The robustness critique of property-owning democracy

An idealised property-owning democracy proposed by both James Meade and Rawls includes the systematic distribution of capital throughout society as well as the provision of equal educational opportunities. These polices are designed to address the accumulation of capital among an elite and the increasingly unequal incomes obtained in the labour market. However, the idea that capital can be easily distributed is premised on the assumption that it naturally accumulates value. On a market process account, capital retains its value only as part of a productive plan. The systematic taxation of capital disrupts and hinders such planning, thus reducing the wealth available in society rather than redistributing it. Similarly, education is not a singular good that can be mechanically applied to individuals in a way that is observably egalitarian. Individuals benefit from educational opportunities in different ways. When incentive problems within political processes are recognized, the risk of unfair outcomes becomes still greater.