[quote]Your analogy is dependent on assuming that everyone who is wealthy has connections in government and can affect policy making, that assumption is completely untrue.[/quote] Untrue - it is assuming that wealthy individuals and the corporations that they control have a significantly disproportionate influence on policymakers (whether it be via business lobby groups or indivudal connections) - this is factual. Many wealthy families also control significant (and increasing over time) stakes in various media corporations also, allowing for varying degrees of influence over the general population. [quote]Inter-generational wealth is not a problem, people work hard for the sole purpose of providing for their kids and family in this lifetime and for generations down the road. That's honestly the whole point, to ensure quality of life for your kids and grandkids and so on. Are you suggesting the gov't step in and tax inheritance more than they already do?[/quote] Not at all - I'm suggesting that it is a complex multi-faceted problem, which has been trending in an increasingly negative direction for a number of years. It's time that it be a topic of increased political discussion. The US boldly declares itself to be a land of equal opportunity - nothing could be further from the truth. A person's financial success in life is highly correlated with that of their parents, and the other financially successful people that they have opportunities to network with. You may personally believe that the point of everything we do in life is to ensure our children are happy and financially secure (a noble pursuit), but that isn't an economic argument, and more importantly, the current system is only allowing a small (and increasingly smaller) percentage of the population to actually achieve this for their children. It's also worth considering that in the long term, a rapidly shrinking middle class (which contributes the bulk of consumer spending) means a weaker economy. I'm not advocating an inheritence tax - I'm simply saying that there is an obvious issue, which is getting worse over time, and it needs to be examined and discussed so that both the Government and the public can determine a corrective measure (sorry, couldn't resist). Not a black and white issue. Economics rarely is - even though the political hopefuls from both sides would love for you to believe that it is.