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> Clearly, it wasn't obvious to everyone. Nope, it wasn't. You do realize that the concept you're so stoked on was actually tested in Mr. Piketty's homeland an

> Clearly, it wasn't obvious to everyone. Nope, it wasn't. You do realize that the concept you're so stoked on was actually tested in Mr. Piketty's homeland and failed miserably? Oh, the irony! From NPR [0]: > Normally progressives like to point to Europe for policy success. Not this time. The experiment with the wealth tax in Europe was a failure in many countries. France's wealth tax contributed to the exodus of an estimated 42,000 millionaires between 2000 and 2012, among other problems. Only last year, French president Emmanuel Macron killed it. Capital is like water - it flows in the direction of least resistance. That part should be obvious. [0] https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2019/02/26/698057356/if-a-wealth-tax-is-such-a-good-idea-why-did-europe-kill-theirs https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2019/02/26/698057356/if-a...

random314 6y ago
You do realize that using the phrase "you do realize" does not make your argument any stronger. France did quite well in the decades it applied a wealth tax, irrespective of Macron's actions. You seem to be obsessed with France. Have you considered Switzerland, one of the wealthiest countries with the highest standard of living and super high minimum wage. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-16/swiss-wealth-tax-rakes-in-cash-as-covid-revives-global-debate https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-16/swiss-wea...
- aerosmile 6y ago
  NPR disagrees with you. Good night. Edit: seems like you added some more info to your comment. Ok, I'll bite. Nobody ever uses Switzerland in an apples to apples comparison with Western democracies because Switzerland employs bank secrecy laws that make it a crime to identify owners of bank accounts (which brings into question the legitimacy of much of the capital in those bank accounts). This is straight from Wikipedia [0]: > Swiss banks have served as safe havens for the wealth of dictators, despots, mobsters, arms dealers, corrupt officials, and tax cheats of all kinds. In 2018, London-based Tax Justice Network ranks Switzerland's banking sector as the "most corrupt" in the world due to a large offshore banking industry and very strict secrecy laws. The ranking attempts to measure how much assistance the country's legal systems provide to money laundering, and to protecting corruptly obtained wealth. Also, I mentioned elsewhere that a total of 9 countries in Europe implemented and then killed the wealth tax. This has nothing to do with just one politician in one country. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banking_in_Switzerland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banking_in_Switzerland
  - random314 6y ago
    If you want to engage in cherry picking and rhetoric to insist on justifying your preconceived bias, allow me the same luxury. High income inequality causes regulatory capture by a minority elite. Any financial discomfort to this tiny elite through popular movements that impose a very modest wealth tax, faces relentless attack by this tiny elite and their chattel, which includes the politicians they sponsor - ultimately resulting in the overturning of tax policies that benefit society as a whole. High income inequality leads to regulatory capture by a tiny minority and results in a government primarily focused on the coddling of the idle rich. Hence, all examples of overturned wealth taxes you picked can be dismissed outright. Cherry picking is not a luxury available exclusively to you. Your bias is obvious from the fact that you were fixated on France while completely ignoring their much more successful neighbor.

random314 6y ago

You do realize that using the phrase "you do realize" does not make your argument any stronger. France did quite well in the decades it applied a wealth tax, irrespective of Macron's actions. You seem to be obsessed with France. Have you considered Switzerland, one of the wealthiest countries with the highest standard of living and super high minimum wage. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-16/swiss-wealth-tax-rakes-in-cash-as-covid-revives-global-debate https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-16/swiss-wea...

aerosmile 6y ago
NPR disagrees with you. Good night. Edit: seems like you added some more info to your comment. Ok, I'll bite. Nobody ever uses Switzerland in an apples to apples comparison with Western democracies because Switzerland employs bank secrecy laws that make it a crime to identify owners of bank accounts (which brings into question the legitimacy of much of the capital in those bank accounts). This is straight from Wikipedia [0]: > Swiss banks have served as safe havens for the wealth of dictators, despots, mobsters, arms dealers, corrupt officials, and tax cheats of all kinds. In 2018, London-based Tax Justice Network ranks Switzerland's banking sector as the "most corrupt" in the world due to a large offshore banking industry and very strict secrecy laws. The ranking attempts to measure how much assistance the country's legal systems provide to money laundering, and to protecting corruptly obtained wealth. Also, I mentioned elsewhere that a total of 9 countries in Europe implemented and then killed the wealth tax. This has nothing to do with just one politician in one country. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banking_in_Switzerland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banking_in_Switzerland
- random314 6y ago
  If you want to engage in cherry picking and rhetoric to insist on justifying your preconceived bias, allow me the same luxury. High income inequality causes regulatory capture by a minority elite. Any financial discomfort to this tiny elite through popular movements that impose a very modest wealth tax, faces relentless attack by this tiny elite and their chattel, which includes the politicians they sponsor - ultimately resulting in the overturning of tax policies that benefit society as a whole. High income inequality leads to regulatory capture by a tiny minority and results in a government primarily focused on the coddling of the idle rich. Hence, all examples of overturned wealth taxes you picked can be dismissed outright. Cherry picking is not a luxury available exclusively to you. Your bias is obvious from the fact that you were fixated on France while completely ignoring their much more successful neighbor.