There’s a strange phenomenon that’s been going on for quite a while now. It’s nothing new, but it’s as baffling as ever: people on low incomes going out of their way to defend millionaires and even defending billionaires. And I don’t mean defending billionaires in court. I mean white knighting them online or in conversation, as if these ultra-wealthy individuals need protection from criticism.
Let’s roll it back a bit. I won’t go into full detail about my financial situation, but here’s a range to work with: I can’t afford to buy a house. At the same time, rising supermarket prices, while annoying, don’t ruin my week.
I’ve also been below the poverty line, which is exactly why I can’t wrap my head around this behaviour. We pay absurd levels of tax. That includes 40, 50, sometimes even 60 percent when you factor in income tax, health insurance, social contributions and everything else. And to be clear, that’s fine. That’s literally what pays for the roads, unemployment benefits, and the general infrastructure of society. The issue is not taxation. The issue is that there are people out there who will turn around defending billionaires, ultra-wealthy individuals, who do everything in their power to avoid paying anything.
And before anyone chimes in with “well, they don’t technically earn income, it’s all unrealised gains”; yes, exactly. That’s the problem. They sit on massive amounts of wealth, then use those assets as collateral for loans with such low interest that inflation ends up working in their favour. They effectively borrow money cheaper than its real-world value. And they do it over and over again while contributing nothing back.
Meanwhile, you’ve got people earning €1,800 a month before tax jumping into some millionaire’s livestream and dropping €50 just to hear their name read out loud. It’s not about shaming people for spending money on what brings them joy. But at some point, it stops being entertainment and starts becoming a questionable use of limited resources, especially when it benefits someone who already has more than enough. It begins to feel less like enjoyment and more like financial self-harm dressed up as fandom.
What Drives People to Keep Defending Billionaires?
This is exactly why it’s so strange when people cut essential, genuinely beneficial expenses but still throw money at individuals who clearly don’t need it. This isn’t a call to cancel every subscription or habit that brings comfort. If Netflix, Prime or a gym membership brings value, it should be kept. In fact, those are the last things anyone should be cutting in the pursuit of saving money. Especially the gym. It’s often treated like a luxury, but it’s not just about physical fitness. It’s about structure, purpose and a place to go. The mental health benefits are very real too. Cancelling that while continuing to tip streamers or donate to rich creators makes even less sense.
Now, of course, if someone is genuinely in trouble and cutting back helps them get through the month, that’s an entirely different story. But giving up everything that brings joy just for the sake of saving money isn’t always the best route either. If total monthly spending on entertainment or small comforts stays under €150, that’s €1,800 a year. Coincidentally matching that earlier income example, totally unplanned, of course. In the grand scheme, that’s not nothing, but it’s also not life-changing savings for most people. Especially if the cost of that saving is isolation, misery or burnout. Savings are important, yes, but not at the cost of mental stability. Sometimes, that €10 subscription or €50 game is the one thing keeping someone afloat.
Back to the main point: why are so many people who are financially struggling still defending billionaires, meaning, the ultra-wealthy?
These individuals aren’t just “job creators”. Many are market manipulators. They influence governments, lobby for policies that help them hoard more wealth, and then turn around and buy up entire segments of the housing market, only to rent or flip those properties back to regular people at ten times the original value. That’s not investment. That’s scalping. It’s no different from flipping PS5s or Nvidia GPUs during launch week.
Then there’s the grindset myth. “You just need to hustle harder.” Do you, though? Hard work is absolutely necessary, no question about it. But it’s not a guarantee of success. Luck plays a massive role. You can work your arse off, but if the right person doesn’t see it, or if the right opportunity never comes your way, it might not matter.
The system isn’t meritocratic, and pretending it is only gives people false hope while protecting those already at the top.
And the rhetoric behind hustle culture doesn’t help either. You’ll hear things like: “A crackhead doesn’t say, Oh I can’t get high today, I’m broke. No, he makes it happen. Don’t let a crackhead hustle harder than you.” It’s darkly funny and, admittedly, right up my alley humour-wise. But it’s honestly not far off from the nonsense regularly posted on LinkedIn by people pushing “motivational” content. That kind of relentless drive isn’t always the sign of ambition. It’s often desperation. It’s often addiction. And it’s not exactly a healthy foundation for your work ethic.
How Ignoring Luck Leads to Defending Billionaires
The truth is, hard work and luck need each other. Luck without effort is a wasted opportunity. But effort without luck is, unfortunately, the much more common story. You still have to put in the work, nothing happens without it. But the belief that sheer effort alone will solve your financial problems? That’s just not realistic for most people.
What’s really frustrating is how people cling to the idea that the system will reward them if they just keep grinding. It’s treated like a formula: hustle plus belief equals success. But success isn’t a vending machine. You don’t put in the work and get guaranteed results. The real factors, networking, exposure, timing, are talked about far less, because they’re harder to control and, frankly, they don’t sell success programmes. It’s not pessimistic to acknowledge this. It’s simply being honest about how uneven the playing field actually is.
Some people point to countries that are clamping down on this kind of runaway wealth behaviour. For example, China has fairly strict controls on how much money can be moved out of the country. Whether or not one agrees with their methods, the concept of placing hard limits on unchecked capital movement isn’t terrible in theory. Of course, any proper solution would need to be implemented far more effectively than what they’re doing. Communism shouldn’t be the goal, like ever.
But there has to be some kind of limit. Otherwise, it really does start to feel like a simulation, one where regular people pay massive taxes, struggle to access housing, and then cheer from the sidelines as billionaires post photos from their yachts. Why are people applauding them? Why are they defending them?
They don’t need defending. And chances are, most people could really use that €50 back next month.
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