Levels of Wealth Redistribution

There are five levels of wealth redistribution:

(1) The first level is the most benign. It is voluntary charity. Here, one with excess wealth, or with the mind to think that way, distributes to one less fortunate. In doing so, there is no exercise of coercion but of the spiritual variety. It could be that religious experience presses guilt upon the conscience, but it should not be dismissed that this type of giving is from the heart and without government. Despite cries that the Torah and/or Jesus demands care for the poor, the actual Biblical model is personal. The state is given no power to force the blessed into accommodating the afflicted. It is a command from God, any omission of duty recorded as a sin between the Lord and the individual.

(2) The second level is intrusive but provides value. It is taxation with representation. In this schematic, wealth is extracted by law (fairness depending on various factors), a semi-pleasant way to say that the giving is coerced. Allocation of funds is at the discretion of the governing body (for example, the United States Congress). However, representation of the constituency brings an overall general welfare, at least in theory. In such framework, the poor as well as the wealthy enjoy common defense, enforcement of law, healthy roadways, public facilities such as libraries, and other necessities and amenities. This level becomes corrupted when special interests (corporations, unions, racial blocs, etc) take hold of the system.

(3) The third level is coercive but limited. It is theft. There is no value provided, no exit other than self-defense. At least it is quick, a singular event, and generally not life-destructive.

(4) The fourth level is coercive and wide-ranging. It is taxation without representation, that is, tyranny. A king, for example, sets the rate of taxation, his noblemen exact such dues by force if necessary, and the services provided are arbitrary and open to capricious change. The less coercive or more reasonable is a tyrant, the less he is such and the more so a representative of the people (there is an aspect in this level that perspective paints in the gaps of this image). Nevertheless, monarchy and totalitarianism are not models of government upon which secure societies and stable economies are built.

(5) The fifth level is coercive and devastating. It is change of civilization. When, for instance, the barbarians pillaged the Roman Empire, the residents of said empire were thrown from their wealth without even a chance of recognition by cultural kinship (as perhaps a tyrant might have for a fellow countryman). The overthrow of ownership is complete, and without mercy or regard for previous legalities. This level encompasses full-scale successful invasions as well as transformational revolutions.