https://pixabay.com/vectors/magnet-money-magnetic-attract-4625650/
No freaking way...
I was talking to a friend the other day about the ongoing debate in the United States about wealth inequality and what we as a nation should do about it.
My friend told me that there was “no freaking way” that we will significantly redistribute wealth because “rich people will just move their money or themselves out of the country.” The emotion behind this statement was defiance, he wasn't about to let a bunch of “asshole lazy poor people” take his money.
But the crazy thing is, the people arguing for higher taxes and wealth distribution are not coming after his money, they're going after people who have a net worth of $100 million plus. And my friend, as well as I, are in the same wealth class, middle class. So we are a long long looooong way from a hundred million dollars. So why did my friend adamantly defend a bunch of rich folk that aren't even in the same world as he is financially?
Don't take my money...
I'm going to try a little pop psychology here. I think my friend said this because he works hard for his money, as do I, and everyone reading this. And he doesn't want people taking his money that he worked hard for, which is understandable. But my friend is not thinking about a couple of things.
Because of our progressive tax system, my friend and I pay lower taxes than someone else who earns more than we do. Higher earners subsidized our low tax rate. Essentially, they give us money.
His and my employer give us discounted health insurance because people who make more than us within the company pay more as a percentage of their income to subsidize the health insurance of people who make less. People who make more, give us money.
When the national government gives money to our State to pay for our local road repair; that means that the local government will not raise our taxes to pay for it instead. Essentially, hundreds of millions of Americans will pay for our roads, instead of just a few thousand, which significantly reduces what my friend and I will pay out of our pockets. Other people gave us money.
Social Security and Medicare is heavily subsidized by wealthier people and debt, though indirectly. That means my friend did not have to pay that much out-of-pocket when his mother got cataract surgery. Someone else gave him money.
And in the past 12 months, a large portion of the US population received two stimulus checks. My friend was super excited, and used the money to pad his savings. And not one comment on where the money came from.
In Conclusion...
There are a lot of subsidized programs in the United States that people take for granted and do not fully appreciate where the money actually originated, usually from people who make much more than we do.
So as far as my friend’s statement goes, all those “asshole lazy poor people” trying to take his money. Well, my friend, me and many others should probably look in the mirror once in a while and reflect on WHO is giving us their hard earned money.
Stay frosty people.
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Hello @fijimermaid
The answer is very correct, otherwise we would have already overcome this enormous gap that separates us economically and stratifies us as a class, this is a truth that historically has marked us as a society, positioning a group in power, and leaving another even larger group receiving subsidies. Thank you for sharing your point of view.