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My point was that at some point the money needs to leave the investment cycle in order to mean anything at which point it will be subject to taxes on whatever i

My point was that at some point the money needs to leave the investment cycle in order to mean anything at which point it will be subject to taxes on whatever is purchased. The only way to avoid ever paying the tax is to never spend your money and at that point it may as well not exist for the rich person. The rich person will have more money left over than the poor person but they still spend more in sales taxes or whatever the equivalent is for what they purchase. I guess I just don't see the problem with rich people having more left over after paying the sales tax than poor people do.

chongli 7y ago
I guess I just don't see the problem with rich people having more left over after paying the sales tax than poor people do. The problem is that they can spend it on capital which then lets them earn more and more wealth. Maybe you also disagree with the claim that inequality is itself a problem? That would put you in the minority in most places. If not, then consider this: sales taxes, due to their regressive nature, increase inequality and funnel more wealth to the top. Taxes on unearned economic rents (such as land value taxes) are progressive, decreasing inequality and spreading wealth more evenly throughout society.
afarrell 7y ago
Money doesn’t need to be spent in order to provide utility. Example: I recently needed to switch both jobs and housing urgently. When I learned this, I had about £13,000 in liquid savings and $7,000 in almost-as-liquid savings. I didn’t end up needing to really touch more than £3,000 of those savings pots. So was my £10,000 of extra savings giving me any utility? Absolutely yes. I was much less worried. Contrast this with someone who has no savings and whose tire blows. How do they acquire $250 in order to be able to keep their job?
c22 7y ago
The difference is that the rich person doesn't have to work. Their income is just the return on their investments. Meanwhile the poor person has to work 16 hour days to achieve an equivalent lifestyle. Okay, so they're paying the same amount of taxes, but is this a just way to organize society? What opportunity does the wage slave have to decrease their workload? It's fine to have haves and have-nots, but the burden of supporting society should be equally borne, financially by those with financial means and laboriously by those putting in the labor. Regressive taxes force those without capital to pay twice.

chongli 7y ago

I guess I just don't see the problem with rich people having more left over after paying the sales tax than poor people do. The problem is that they can spend it on capital which then lets them earn more and more wealth. Maybe you also disagree with the claim that inequality is itself a problem? That would put you in the minority in most places. If not, then consider this: sales taxes, due to their regressive nature, increase inequality and funnel more wealth to the top. Taxes on unearned economic rents (such as land value taxes) are progressive, decreasing inequality and spreading wealth more evenly throughout society.

afarrell 7y ago

Money doesn’t need to be spent in order to provide utility. Example: I recently needed to switch both jobs and housing urgently. When I learned this, I had about £13,000 in liquid savings and $7,000 in almost-as-liquid savings. I didn’t end up needing to really touch more than £3,000 of those savings pots. So was my £10,000 of extra savings giving me any utility? Absolutely yes. I was much less worried. Contrast this with someone who has no savings and whose tire blows. How do they acquire $250 in order to be able to keep their job?

c22 7y ago

The difference is that the rich person doesn't have to work. Their income is just the return on their investments. Meanwhile the poor person has to work 16 hour days to achieve an equivalent lifestyle. Okay, so they're paying the same amount of taxes, but is this a just way to organize society? What opportunity does the wage slave have to decrease their workload? It's fine to have haves and have-nots, but the burden of supporting society should be equally borne, financially by those with financial means and laboriously by those putting in the labor. Regressive taxes force those without capital to pay twice.