[cl_steele]

Im quite suprised this thread hasnt been battered to hell and back by people screaming for greater equality...
Either way as others have said probably a mixture of jealousy and a belief that said rich havent done anything to deserve the fortunes theyve amounted compared to their lesser paid brethren, take a stock broker for instance he makes fortune out of gambling with others money vs. a school teacher who makes a pittance teaching unruly brats stuff which they dont want to learn, jsut an example of course.
Personally i say [for the majority, not all of them] fair play to them theyve made their money by putting in a lot of hard work and have reaped the rewards and they should be commended, of course not all have done this but hey why should all be tarred with the same brush as a minority?

[Joinedup]

Depends. Do you think we should regard someone who made money being a bit of a swindler operating in a distorted market should be respected the same as someone who's provided a honest useful service in a genuinely competetive market?

[NR09]

Jealousy. That's all it is.

[zaliack]

(Original post by The_Great_One)
We're a country of 60 million with a capitalist society where everyone is out to make a buck. It's their fault if the fall behind in the race.

Money is generated by owning businesses. People who create businesses need capital. Rich people have capital. Rich people own businesses. Businesses generate money.

Privately educated children have the best chance to get into a top job. You need money to get your children into private education.

How can most poor people get into that race? Yes, a few get in by sheer determination at university, starting businesses from scratch etc. But not a lot of them actually have a chance to even get into the race, yet alone keeping up.

[The_Great_One]

My dad shared a bedroom with 5 other people when he was a baby and he didn't go to uni or private school or college. He started off filling cars up with petrol then moved on to cleaning now in his late 50s he's a highly successfully car salesman and has a workshop with 6 mechanics. Now his sons all work for his company.

[Jess.ica]

I think credit is due to the people that become rich through sheer hard work, and a lot of the 'benefit cheats', who expect to get money for nothing, should learn something from it rather than sitting and being jealous.

Still, I really don't agree with capitalism.

[No Man]

(Original post by zaliack)
Yes the USA and China has worse inequality than us, but we are still pretty high up there for a western country, especially when we are compared to the likes of Germany, Norway, Sweden etc. Even Greece has better equality than we do, despite them about to go under in debt.

Sweden, Norway, and Greece have low inequality because their populations are low.

Cut the UK's population by 50 million and it would be no different.

Countries like Japan and Germany have bigger economies to spread the wealth compared to the UK.

[zaliack]

(Original post by No Man)
Sweden, Norway, and Greece have low inequality because their populations are low.

Cut the UK's population by 50 million and it would be no different.

Countries like Japan and Germany have bigger economies to spread the wealth compared to the UK.

Income equality is judged by how much the top % have more than the bottom %, population and economic size has nothing to do with it.

[SnoochToTheBooch]

because they aren't rich themselves.

[im so academic]

(Original post by Jess.ica)
I think credit is due to the people that become rich through sheer hard work, and a lot of the 'benefit cheats', who expect to get money for nothing, should learn something from it rather than sitting and being jealous.

Still, I really don't agree with capitalism.

The alternative is...?

[namithailoveyou]

Envy. such people are generally losers.

[tazarooni89]

I don't hate rich people. I just don't like the idea that some people in the world are starving to death because they can't afford food, while others are spending £100k + on things like wristwatches or handbags. I mean sure, rich people are rich for a reason, they have every right to spend their money on whatever they want, and there needs to be a divide between rich and poor to ensure productivity etc. but that sort of extremity is just an unpleasant thing to know about - the fact that when there is so much wealth in the world, people need to die, and watch their friends and family die due to lack of it.

[Bill_Gates]

(Original post by The_Great_One)
We're a country of 60 million with a capitalist society where everyone is out to make a buck. It's their fault if the fall behind in the race.

Two Fails. 1) 70 million 2) Not a fully capitalist society.

[saachi]

Jealousy, and the way *some* rich people are sometimes portrayed as arrogant, snobbish, and inconsiderate of less fortunate people. Then again, that portrayal is also usually an offset of jealousy or resentment.

That said, I really do dislike extremely rich people who do nothing for society and send their kids off to Ivy Leagues and basically just ignore the problems of the rest of the world when they have more than enough money to help others and still be rich.

[Iron Lady]

Jealousy.

[Jess.ica]

(Original post by im so academic)
The alternative is...?

Aha, I never said I had the answer to the world's problems!

I just think its wrong that individuals in big companies are taking millions of pounds home, plus bonuses, while people lower down the chain are getting practically nothing. I just think it should be redistributed slightly. Especially when it comes to living costs - companies are quick to raise prices when things aren't going quite as well for them, but not so keen to lower prices accordingly. For example, petrol and train tickets etc.

[0000fw]

Britain is unequal, those born into relative poverty in Britain have less opportunities and tend to live harder lives. People hate the rich because the rich run our country and many born with a silver spoon in their mouth do not understand and do not try to understand the lives of ordinary people. This is problematic as the government policies seem alien and irrelevant to someone of a lower class therefore these people feel that they are not involved in society and do not matter in the world. The media is run by rich people and celebrates other rich people which further frustrates people this frustration sometimes translates into hatred.

[im so academic]

(Original post by Jess.ica)
Aha, I never said I had the answer to the world's problems!

I just think its wrong that individuals in big companies are taking millions of pounds home, plus bonuses, while people lower down the chain are getting practically nothing. I just think it should be redistributed slightly. Especially when it comes to living costs - companies are quick to raise prices when things aren't going quite as well for them, but not so keen to lower prices accordingly. For example, petrol and train tickets etc.

Everyone feels this way, but unless someone has an answer to it, there is no point saying what everyone knows.

[The_Great_One]

(Original post by 0000fw)
Britain is unequal, those born into relative poverty in Britain have less opportunities and tend to live harder lives. People hate the rich because the rich run our country and many born with a silver spoon in their mouth do not understand and do not try to understand the lives of ordinary people. This is problematic as the government policies seem alien and irrelevant to someone of a lower class therefore these people feel that they are not involved in society and do not matter in the world. The media is run by rich people and celebrates other rich people which further frustrates people this frustration sometimes translates into hatred.

My point is theirs no point complaining about it because theirs nothing you can do about it. Some people will never see that amount of money it's just one of those things.

[0000fw]

(Original post by The_Great_One)
My point is theirs no point complaining about it because theirs nothing you can do about it. Some people will never see that amount of money it's just one of those things.

Well there is nothing anyone can really do about it just becomes frustrating. I'm not saying we should hate rich people I'm just saying why people hate rich people.