Deconstructing The Exaflood Myth → Re: Let me just sum it all up:

why do you arbitrarily stop at the top 1%...why not 5 or 10 %? Why does my neighbor have a Cadillac and I only have a Buick? Why is the White House bigger than my house...it's just not fair!

Choices....

Because such an enormous disparity in incomes helps to erode a civilization of it's middle class, which I think is extremely important for the type of lifestyle I would prefer to enjoy. More of these profits could be spent improving customer service, strengthening the infrastructure proactively, enhancing research and development in pursuit of new and better technology, and to increase the wellness and satisfaction of a majority of their employees, which could distribute this wealth more evenly to help invigorate other businesses throughout the community.

With a more democratic approach to how a business is operated, it seems like a better solution for everyone involved, including the CEO, rather than just the CEO in the usual systems that only care about short-term profit maximization. I'm not suggesting all conglomerates have their revenues completely socialized, but we could all benefit from a more balanced distribution.

The type of lifestyle that you would prefer shouldn't come at the expense of others. There seems to be mass confusion about the liberties that this country entitles you to, and the entitlements people feel that they should have by living in this country.
This is evident in your statement
"which I think is extremely important for the type of lifestyle I would prefer to enjoy".

Why should anybody but YOU pay for the way that you prefer to live?
It's up to the shareholders to compensate their board members. if you want a voice in that process, then buy some shares instead of just standing there with your hand out!

I'm concerned about having the choice to live the type of lifestyle I desire. Not everyone can own a castle, and I have no ambition to do so, but I would like my other choice to be something other than a miserable shanty.This is precisely why I mentioned Mondragon in the first place. I think we have it backwards. The board of directors choose a CEO to operate what they see as a cold, faceless, money-generating entity. In the Mondragon model, the employees vote for and elect their management, oftentimes from a pool of their own workers. And this is not some idealistic pipe dream, there is a legitimate, successful working model right now in Spain.

Anyway, my knowledge of such things is obviously minimal, and I am just throwing things out there that intrigued me to see why types of responses I would get. I'm a long way from being set in my ways as far as this topic goes. Thanks for the civil discourse.

No problem about the discourse.
You will always have "discourse" when you suggest that people redistribute what they worked hard for to people that are envious of what they have. And the "Mondragon co-op" mentality only breads complacency, jealousy , and realistically would make everybody equally miserable.
Work hard and prioritize right, you'll get there.