Why Do People Really Love to Hate the Super-Rich?
Now I’ll be honest. I like Boris Johnson. He is like a lovable floppy haired bear, isn’t he? Our darling London Mayor said some pretty radical statements recently, in his column for The Telegraph, about how people should stop picking on the super rich.
WHAT? Super-rich people get verbal abuse? How ghastly.
Nobody hates the super-rich purely because they are wealthy Boris, most people hate the them because they are often associated with being uncharitable, tax avoidance and/or being bafflingly sheltered from what is happening in the rest of the world.
For instance, I once met a billionaire’s daughter from Mumbai, who didn’t know that slums still existed. HOW CAN YOU POSSIBLY LIVE IN MUMBAI AND NOT KNOW THERE ARE SLUMS!? It wasn’t her fault of course. He parents kept her in an air conditioned cocoon and fed her specially imported Parisian eclairs. True story. Apart from the end. It might have been macaroons not eclairs.
I guess abuse is all relative to be honest, being bad-mouthed and called a ‘wealthy wanker’ for no reason may be just as harmful and devastating to the super-rich as it is for a member of Brixton’s GAS gang to get shanked. I guess we all experience pain based on our experience.
The super-rich don’t need sympathy they need a higher tolerance to abuse, like the rest of us.
Now Boris argues that the 0.1% of the super rich are contributing to 14.1% of all taxes in the UK. Really!? I would like to personally thank the super rich for paying their taxes. How generous. How kind. How zealous. Here, have a knighthood!
But Boris, what about all the rich people who don’t pay up?
If ALL of the elite wealthy people in the in this economy paid their taxes, and this is including corporate tax, then we would not be in recession. The documentary UK Gold can communicate the nitty gritty better then I can. Here’s the trailer…
‘Let’s offer them [the super rich] a humble and hearty thanks.’ Says Boris.
I’m sorry, am I missing something?
Whether you are rich from birth or by self-merit, SHOULDN’T YOU BE A GOOD PERSON AND HELP THOSE WHO HAVE NO MONEY??? Is that not the responsibility that comes with affluence and power? If you are born into money shouldn’t you help those who are born into no money?
Angelina Jolie’s recent speech, when she picked up the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, was just epic. Angelina is an example of someone who uses her position and wealth for the greater good. (Angelina, can you adopt me???)
‘…it was only when I began to travel and look and live beyond my home that I understood my responsibility to others.’ Angelina Jolie.
Phweor what a woman!
If you are wealthy, it’s a privilege and a burden. Whether you choose to believe it or not, the wealthy have authority in this hick town called Earth. I know we’d like to think they don’t. But they do.
(Image via)
Yes, if you are super-rich, people might call you a toff, try and egg you or kick you off their lunch table. I’m not saying this is right, but we all have our burdens. Like constantly worrying about how you are going to feed and clothe your family this winter is a burden for those who have nothing. I know which one I’d rather have resting on my shoulders.
‘With great power comes great responsibility.’ Uncle Ben, Spiderman.
And on that note… rant over! What do you think about Boris’ comments? Give me your angle.
Have a great week peeps!
x
Tags: Angelina Jolie Boris Johnson super-rich tax UK Gold
Categories: Fire me up baby! Rant Yazmin Joy
12 Comments
If people had to give their money to the poor when they became rich, no one would want to become rich because it would be a much easier life to remain poor and not have to work hard enough! Can’t say the same for people who inherit a fortune though.
Haha yes fair point Joe! The super-rich shouldn’t feel the need to give ALL their money away. That would be cray! And stupid. And I hope it didn’t come across that I was implying they should. Instead, I personally feel, even a ‘small’ donation from the super-rich can create a huge positive impact – one that shouldn’t be undermined. Thanks so much for reading and commenting! Love hearing your thoughts on this peeps! y x
Interesting piece. I suppose, the idea of ‘loving to hate’, comes for the quite normal desire to always have bit of a giggle at the rich & powerful – it’s one way we can come to terms with the gulf that exists. And certainly when it comes to that gulf, you have those who exploit their status or fail to use it in a manner many of us find perplexing, ignorant or downright wasteful.
