On numerous occasions, Kamala Harris has spoken in public about the difference between equality and equity. Equality of opportunity is not enough. Even socialist equality, where everyone begins at the same level, falls short. She has repeatedly defined equity as her policy of redistribution, which allows everyone to end up at the same place. When criticizing the often-debated idea of equality, she stated that “the problem with that is that not everybody’s starting in the same place.” Equity, for her, is the solution. She said, “Equitable treatment means we all end up in the same place.”
Anyone who understands the complexity of the economy knows that this is a ludicrous concept. However, it may sound appealing to the uninformed. Those that feel they suffer a disadvantage due to their humble origins may find that equality of opportunity is not enough, considering the social and economic hardships they have endured. Nevertheless, those who find this message appealing should think twice, because those policies hurt them the most.
Starting and ending in the same place makes everyone poorer, except for those in government who decide how everyone should start and end. Those politicians become obscenely rich.
Starting out from the same place is unfair. Ending in the same place is catastrophic. Political imposition causes parents and families who have saved for their children to lose all their hard-earned savings when they start over. You may think that the government will give each child what they need. However, when you grant a government sufficient power to provide for your needs, it also determines what your actual needs are. By destroying the incentives to save and prosper, you also destroy the wealth created to conduct social policies. However, when the government can impose equal starting points and outcome measures, it has all the incentives to keep as much wealth as possible among the political elite. As wealth and prosperity decline, all the government will redistribute is misery.