[_cairn]

Not saying that what you are implying is wrong, but empirically speaking working hard/relative merit do not correlate to proportionate monetary rewards in our current system. The idea of a pure meritocracy is an interesting one, I wonder what some of the outcomes would be.

[tucaz]

There is also the fact that money (and value) is not a zero sum game.

Bezos making billions doesnt mean that the money was taken from someone else in the sense that that person cannot have it anymore.

The opposite is also true. If he was poor it doesn't mean that I would have more money.

Value creation is a weird but beautiful thing.

[lawnchair_larry]

I don't think that's the entirely the case. True it's not zero sum, but it's not free either. There is absolutely wealth transfer. For example, if he were poor, many middle class Seattle residents would have far more purchasing power in their current real estate market. Amazon have expanded rapidly and transplanted most of the cogs who are building the Bezos empire.

The many displaced multi-generational residents of Seattle and San Francisco might not refer to this phenomenon as beautiful.