IN THE COMING years the “silent” and “baby boomer(婴儿潮一代)” generations in America—people born between the 1920s and 1960s—will pass $110trn in wealth to their children. Some argue that the rise of inherited wealth in rich countries, part of a broader intergenerational shift known as the “Great Wealth Transfer”, threatens meritocracy(精英治国；择优体制) and capitalism. Allow us to offer a rosier(更乐观的) view.
未来数年，美国的“沉默一代”与“婴儿潮一代”——即20世纪20年代至60年代出生的人——将向子女转移110万亿美元财富。有人认为，富裕国家继承财富的兴起是所谓“财富大转移”这一更广泛代际变迁的一部分，它威胁着精英治国与资本主义。请允许我们提供一个更乐观的视角。
We spent a decade building the first complete picture of America’s rich from administrative tax data(税务行政数据). Private-business owners dominate the top 1%. There are around 3m such owners, with average wealth of around $25m. They live all over the country, running businesses they started, bought or inherited in a wide set of largely unglamorous(不起眼的；不光鲜的) industries. These “Everywhere Millionaires” collectively hold more than ten times the wealth of the Forbes 400(福布斯400富豪榜), America’s richest people. Only a quarter of them inherited their firms. If the inheritocracy(继承制；继承者统治) loom(逼近；隐现)s, it has clearly not yet arrived.
我们花了十年时间，利用税务行政数据首次完整描绘出美国富人的全貌。私营企业主在收入最高的1%人群中占据主导。这类企业主约有300万人，平均财富约2500万美元。他们遍布全美各地，经营着自己创办、收购或继承的企业，涉足众多大多并不光鲜的行业。这些“无处不在的百万富翁”合计持有的财富，是美国最富有的“福布斯400强”的十倍以上。其中只有四分之一继承了企业。如果说继承制正在逼近，那它显然尚未到来。
Much of the conventional narrative(传统叙事；主流说法) has focused on the bequest(遗赠；遗产) of financial assets and property. But the true story of the Great Wealth Transfer is the story of what happens to the family business when Everywhere Millionaires die.
传统叙事大多聚焦于金融资产和房产的遗赠。但财富大转移的真正故事，是当“无处不在的百万富翁”去世后，家族企业会遭遇什么。
…but we need to talk about tax
……但我们得谈谈税收