LogFAQs > #936611858

No.

First off a lot of the 'wealth' these people have is not fiscal but in things like property and stocks and the like. That is different from direct physical wealth.

That aside, no it wouldn't. You see, here's the thing. Money, in of itself, has no value. It's merely an intermediary of trade. The only reason we consider a $100 bank note to have value but not a $100 monopoly note is because our government does not recognize the latter as a valid form of currency. So what does decide the value of a bill? There are multiple theories but the two most consistent are 'the value of an hours worth of labor' and 'scarcity'. In either theory this example would be ruinous.

Under the first the value of a currency is basically what it would take to get someone to do an hours worth of labor. If there was a sudden influx of cash across the board we'd see people suddenly become well set for a lengthy period of time, if not life, and refuse to work unless they got paid much more than they currently are. This would result in other people charging more and, thusly, the value of the dollar collapsing.

Under the second theory the thing that makes money hold its value is the fact that it's in limited supply. This would mean that, if a sudden and massive influx of cash came to a ton of people, it would suddenly become exceedingly common and, thusly, no one would really value money anymore. You'd need to shell out tons of cash for basic needs because it would become cheaper to use money for wallpaper than actual wallpaper.

This isn't idle concern either. We've seen this happen many times before in economic collapses. It's why, when it happens, everyone becomes a millionaire because a million dollars is suddenly worth less than a bag of cheetos. This isn't to say I approve of the massive wealth gap between the wealthy and the common man in America; just that the solution is NOT 'take their money and redistributed it'. That's like saying 'my house is on fire' so the solution is 'break the dam and flood multiple cities to put it out'.

Edit: In case you're wondering: I think that a huge part of the problem is the fact that the wealthy don't spend money in the same way the poor do. A lot of them just sit on their wealth meaning it accumulates and doesn't get reinvested into the system and the only reason they part with it is when a product comes along that the average person wouldn't be able to afford. This results in bonkers prices for products and, when combined with a stagnant wage and increasing difficulty of entry into the middle/upper classes, results in a poverty-stricken lower class that can't afford rent let alone to buy a house while the wealthy have, like, three mansions.

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I am the gentle hand who heals, the happy smile who shields, and the foot that will kick your ***! - White Mage