[gavanwoolery]

Sorry, but does this guy not realize that many of the world's richest people gave half their wealth to the Gates foundation, thus forming an engine for human improvement that could have never been attained by distributing their wealth? The wealth divide is not a "real" problem - the real problem is figuring out how to keep everyone employed in a world that is constantly evolving, where most jobs are getting automated or over-seaed (neither of which is a problem in of itself). A real problem is figuring out how to stop corrupt people that enrich themselves by being parasites to the poor/middle class, take advantage of our relatively indifferent government, or our screwed up law system (like patent trolls).

[vanderZwan]

First, I don't understand what you are trying to argue, as that "engine" works by redistributing their wealth.

Second, John Kay's arguments are not contradicting (or even discussing) the main premise of Bill Gates' letter - which is to convince people aid is effective, but one specific argument made within it regarding wealth and the global economy:

> I was surprised and disappointed that the data you chose to support your case referred not to the distribution of average incomes across states – the subject of your letter – but to the distribution of household incomes across the world. These are very different things.

If I was an economist, I would also point out that mixing up the data like is disingenuous and probably damaging to the overall argument, even if to lay-people like you and me it makes little difference.

Finally, as far as I can see the author of this article and Gates want the same thing: to help the poorest on the planet. The difference is that Gates focuses on what has worked and what his vision is of what happens when things go right. Kay on the other hand focuses on what has gone wrong and is still going wrong and why, and thus is deserving of being paid attention to by people with the power and intent to change things (like Bill Gates for example). This is constructive criticism.

[ehmish]

Many did give much wealth to the Gates foundation, but it would be far from most.The wealth divide seems to be a pretty real problem. Concentrating all the wealth of the world in a few people seems pretty sub-optimal, trials[ 1] of directly giving cash to impoverished people demonstrates that if wealth was redistributed more evenly, it would not be wasted.

[1]http://forbesindia.com/article/real-issue/direct-cash-transf...

[Avshalom]

Some of the world's richest people have signed a non legally binding pledge to give half their wealth to the Gates Foundation eventually

[buster]

Many?

[gavanwoolery]

113 at current count. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Giving_Pledge

Yes, there are 1,426 billionaires at current count, but that is still a significant number. Many != the majority.

[benched]

I don't think either wealth disparity or unemployment are themselves direct problems. I think the huge and fundamental problem, which is a problem even in a so-called 'rich' country like the US, is access to the basics of human life, which I think are food, housing, and education of a certain standard. Wealth disparity itself may be ok, but in the US at least it seems to contribute to costs of education and housing rising so as to prevent access by a large segment of the people. Ways must be found to solve that, even if wealth disparity itself doesn't necessarily need solving.