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Why "Eat the Rich" Rhetoric is Destroying Opportunity for Young People · Right Now Hot Takes

• 0:05
  Welcome. Welcome to the show. Gotta love that
• 0:09
  energy. Love it. Welcome to the show, Right Now
• 0:13
  Hot Takes, where we are unfiltered, bold. And
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  right now with our news and what we're talking
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  about, I'm your host, Jim Rand. Got a great episode
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  today. This one is really relevant to what you're
• 0:26
  seeing, especially on social media. This is going
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  to be dealing with rich people and how society
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  sees them, that sort of thing. But first, a little
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  about me. I love this country. I love the American
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  way. The promise that if you work hard, build
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  skills, and create value, you can rise and build
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  a better life. I truly believe that. We see examples
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  of that. We see stories of people beating the
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  odds and we cheer them on. But not everyone loves
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  to see someone else succeed. That's why today
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  we're tackling a toxic idea that's everywhere
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  on social media and college campuses. Eat the
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  rich! It sounds like justice. Punish success.
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  Tax the wealthy more. Redistribute it all. But
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  this wealth envy and redistribution mindset isn't
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  helping young people. It's destroying the very
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  opportunities you need to get ahead. And I really
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  believe that much of this podcast will focus
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  on the 20 -somethings. I know I said that last
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  episode, too, but that's really the idea here,
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  to speak to the 20 -somethings and 30 -somethings
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  out there. So let's jump in and let's break it
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  down honestly. I get it. As a 20 -something,
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  everything feels expensive. Housing, student
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  loans, low wages, new to life and making a living,
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  starting out. It looks like a few people at the
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  top have it made while you're grinding. We hear,
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  eat the rich. It gives a simple villain and a
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  simple fix. Take from them and give to you. It
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  feels moral. We like a scapegoat for our problems,
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  so why not blame them? But good intentions don't
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  create jobs or raise wages. We have to look at
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  results. Attacking success through heavy taxes,
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  regulations, and envy doesn't lift the bottom.
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  It shrinks the whole ladder. Looking for more
• 2:22
  great storytelling? Check out History in Decades,
• 2:25
  the podcast that makes history feel alive and
• 2:28
  relevant. Each episode walks you through one
• 2:30
  decade at a time from the early American colonies
• 2:33
  to the modern world. Posted by Jim Rand, it's
• 2:36
  engaging, insightful, and full of the lessons
• 2:38
  we can still learn from the past. The link is
• 2:40
  in the show notes. Or search for history in decades
• 2:43
  on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen, and
• 2:47
  download it today. Here's the reality. Rich people
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  and successful businesses aren't hoarding a fixed
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  pie. They're the ones baking new pies, so to
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  speak. They start companies, invest capital,
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  and hire people, especially young people entering
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  the workforce. When politicians eat the rich
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  with punishing taxes and rules, what happens?
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  Investors pull back. Entrepreneurs move to lower
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  tax states or countries. Hiring freezes or moves
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  overseas. Startups, the companies that create
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  the most new jobs, become too risky to fund.
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  Look at places with heavy redistribution. High
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  tax cities and states see businesses and talent
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  fleeing. Meanwhile, states that respect success
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  see growth. Free enterprise rewards work and
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  innovation because people keep more of what they
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  create. That money gets reinvested into new ideas,
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  new factories, new opportunities. Voluntary cooperation
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  drives this. Customers freely choose your product.
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  Employees freely take the job. Investors freely
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  risk their capital. Government coercion will
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  take it and redistribute. of that. It punishes
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  the very risk -takers who create mobility for
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  the next generation. Now, here's the real damage
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  to young people. Many don't see this, or refuse
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  to see that taxing the rich would actually affect
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  them, but For you 20 -somethings just starting
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  out, this rhetoric is especially harmful. Entry
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  level jobs dry up when businesses face higher
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  costs and uncertainty. Wage growth slows because
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  there's less capital chasing talent. The path
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  to the middle class, learn skills, get experience,
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  climb, gets blocked. Wealth envy also teaches
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  the wrong lesson. Instead of build something
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  valuable, it says tear others down. That kills
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  the grit and ambition America runs on. Real mobility
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  comes from expanding the economy, not slicing
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  up a shrinking one. History proves free markets
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  have lifted billions out of poverty worldwide
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  by rewarding creation, not punishing it. At its
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  core, this is about human dignity. God gave us
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  abilities to use productively. Stewarding what
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  you earn, taking risks, and voluntarily trading
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  with others honors that. It builds character
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  and community. Eat the rich. Treat success as
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  theft and people as dependents of the state.
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  That's not compassionate. It's corrosive. Conservatives
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  defend capitalism because it aligns with truth.
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  Work has value, people respond to incentives,
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  and freedom produces more prosperity and generosity
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  than forced redistribution ever has. Young people,
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  don't fall for the envy trap! Bet on yourself
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  and the American system that rewards effort and
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  creativity. Build skills, create value, support
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  policies that expand opportunity instead of punishing
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  success. That's how you win and how our country
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  stays the land of opportunity. I love this nation
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  too much to sugarcoat it. What do you think?
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  If you enjoyed this content, please do us a great
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  favor. Rate and review on iTunes or Spotify and
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  share this episode with a friend. Subscribe for
• 6:11
  more unfiltered truth. I'll see you next time
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  on Right Now Hot Takes.