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How much would any of you be willing to part with if you were one of those rich people?
I'd be willing to return to pre-Reagan rates. There were plenty of rich people back then and the middle-class had more opportunity.
I'd hate to have America turn into the nation that it's moving, where there are rich people and poor people and the rich have to live in armed compounds out of fear of the angry mobs outside.
I have no problem with salary inequality. Some work is just worth more. What I object to is unearned wealth. The real welfare class in this or any other economy are the people with incomes derived from what they own not what they do.
I'm not sure I understand who you are talking about. Are you talking about people who buy stock in companies, that create jobs. Perhaps those who invest in real estate, who make housing available to people? Or perhaps you don't think venture capitalists who make new companies and technologies possible should be rewarded?
If you own a 401K then you derive income from what you own, not what you do. Are you unworthy?
I'm not sure I understand who you are talking about. Are you talking about people who buy stock in companies, that create jobs. Perhaps those who invest in real estate, who make housing available to people? Or perhaps you don't think venture capitalists who make new companies and technologies possible should be rewarded?
If you own a 401K then you derive income from what you own, not what you do. Are you unworthy?
Same with pensions. GregW has just told us that he doesn't deserve any form of retirement income above the amount he contributed. No growth in value allowed because he didn't earn it.
Rick Santorum said this in Iowa and got lots of people angry: "I’m for income inequality. I think some people should make more than other people, because some people work harder and have better ideas and take more risk, and they should be rewarded for it. I have no problem with income inequality."
What do you think? Is he right that a logical person should believe that some people should make significantly more money than others based on how society views their contribution. Should an Accountant sitting in a comfortable office make twice what someone working road construction in the rain, heat and wind makes? Many people think the road construction worker should make more money because he is working harder than the Accountant.
So... what do you think? Do you believe in income inequality?
Unless someone can explain to me why a guy whose best skill is sweeping a street should earn as much as a guy who becomes a brain surgeon, then yes, I believe in it.
its labor vs management question on who should be paid more---
a ditch digger or a bank president.
if you ask the ditch digger he will say
its me.
if you go to the hood and ask a gangsta he will say
you oughta pay me bek my grant great grandfather was a ditch digger and i should not even have to work at all ever.
if you ask a 30 year old unemployed wasp kid with an advanced degree sitting on mama's couch playing x box,
he will say
what's a ditch? oh you mean that thing pedro is digging for dad in the back yard behind the swimming pool.
Same with pensions. GregW has just told us that he doesn't deserve any form of retirement income above the amount he contributed. No growth in value allowed because he didn't earn it.
That's an interesting perspective. i guess he doesn't pay interest on credit cards, mortgages, car loans etc. I am equally sure he rejects interest payments on savings and other investments. A rather silly approach.
I don't lend banks my money interest free. That would be, well, stupid.
Obviously, some tasks take more preparation, talent and experience and should be compensated accordingly. Having the aspiration to make the next paygrade is a powerful motivator.
That being said, there comes a time when wealth - not income, but actual wealth - gets so concentrated, it destroys the idea of meritocracy. As Teddy Roosevelt put it:
Quote:
The really big fortune, the swollen fortune, by the mere fact of its size acquires qualities which differentiate it in kind as well as in degree from what is possessed by men of relatively small means. Therefore, I believe in a graduated income tax on big fortunes, and in another tax which is far more easily collected and far more effective – a graduated inheritance tax on big fortunes, properly safeguarded against evasion and increasing rapidly in amount with the size of the estate.
I think he had that one fairly right. That was in 1910, by the way.
Quote:
Originally Posted by hnsq
Come on, are you seriously telling me that you wouldn't take the risk of borrowing hundreds of thousands of dollars and potentially setting yourself up to ruin your future by opening a new factory if you will get paid the same as someone who works for you, no matter what?
GregW - you aren't paid more for working harder. You are paid more for adding value and taking on more risk than other people.
<shrug> - there is a class of people, however, who seem to get the trappings of the risk-taker without suffering the consequences. Carly Fiorina isn't exactly living under a bridge, despite the fact that HP still exists in spite of her, not thanks to her.
Or look at who took the bigger actual risks in, say, the Massey Energy (spit!) organization: Would it be the administrators or the mine workers?
All this non sense stems from our "participation trophy" mentality. Most folks think they deserve the same compensation as innovators, simply for showing up.
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