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Politics : View from the Center and Left -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Mary Cluney who wrote (7988)	12/24/2005 10:18:43 AM
From: Lane3	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 542864

There is just so much material wealth a person needs. Indeed. So once you have enough to last you your own lifetime, if you can't pass it on, then why work more? If you're doing something that satisfies you, like world-class archeology or brain surgery, then you keep going. But archeologists and brain surgeons don't produce wealth. They just make a living, perhaps a good one, but a living nonetheless. Seems to me that the guy who made a fortune with a widget factory might just as easily shut it down and go live in Fiji. Or move it and himself to a country where he could pass along what he earns to his offspring. Or retre and take up archeology. The work that produces wealth in this country isn't particularly satisfying work once you've proved to yourself that you can do it. I see little incentive to continue building wealth once you're comfortable but to pass it along. There will be other reasons for those that do productive work. I want to be sure there is a clear distinction between doing productive work, like our archeologist, and creating wealth, like our widget factory owner. I don't think we can afford to discourage the latter because then there are no jobs and everyone suffers.