problem that some group of poor people has. You're just hating the rich rather than showing an interest in helping the poor. Third, fortunes generally disappear after 3 generations, so it's not as if huge dynasties are being created that last forever. If you're rich, your grandkids get to go to a nice private school. That's pretty much it. >They advocate policies that guarantee they can continue to extract wealth from rents rather than productive avtivities, dragging down the economic well being of all. Yes, things like regulatory capture are a problem. I will hold up a sign and protest it alongside you. But do you see you you're STILL pointing to the "rich" rather than "bad policy?" >And the rich are more likely to cheat on their taxes, try to bribe officials, or flat out disregard the law. I've never met a person who worked for tips that didn't cheat on their taxes, have you? But more importantly, we're back at the same place. Rather than advocating for or against a specific policy, you're just slinging mud. You care more about saying mean things about rich people than you do about issues the poor might be facing.

by Frondo 9y ago

Consultant32452 9y ago

Your primary complaint could have all the wind taken out of its sails if we just magically took all the money away from wealthy people and burned it. Because wealth inequality would go down. It wouldn't actually help anyone, but wealth inequality would go down. Affordable housing is a problem best addressed by the people who live in the areas that have a lack of affordable housing. It's not something that needs addressing on the national scale.

your-nanny 9y ago
It might help, actually. Your assumption is that what the rich do with their mmonet doesn't actually hurt the poor; but it can. Itcab be used to purchase narratives and political influence in ways deeply harmful
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- Consultant32452 9y ago
  You're still focusing your attention on supposed bad behavior of the rich rather than the wellbeing of the poor. If you think the poor need something, like say more funding for inner city schools, then say that and suggest a reasonable tax, perhaps a tax on luxury goods that would disproportionately affect the wealthy. Or if there's a specific bad behavior, such as pharmaceutical advertising, talk about that. But just complaining about wealth inequality sounds more like hating the rich than caring about the poor.
  - your-nanny 9y ago
    But rich people largely advocate against policies that favor poor people, like generous welfare and equitable taxation. Rich people advocate for policies that protect their status and the value of their properties and investments. They advocate against redistributive inheritance taxes, so that their own children continue to have enormous advantages over anyone else. They advocate policies that guarantee they can continue to extract wealth from rents rather than productive avtivities, dragging down the economic well being of all. And the rich are more likely to cheat on their taxes, try to bribe officials, or flat out disregard the law. And the rich have disproportionate power to do so, and work very hard to make it stay that way.
    - Consultant32452 9y ago
      >But rich people largely advocate against policies that favor poor people, like generous welfare and equitable taxation. Rich people advocate for policies that protect their status and the value of their properties and investments. Do you suppose it's possible for you to advocate for a specific amount of welfare that you feel is "generous" without attempting to villainize the very people you hope to pay for it? >They advocate against redistributive inheritance taxes, so that their own children continue to have enormous advantages over anyone else. First, one of the major motivations of achieving success in life is so that your children will be better off. So all you've established is that rich people are good parents. Secondly, you're still just upset that someone has a lot, rather than focusing on a specific problem that some group of poor people has. You're just hating the rich rather than showing an interest in helping the poor. Third, fortunes generally disappear after 3 generations, so it's not as if huge dynasties are being created that last forever. If you're rich, your grandkids get to go to a nice private school. That's pretty much it. >They advocate policies that guarantee they can continue to extract wealth from rents rather than productive avtivities, dragging down the economic well being of all. Yes, things like regulatory capture are a problem. I will hold up a sign and protest it alongside you. But do you see you you're STILL pointing to the "rich" rather than "bad policy?" >And the rich are more likely to cheat on their taxes, try to bribe officials, or flat out disregard the law. I've never met a person who worked for tips that didn't cheat on their taxes, have you? But more importantly, we're back at the same place. Rather than advocating for or against a specific policy, you're just slinging mud. You care more about saying mean things about rich people than you do about issues the poor might be facing.