Democratic Primaries
In reply to the discussion: A question for Bernie supporters (and others may comment as well) [View all]NCProgressive
(1,315 posts)If tomorrow, person X invented a reusable and clean substitute for oil and started a company, that person will be instantly worth $10 billion which will be counted as "wealth" -- but that is just paper and worth not a whole lot if sold at once.
In any country, even in quasi-communist countries like Russia, the top 1% control most of the wealth. It is not an anomaly. It is the way statistics are kept.
One of my friends whose shares in a startup were valued at $120 million had to borrow money from me for rent. He couldn't sell them because the company was privately held and even if it went public, he couldn't sell all but a tiny fraction because of Section 144 rules and shareholder agreements.
He would be counted by statisticians as being worth $120 million but was barely making ends meet.
Next example.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden