Senator Elizabeth Warren yesterday proposed a wealth tax. It is a way of dealing with the rising inequality issue that I also discuss in World After Capital. I propose a longer term way of getting to a similar place via demurrage, but I am supportive of a wealth tax. I believe it will have to be broad based though and include all large accumulations of wealth, including in trusts, foundations, endowments and all other pools that don’t have clear existing offsetting obligations (such as pension funds). The reason to go broad on a wealth tax is that all of these accumulations of wealth contribute not just to inequality but also to a large power imbalance, including large foundations influencing education and healthcare policy outside of the democratic process. Independent of where this proposal ultimately goes, I am glad that we finally have candidates willing to propose bold new ideas (this also includes Andrew Yang’s platform), instead of rehashing old ones.
