Spain and Brazil push global action to tax the super-rich and curb inequality

Perceptions of Spain and Brazil as Leaders

• Many argue Brazil is “violently unequal” and deeply corrupt; Spain is also criticized for chronic corruption, so some see the initiative as virtue signaling rather than serious reform.
• Others counter that shifting the Overton window matters: even symbolic pushes toward a global wealth registry and curbing tax havens are seen as useful steps, if hard to implement.
• There is skepticism that BRICS or the EU will coordinate effectively, but some note BRICS is now a real organization and could in theory align on progressive taxation.

How Spain’s Tax System Works (and Feels)

• Several comments clarify Spain’s progressive income tax: high marginal rates (45% above ~€60k, 47% above €300k, up to ~50% in some regions).
• Supporters say this funds good healthcare, education, and social mobility; some high earners explicitly welcome paying more, framing it as solidarity.
• Critics say top rates at relatively modest incomes are a “monstrous disincentive” and will drive talent and entrepreneurs elsewhere, portraying Spain as a high-tax, low-growth “socialist” state.

Wealth vs Income vs Consumption Taxes

• Strong thread arguing to tax assets—especially land and property—rather than labor or global income; land value taxes and revenue-based corporate taxes are repeatedly proposed.
• Others defend wealth or registry-based approaches as necessary because rich individuals hide assets through cross-border structures and benefit from loopholes and lighter capital taxation.
• Brazil is cited as an example where heavy, regressive consumption taxes hurt the poor far more than the rich, suggesting “tax the rich more” is less urgent than “stop overtaxing consumption.”

Inequality, Investment, and “Trickle Down”

• One camp: super-rich investment drives growth; focus should be on deregulation, cutting bureaucracy, and simple low tax rates (e.g., flat 10%) to stimulate business and personal responsibility.
• Opposing camp: trickle-down has failed; capital gains are favored over labor; high inequality lets billionaires capture states and extract rents (housing, layoffs, buy-to-let, financial speculation).
• Some emphasize that rich already pay a large share of total taxes; others reply that relative to their wealth they still contribute too little and continue to gain outsized economic and political power.

Role of the State and Corruption (Especially Brazil)

• Several Brazilians describe a high-tax, high-corruption equilibrium: citizens pay heavily on income and consumption, then also pay privately for health, education, and security because public services fail.
• For them, “more tax on the rich” sounds like more money into a corrupt system that already treats modest earners as “rich” in brackets. They advocate cutting waste, bureaucracy, and especially consumption taxes.
• Others insist the state is the only tool to counter private power; shrinking it just shifts control from democratic institutions to unaccountable elites.

Housing, Land, and Structural Issues

• Housing inflation is widely seen as a key driver of perceived inequality: ownership is far harder relative to median wages than decades ago.
• Some blame zoning, planning, and NIMBYism for blocking supply; others point to broader cost pressures (Baumol effect) and investor-driven property hoarding.
• Land value tax recurs as a proposed way to discourage empty properties, speculative holding, and excessive rent extraction while funding local services.

Automation, AI, and the Future of Inequality

• A subthread argues that automation and AI are structurally amplifying inequality: capital owners can deploy robots and servers instead of hiring workers, decoupling investment from jobs.
• Another view: automation has historically raised living standards; AI’s impact is not yet material, and policy (tax and regulation) will determine whether gains are shared or concentrated.

Feasibility and Likely Impact of a Global Super-Rich Tax

• Supporters believe taxing extreme wealth and closing havens is vital to prevent democratic erosion and “French Revolution”-style backlash; they invoke high propensity to spend among the non-rich and New Deal-era policies.
• Skeptics stress practical limits: wealth is largely in businesses and illiquid assets; one-off confiscations don’t fix structural issues and may ultimately hit workers and investment.
• Many doubt that Spain/Brazil-led global coordination can overcome flight opportunities, political resistance, and deeply embedded national tax privileges for the rich.