[acyou]

Do we levy windfall taxes on farmers after a bumper crop harvest?

No, because we assume the profits will be reinvested.

How does a bank efficiently re-invest? Does taking profits mean efficient reinvestment? I dont think so. It just means inflation.

Windfall taxes just grow the big government. More cost to be directly passed on to consumers at the end of the day.

If we don't like capitalism, why not just say we want to ban usury and be done with it?

For me, this line of thinking usually ends with: If you can't beat them, join them. As Adam Smith Founding Fathers, and people at the top everywhere would have hoped. Time to get off Hacker News and make my profits soar.

[scotty79]

> How does a bank efficiently re-invest?

Banks that have more money then they need for operation just indulge more in gambling.

[acyou]

Banks gambling in the form of credit made available to other businesses would be ideal. That's what makes everything keep ticking along. What we should be concerned about is profit taking and thereby exchanging working assets and capital for idle cash on hand.

[scotty79]

They'd sooner invent few new classes of dervatives you can't loose on (on paper) and gamle with them than do what you suggest or anything in any way beneficial for that matter.