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Comment by aragot | Hacker News Reader

Whether you like it or not, redistribution is the basis for most of the laws of my country (and certainly yours). It's not up to you or me, it's how the People think. In fact, that's what the OP is about.

It is besides the point to know which side I am. In fact, I've just said tax complexity squashes new enterprises. I've written an article about how an entrepreneur in France loses 70% of his income in tax-and-administrative-burden [1]. So guess whether I enjoy redistribution or not?

[1] http://adrien-ragot.me/why-i-say-70-percent-tax-in-france/

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Just because the majority think they are entitled to the 1%'s wealth, does not make it so.

The French government might as well take 90% of that entrepreneur's wealth and "re-distribute" it to the so-called "People" (I call them "Sheep") and guess what? That one entrepreneur will still be wealthier than any of them and the "People" will still mumble. In other words, NOTHING will change.

...except that 45% of the economy just got given back to the people, mitigating the shameful status quo. Now the regular folk run 95% of the economy.

There's no issue of having rich people or not; its ok to be wealthy. Its not about punishing the rich. Its about them hoarding almost the entire pie.

Not almost. I will hoard THE entire pie and I will not feel ONE bit of shame about it, because it is MY PIE! You are the one who should be ashamed for wanting to steal from my pie just because you are incapable of baking your own.

> because it is MY PIE! Not always. Most "pie" bakers either inherit their "pie" directly in terms of wealth or education or healthy upbringing from parents. The ones you call incapable of baking their own, probably did not have all the advantages that you did.

There's also the aphorism about standing on the shoulder of giants (or indeed standing on tax created infrastructure.) That applies to all "pie" bakers.

unless they live in a democracy and make it so, but don't worry, you'll most likely belong to the 99% or sheep as you call them.

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