Wealth tax | Comfortable independence yes, hoarding billions – no

While May 1st is about workers' rights such as fairer wages, working hours, vacation, etc., a symbolic day against the unequal distribution of wealth is missing. Martyna Linartas, a political scientist with a doctorate, is researching this topic. The title of her book "Undeserved Inequality" invites two interpretations: The disproportionately greater wealth of those who have not earned it through their own work, genius, or other achievements is undeserved . But many millions of people in this country remain undeserved without any significant wealth; they cannot help their lack of wealth. It is usually because they do not have the "right" parents. In an interview with ZEIT, Martyna Linartas even speaks of a "sperm lottery." The author describes the almost obscenely unequal distribution of wealth in Germany in a manner that is understandable to everyone, supported by informative diagrams. "The richer half in Germany individually holds 99.5% of total net wealth, while the poorer half owns only 0.5%," reads the caption under one sketch. "Dieter Schwarz (Lidl) and the Boehringer and von Baumbach families own at least 95 billion euros, more wealth than the entire population," reads another.

The author demonstrates that the vast majority of the wealthy's enormous fortunes come from inheritances, meaning they were not "earned" through their own efforts. Using relevant scientific literature, she demonstrates the negative impact such enormous fortunes have on the environment. Abramovich's yacht alone causes 22,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year. In order to meet the target set by the Paris Climate Conference ten years ago of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, purely mathematically, each person worldwide should not emit more than two tons of CO₂.

Martyna Linartas also draws impressive further evidence on the dangers to democracy posed by immense disparities in wealth distribution. If the Federal Republic of Germany wanted to at least mitigate this inequality, the primary instrument at its disposal would be tax legislation. In a lengthy excursus, the author recounts the history of inheritance tax in Germany. The wealth tax was abolished decades ago. The scholar then puts forward plausible proposals for a progressive wealth tax and a new legal regulation that would protect medium-sized inheritances while heavily taxing large and excessive inheritances. Martyna Linartas quotes the mid-19th-century liberal thinker John Stuart Mill, who proposed a "comfortable independence" as the limit for wealth that could be inherited or given away. "But let's stop there!" Today, there is no cap. "Where Mill reached the absolute limit ("comfortable independence"), inheritance taxes in Germany are just beginning," writes Martyna Linartas. "We are far from a public debate about capping inheritance taxes and gifts."

The author concludes her book with refreshing and conciliatory thoughts that the vast majority of people in Germany could agree on. She would leave inheritances up to one million euros untouched, but she wants to prevent higher "undeserved inequalities" that could run into the billions. Martyna Linartas has written this important, inspiring book not only for reflection and debate, but also for concrete and swift action.

Martyna Linartas: Undeserved Inequality. How to Escape the Inheritance Society. Rowohlt, 320 pp., hardcover, €24.