In a Gallup poll when asked if America had the “right” number of millionaires. In this poll, 31% of people stated that we have too many millionaires. While 42% of people said that we had just the right amount millionaires. What I find shocking is that people act as if there is a predestined number of millionaires. Wealth is not predestined. If people want to be rich they have to work hard and make something that other people find appealing. What is really maddening is that 31% of people believe that we have too many people with money. Millionaires did not take anything away from anyone. If anything these millionaires made the lives of many people better. The popular belief is that millionaires somehow became successful at the expense of others. Clearly, this is not true. People voluntary are getting out of chairs, drive to a store, select an item, and telling the company that made that product “Look I need your product more than I need x amount of dollars”. This process is an exchange and not coercion of any kind. People get wealthy figuring out what products and services people want. Going back to the study I really believe that this 31% is just envious or jealous of people that make more than they do. We all try to compare ourselves to other people on many different things, but what is not taken into account are the inputs the wealth have to sacrifice. In a way it’s like a song that went “I will do anything but I won’t do that”. The people that become wealth go the extra mile and make sacrifices in order to make sure other people are satisfied. Corporate executives and CEOs often get to work very early (6 A.M.) and stay late into the night. The people making extraordinary amounts of money are not on their behinds watching TV all day. No, these people are making deals, flying around the country, calling people, and creating wealth.
Not only the wealthy creating jobs and increasing the standard of living for everyone but they are also spending a lot of money as well! According to Moody’s Analytics, the top earning 5% of Americans make up 36% of consumer outlays. Note this is income and not net worth which shouldn’t be confused. People can have high incomes but low net worth. So the top 5% makes around $342,000 yet has only a 1.4% savings rate while the rest of the country has a savings rate of close to 8%. Many of the people we believe to be rich really aren’t. People often try to “signal” that they are rich. I would imagine doctors and lawyers have high incomes yet maybe not a high net worth.
To say we have too few or too many millionaires is rich nonsense. In a voluntary market these millionaires can only improve our lives by thinking of better ways to improve their product or service. I don’t see anything wrong with people making money for making our lives easier or more enjoyable. Money isn’t simply distributed by some money man. Income is earned. As Thomas Sowell would say newspapers and not income is distributed. In a sense, we get these great things like computers, televisions, and other products and we really don’t have to do anything to develop them. All we have to do is earn enough to buy them (if we can afford them).
Not only the wealthy creating jobs and increasing the standard of living for everyone but they are also spending a lot of money as well! According to Moody’s Analytics, the top earning 5% of Americans make up 36% of consumer outlays. Note this is income and not net worth which shouldn’t be confused. People can have high incomes but low net worth. So the top 5% makes around $342,000 yet has only a 1.4% savings rate while the rest of the country has a savings rate of close to 8%. Many of the people we believe to be rich really aren’t. People often try to “signal” that they are rich. I would imagine doctors and lawyers have high incomes yet maybe not a high net worth.
To say we have too few or too many millionaires is rich nonsense. In a voluntary market these millionaires can only improve our lives by thinking of better ways to improve their product or service. I don’t see anything wrong with people making money for making our lives easier or more enjoyable. Money isn’t simply distributed by some money man. Income is earned. As Thomas Sowell would say newspapers and not income is distributed. In a sense, we get these great things like computers, televisions, and other products and we really don’t have to do anything to develop them. All we have to do is earn enough to buy them (if we can afford them).
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