LAD #21

 

In Andrew Carnegie's piece "Wealth" from North American View, he discusses the proper way that society might go about leveling the uneual distribution of wealth. This is his "Gospel of Wealth." Though one might expect the billionaire to horde his riches and protect them from the public, Carnegie urges his fellow business tycoons to donate parts of their income. He says that the elevation of a minority above the living standard is a natural progression of society, but that returning some of those earnings to the public will benefit society as a whole. To prove this, he analyzes three modes by which fortunes are spent. First, he discusses those that spend the money on themselves during their lifetimes and leave the rest of their fortunes to their families. This is not only selfish according to Carnegie, but a burden on the family. The children of these billionaires often lose their fortune. In this way, the fortunes are not best kept in the hands of the few. The second option involves a death tax, in which the government takes money from the estates of the wealthy upon their death in the form of a tax. Surprisingly, Carnegie supports the idea of a death tax, though he does not see it as the most effective way to distribute wealth. He argues that the death tax is a beneficial thing because it brings money back to the public, but notes that time is wasted during the lifetime of the billionaire to do public good with the money. This brings him to his final point: Wealthy individuals should be philanthropists throughout their lifetime. In this way, everyone is able to benefit from the fortune and it is the responsibility of the few who have political power to see that this happens. The distribution of wealth throughout a tycoons lifetime would be society's equalizer in an age where the gap between the rich and poor was widening.