Are the wealthy hoarding money?

Originally posted by KazetNagorra
Can you explain to me how a government can tax without redistributing wealth?

By avoiding direct taxation, and by understanding "general welfare" the way that Madison intended it.

Originally posted by joe beyser
If the rich need help spending some money I would gladly volunteer my services.

Or they could at least allow other people to borrow some of it.

In any case, spending of the hoarded money either by the rich themselves or by a borrower, either in investing in business and manufacturing, for example, or in simply buying goods and services, would help stimulate the US economy. Unfortunately, when the uber wealthy do spend some of their hoarded cash for personal items, it is often for small numbers of luxury items and which are made and distributed outside of the US -- doesn't help the US economy that much.

Originally posted by normbenign
By avoiding direct taxation, and by understanding "general welfare" the way that Madison intended it.

I don't get what you mean. Any kind of taxation takes money from some legal entity (a person, a corporation, whatever) and uses it for purposes the government feels are appropriate. Thus, wealth is redistributed.

Originally posted by normbenign
Let's see. We have a fiat money monetary system in which 3% inflation is considered the norm. So if you don't spend your cash, or get a 3%+ return on it, it is evaporating. Most people with accumulated wealth aren't total idiots.

The only reason that they would "hoard" cash, that is not spend or invest it, is that the risks of "investing" or even saving are greater than the anticipated return.

If you are counting investing as money NOT sitting idle that brings up the question of how much investing stimulates the economy. How many jobs are created from the wealthy investing?

Wouldn't the poor spending money stimulate the economy much more?

Originally posted by sh76
Hoarding money is a meaningless concept. Money is purchasing power; you cannot hoard it; you can merely decline to use it. When you decline to use it, you are not depriving anyone of its utility; it merely has no impact on the market. Resources cannot be hoarded. Abstract numbers that represent ability to acquire resources cannot be hoarded.

If I hoard a war ...[text shortened]... hoarding it. But my holding $100m in a bank account does not deprive anyone else of a resource.

Is this corporate cash held in US Bank accounts?

I don't think it is. It is mainly kept in tax havens.

I believe Metal Brain has raised an interesting question. Imbalances in monetary wealth are causing a detrimental effect on the world economy.

With low interest rates, you would expect much higher levels of investment. But as the working poor have no jobs or money there is no point companies investing as their customers are skint.

Swiss government 10 year bonds went negative this summer.

Ultimately, we need to transfer funds from the rich to the poor for everyones benefit.