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I read the whole article, but I don't understand why he is so offended by the wealthy being wealthy and getting wealthier. Does Bill Gates being rich hurt poor
by lnanek2 13y ago
I read the whole article, but I don't understand why he is so offended by the wealthy being wealthy and getting wealthier. Does Bill Gates being rich hurt poor people? Not that I can see. In fact he puts a lot of money into curing diseases. Does Musk being rich hurt poor people? Not that I can see, he is saving the environment by making electric cars popular and bringing back the country's space capability. If this is what rich people do, by all means, lets have more and bigger rich people.
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- intended 13y agoIn general the lending and charitable patterns of rich people is in favor of the occassional and ideologically. So if x person believed that global warming was a hoax, they would be funding or trying to shape the world as they see fit. There are a lot more rich people sitting on wealth than just Gates/musk.
- tim333 13y agoI think he's more worried about inherited wealth. Gates to his credit is giving the bulk of his to charity.
- twelvechairs 13y agoPiketty starts off by saying that inequality isn't necessarily bad by itself, but asks whether it is useful for society - which I think you'll agree is the right way to approach it. The negatives are of course more associated with what happens to the poor than the rich. If you are born poor, CAN you rise to be a hedge fund manager (no matter how talented you are)? Will low-pay and long-hours spark political or social instability which is not worth the cost? What does society lose/gain from one level of inequality as opposed to a different level? Its a complex issue though and you'd really have to read the book to understand how Piketty approaches this.