Furthermore, their relative power has been enhanced over the last thirty years as, in general, the collective wealth the top 1% own has ballooned. A reality which has had the effect of meaning they are, as you point out, more responsible than ever for the country’s overall tax take which in turn only goes on to cement their influence. A virtuous/vicious circle – depending on your view.
That said, it is undeniable that their contribution in tax, as an aggregate, is enormous, something akin to £250 billion per year. A total that pays for the entirety of the NHS, Schools, Police, Defence & our Debt Interest. So you can see why they’re a tremendous source of revenue for the Treasury and wield a significant amount of power along with their wealth.
Tax avoidance is a tricky issue however. Figures are bandied about, but there is a lot of debate about their veracity. No doubt some is avoided but, largely, this is all done so legally. Evasion is illegal, avoidance is not – and this is because our tax code is highly complex and filled with loopholes and special measures – all designed to encourage numerous different sectors incentives or freedoms to grow and generate economic activity.
The last Government more than any other was especially responsible for this. Trebling the number of tax rules when a better way would perhaps be to have a flatter, more transparent, more simple system for taxation with less dispensation for unique get-outs & loopholes.
But stats like “85,000 children die a day because companies aren’t paying the necessary level of tax” don’t help the situation – not least because they’re ridiculous & blatantly untrue.
However, even if more tax was collected it isn’t true that we’d be out of a recession. This is because firstly we’re no longer in a recession, in fact, we’re booming, with the highest level of growth in the Western world as of right now. Technically we haven’t been in recession for nearly 2 years. And secondly, the tax take and a recession are two very different things. A recession speaks to an overall reversal of our GDP (annual size of our economy) so more tax doesn’t equal less reversal.
And another point is that the super rich actually make huge contributions to charity’s and good causes. Philanthropy is itself a booming sector within the wealthy and many charities/foundations would find it impossible to keep going without the support of rich people and businesses.
And all that money they spend on fine food, clothes, houses, cars and holidays – where does it all go? Well a lot of it pays the wages of people of make and provide those products and services, which keeps thousands of people in work and their families looked after.
Then the money they ‘hoard’ or don’t spend? Well much of that stays in banks which are then used as capital for other people to gain loans & lending for new enterprises or businesses or for Government’s to borrow from. It is all interconnected.
And lastly, many of the super rich are also fiercely intelligent and highly educated. You don’t get to such position without it. Now you wrote of an ancedote concerning one person but isn’t it wrong to attribute something to a whole section of individuals on such a basis?
Don’t get me wrong, you have bad ‘uns in the wealthy as you do in everyday life, the trouble is, the bad ‘uns there tend to have the influence to do things which effect a wider scale of others – but on the whole, the super rich are good people with good hearts & brains who have done good things. And like Joe suggested, we all need some aspiration and inspiration as a little material incentive. We should stop bashing the rich. The politics of envy sell us short and do us no good.
Hey Fiona,
Thank you so much for taking the time to write and comment. I understand and respect your perspective. And thank you for shedding new light and insight onto the subject of tax and the relevant economic stats involved. You’re probably more acquainted with this aspect of the argument than I am. And as you said, it is a tricky one! I can not profess to be an expert on this (I definitely AM NOT! 🙁 ).
However, I really don’t want the true sentiment of my article to be lost in a sea of stats – which was only a very small part of the bigger (more important) message I was trying to convey.
This is about empathy not envy.
The message of my article was simple and intended to be read on a very human practical level: being wealthy gives you an opportunity to help others. And I want to make it very clear that I do not condone bullying or verbal abuse to anyone, whether they are super-rich or destitute & homeless.
I personally feel it is a privilege and a burden the super-rich face – with great power comes great responsibility. I feel that Boris’ comments were not tactful or sensitive to the millions of people out there genuinely struggling to survive in this country. Those people unable to find work; the homeless; the pensioners who can not afford their heating this winter… the vulnerable.
I see courage, generosity and bravery in the most poverty stricken places. Where people who have nothing, yet give everything they have to help others. They are not being given knighthoods. They have no voice.
re: my ‘anecdote concerning one person…’. I sincerely hope I did not give the impression that my view of the super-rich was constructed from merely one encounter or that I was building a very one-sided (negative) response to the super-rich. I deliberately, counterbalanced my argument, to avoid this assumption, by paying homage to Angelina Jolie – a women of wealth, position, power and most importantly – great empathy.
Some of my closest friends and greatest influences are from elite and privileged backgrounds. I am not contesting the intelligence, brilliance, academia or good heartedness of the super-rich, I am however saying that many (not all) who have these attributes are not immune from ignorance.
Thanks so much for checking us out and giving us your angle – awesome! You’ve definitely taught me a few things from reading your comment. Thanks for sharing x
Fiona, all said and done it’s all very good writing on behalf of the rich, and believe me I am Not envious of their money but I actually think you are so out of touch with the rest of the people in this country! In your words, ” we are booming and we have the highest level of growth in the western world…” Have you ventured out and seen how the poor and the old are actually surviving? Which planet are you living on and whose side are you on?!
Please do not take that out of context. It’s statistical fact that right now the UK economy is growing at the fastest rate in the western world and according to many economic commentators is ‘booming’. That isn’t a comment or link at all towards how those who are poor or struggling get by – it’s just a quantitative fact, not a qualitative one. You can conflate it or interpret that however you want but that has nothing to do with me.
And what is this about ‘sides’? The economy and the world is interconnected as I tried to explain (perhaps not very well) above. I try not to see it as taking sides as inevitably it never works out well.
That’s the problem, you only have one set of statistics…
What are you on about? Are you responding to my wider argument or the specific segment?!
The specific segment was just talking about the state of our economy from a macro perspective. I wasn’t trying to make any point concerning the wealthy or poor by stating basic facts. In that segment I was trying to just correct the original post’s assertion concerning the tax take & recession.
You’re attacking a straw man if you thinking it’s anything else.
I don’t think it is the straw man fallacy situation at all!
‘Joy is a mystery of love’ Mother Teresa
I take my hat off to writers that are prepared to say it as it is and are free to do so.
I beseech you Fiona Bruce to further examine the meaning of the word interconnected. I rejoice in the good fortune of the UK receiving so much revenue from the very wealthy. I hope they put it to good use and spread fairness and justice in the interconnected world, otherwise, instead of feeling joyous they may be left feeling a bit disappointed.
Yes the very wealthy create a lot of jobs but they are also creating more problems and greater dangers than ever before. Will wealth solve all the problems that the pursuit of wealth at-any-cost creates?
I can definitely say that the very wealthy are not full of joy because they are not in love with the environment and all the causes and conditions that provide them the opportunity to be wealthy, and this will lead to them not being praised and loved by everybody.
If the very wealthy where full of joy then I would truly be inspired and full of praise for them, instead I feel very inspired by the clear message in this blog.
Hi Yazmin, I’m really impressed by your mature insight on this topic. Keep writing on behalf of those at the peripheries. I think it is extremely pertinent to speak up for those who are unheard, unhonoured and unsung. Bon courage! Proud of you.
Great discussion! IMO, part of the “hate” element of people’s love-hate relationship with the mega rich come from the disproportionate amount of power that they yield. Even in democracies, the extremely loaded have the power to heavily sway elections and public policy (like with Super PACs in the US). Add to that their control of the global financial system and other elements of our lives. So, when they make decisions based on greed or selfishness, it heavily impacts the other 99.9% of us (and yes, I know not every rich person is cold and heartless). That’s why I agree with the statement that money isn’t the root of all evil…but instead the love of money above all else that is.