> You are saying that if a man who planted potatoes harvests them and keeps some for himself above and beyond what he needs to subsist, he is evil. I'm really not sure how you justify that position.
I don't, because that's not what I'm saying.
If you actually read my post, I did not say that taking any profit was evil. I said taking enough profit to make you a billionaire was evil.
The scale of what it takes to become a billionaire is absolutely mind-boggling. I might, if I am lucky, make enough in my lifetime to have a million dollars saved up.
I would have to work a thousand of those lifetimes to get a billion dollars.
And yes; someone who is a billionaire keeps that money in stocks and things, and it's true that it's not just a pile of cash...but that doesn't actually mean that it's usefully "in the economy". It's still theirs. (And remember, unless you buy it as part of a direct issuance from the company, buying stock doesn't actually put more money in their pocket.)
I don't, because that's not what I'm saying.
If you actually read my post, I did not say that taking any profit was evil. I said taking enough profit to make you a billionaire was evil.
The scale of what it takes to become a billionaire is absolutely mind-boggling. I might, if I am lucky, make enough in my lifetime to have a million dollars saved up.
I would have to work a thousand of those lifetimes to get a billion dollars.
And yes; someone who is a billionaire keeps that money in stocks and things, and it's true that it's not just a pile of cash...but that doesn't actually mean that it's usefully "in the economy". It's still theirs. (And remember, unless you buy it as part of a direct issuance from the company, buying stock doesn't actually put more money in their pocket.)