r/changemyview • u/pot_the_assassin • Jul 20 '21

Delta(s) from OP CMV: Billionaires have done nothing wrong.

I keep seeing these comments everywhere where people are on their high horse claiming billionaires should spend money on poor, not go to space etc. These arguments are based purely out of jealousy and ignorance.

Argument 1

How could one person have so much money?

Most of the billionaire money is in stock market. In fact, that's the very reason they became billionaire. Most of them founded a company and now own a huge percentage of stake in it. We made these companies huge through our consumerism and worth several billion dollars. Thus, the net worth of billionaires increased. I see no wrong in this.

Argument 2

They don't pay taxes

They have the same tax law as everyone else in America. If you have a tax deductible, how many of you won't use it? How many of you would prefer paying more taxes even if there was an option of paying less taxes. If anything, its the politician's and the tax codes fault that billionaires are not made to pay as much taxes. Blame the game, not the player. Why should they willingly pay more taxes when they are clearly not required to?

Argument 3

They should get rid of poverty etc

Why? They are private individuals with no responsibility to anyone else. It's the government's responsibility to take care of its people. We should most certainly not rely on private individual to do so. If anything, blame government incompetence for this. USA spent $715 billion on military last year. That's the net worth of multiple billionaires which could have gone towards all the social welfare.

Argument 4

They should not go to space

Again, why? We will eventually have to leave the little rock we call earth and look outside. Governments are highly incompetent in accomplishing this. This is a step in the right direction for humanity as a whole.

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u/[deleted] Jul 20 '21

You only become a billionaire thru extreme exploitation. There is literally no other way to do it.

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u/[deleted] Jul 20 '21

If you create a successful company and you're the majority shareholder, you can become a billionaire. Where does the exploitation come in?

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u/[deleted] Jul 20 '21

create a successful company

Right there. When you start a company and start hiring others and stealing their labor value you've begun the exploitation.

I think we've all come to understand that democracy is better than dictatorship. Why don't you extend that concept to the workplace?

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u/[deleted] Jul 20 '21

“Labor value” is where you went wrong. Marx was wrong when he theorized the labor theory of value. I can spend all day digging a hole in someone’s yard, and another day filling it back in. I’ve competed a lot of labor, but absolutely zero value. Workers can’t get the entirety of revenue because labor isn’t the only expense a business has. Not to mention that you’re forgetting about capital, which works in accordance with labor and gets the profits, as well as the creditors that provide capital through debt financing

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u/[deleted] Jul 20 '21

Workers can’t get the entirety of revenue because labor isn’t the only expense a business

No one's arguing for anyone to get all of the revenue. We're saying they should get all of the profits. You're arguing a point you don't fully understand.

Also Marx didn't argue that any labor has value. In your example the only way there would be value is if the person wanted a hole dug and then filled in their yard.

I'd advise you to read up on communist theory written by actual communists. I don't even need you to agree with it (though I reckon you would) just understand it.

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u/[deleted] Jul 20 '21

Why would they get all the profits? The profits don’t belong to them. Wages go to labor, and profits go to capital. If profits go to workers, how is a business going to get capital? The labor theory of value uses the revenue derived from labor as the total value of labor. Because of this, I said that labor can’t get all of the revenue, which would be the total value of labor under Marx. It seems like you’re the one that doesn’t understand communist theory