I see where you're coming from, but where do you draw the line? If I choose to live in a modest house (as opposed to a barely habitable tenement in a slum) am I spending too much selfishly on myself? Should I feel guilty because I treated myself to a nice pair of binoculars instead of donating my money to the poor?
It's always relative, one man's luxury is another man's necessity.
Should I buy a book at the bookstore or check it out for free from the library? Of course, the library is not free either, it is paid for by the state, and ultimately, our taxes. Should anyone feel guilty because they read for free at the public's expense? I can afford to buy my own books, and I often do, but I still support libraries, and I often patronize them. And I do not complain my taxes go to support them. People who can afford their own books have an obligation to help provide books for those who cannot. If that's socialism, then tough shit, jack.
Where I draw the line is not so much in the value of a possession or property, but in the manipulation of income generating property. If I rent a house to someone, I do him a favor, I deserve to get paid and even to profit, because I provide that person with a vital service, an essential commodity. But there is something systemically wrong with a system where foreclosed houses are empty while hordes of homeless walk the streets.
No, I don't know how to solve that problem, but I'm not pretending there isn't one, either. Stealing from the rich to give to the poor is not the answer, but the rich sometimes DO steal from the poor. There isn't the slightest doubt in my mind of that.
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Re: This is one reason we hate the uber-wealthy
