Warren Buffet has called for the government to drastically increase taxes on the very wealthy: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/15/opinion/stop-coddling-the-super-rich.html?_r=3.
But does this really serve our nation's best interest?
Our country is better off with a few billion airs who can amass the kind of wealth to have enough power to challenge government. Government being the only big guy on the block isn't good for the country. When billion airs and large corporations spend money to confront the government over poorly crafted regulations that inhibit private sector growth, for example, we all benefit. I think of this is as class action law suit against government on behalf of the people, albeit corporations and billion airs very well do this for the purposes of self benefit, but that doesn't change the fact that society as a whole may benefit too. It's not realistic to take the position that if we don't like certain rules and regs, then we just vote them out. First, nobody can vote on one single issue. Second, waiting for an election cycle to exercise voting power may not offer the necessary expediency of addressing the issue.
All that said, as a catholic and a person who values charity, I do believe that billion airs have a moral responsibility to help improve the lives of those around them who are less fortunate. However, giving excessive amounts of dollars to a government to (a) pay out to the special interest, (b) funnel the money to those who carry their favor, and (c) take it's cut along the way resembles no real sense of morality. Neither does imposing this mandate on other billion airs resemble any sense of morality either.
