[quote=gary_broker]Kewp, you are leaving out a huge part of the equation. The business owners are the ones that manned up, took the risk, and put up the capital to fund the business. Regardless of the prevailing perception around here most business owners (including myself) work relentlessly, WAY harder then any employee you could hope to hire (14 hours a day is typical) and we often have employee’s who make more money then ourselves!
Have you ever owned a business? It takes huge balls to risk your life savings on a business. If the business fails the employees move on to another job whereas the owner can be left penniless. That brings me to the intent of this post.. it is about risk/reward. In my view the people that put it all on the line and bust their asses to keep people employed deserve the success they achieve.
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14 hours a day as a broker? So you sit in a comfy chair at a comfy desk and either look at a computer screen or talk to people on the phone and try to bilk them out of their money? Sounds tough. Try 14 hours as a strawberry picker. I bet you wouldn’t last a day.
As far as risking your life savings goes, most business owners choose to incorporate to protect themselves from personal liability. Then, they can take reckless risks with other people’s money. Some get lucky and succeed. Others go bankrupt with other people’s money (e.g., the taxpayer’s $700 billion bailout of the super-rich). Some are so unscrupulouse that they borrow taxpayer money and do it again.
Every rich person I know is just like you, Gary. They all feel entitled. None of them want to pay their fair share of taxes. Hopefully the next administration will force the super-rich to pay their fair share — especially given as its the super-rich on Wall Street who have pushed this country into The Great Depression II.
