Wealth is not so easy to squander, it seems.

It is common belief across the world that wealth survives in a family for only 3 generations. But, is it true? "Some $30 trillion in the US will reportedly be passed from the baby-boom generation to their heirs over the next 30 years, and recent changes in the tax code make passing along inherited wealth all the more easy," was an article in Bloomberg View. A study by JB Wahl in Wisconsin shows that although succeeding generations gradually lose their wealth until they become like ordinary citizens it takes much longer than 3 generations. According to Wahl, "Imagine that the wealthiest family at any given point in time has 100% more money than the average family. According to this sample, it would take 13 generations -- approximately four centuries -- for this hypothetical wealthy family to return to having a mere 10% more than the average household." Everyone knows that inequality in the United States has risen in recent decades," wrote RV Reeves. Better education, marrying of equals, better parenting, geographical segregation and 'hoarding' of opportunities, by using social networks to help children, are some of the ways that the wealthy manage to help their children to stay ahead of the rest. A study in the UK found that middle-class parents create a glass floor under their children, helping them to earn more than more talented children from poor families. "High attaining children from less advantaged family backgrounds are less able to, or at least less successful, at converting this early high potential into later labour market success," the study found. India maybe a poor country with a per capita GDP of around $2,000 per year, but "India has a billionaire problem," wrote J Crabtree. "From 2004 to 2014 India enjoyed the fastest economic expansion in its history, averaging growth of more than eight per cent a year." "Today India boasts 119 billionaires, more than any other country except China and the US." "Over this period India's tycoon class -- the 'Bollygarchs' as some call them borrowed huge sums from state-backed banks and invested it -- with gleeful abandon -- in one of the largest deployments of private capital since America built its railroad network more than a century and a half earlier." Education is creating huge gaps in earnings as the country progresses in technology, graduate earning "3.3 times the worker with basic schooling". Educational levels of parents make a big difference in how much their children earn, creating a 'glass floor' to support them. Tax and redistribution supports the poor in rich countries but does nothing to eliminate inequality. It should be easier in India. Reduce population and GDP per capita will increase automatically as there will be fewer people to divide the wealth. But, politicians love the poor. Therein lies the problem.