The Wave of the Future?

Is this the new ethic? From a report on BBC:

Rich Germans demand higher taxes

A group of rich Germans has launched a petition calling for the government to make wealthy people pay higher taxes.

The group say they have more money than they need, and the extra revenue could fund economic and social programmes to aid Germany's economic recovery.

Germany could raise 100bn euros (£91bn) if the richest people paid a 5% wealth tax for two years, they say.

The petition has 44 signatories so far, and will be presented to newly re-elected Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The group say the financial crisis is leading to an increase in unemployment, poverty and social inequality.

Simply donating money to deal with the problems is not enough, they want a change in the whole approach.

"The path out of the crisis must be paved with massive investment in ecology, education and social justice," they say in the petition.

I'm hoping this is the swing to the left to counteract the last 30 years of rampant right wing, greed is good, he who dies with the most toys wins, I've got mine to hell with you, ethic of the "Reagan revolution".

But the report ends with a bit of cautious realism:

The group held a demonstration in Berlin on Wednesday to draw attention to their plans, throwing fake banknotes into the air.

Mr Vollmer said it was "really strange that so few people came".

It is going to be a hard sell. Most of the rich got that way by working hard and saving. To now turn around and give it away, especially to those who partied through life, never saving, always putting the touch on others to fund them through their personal crises will be hard. If you are an ant and the grasshopper is starving, the right thing to do is feed him, but it grates on you for all your hard working and frugal ways left you watching as the grasshopper froliced, even make fun of you. But now in a time of need the grasshopper comes to bum goodies off of you. Yep... life is cruel.