But the most important thing about Musk’s wealth isn’t whether it stays above the 13-figure threshold — it’s that 94% of it comes from not having to pay taxes on unrealized gains. That’s right: Musk’s fortune effectively comes from not paying taxes. If it weren’t for laws that permit the wealthy to endlessly defer paying taxes by keeping their gains unrealized, there would be no trillionaires — and many fewer billionaires. The vast bulk of their fortunes came from not paying taxes on their wealth as it grew. We should end the practice of funding billionaires’ and trillionaires’ accumulation of power at public expense by letting them amass yet larger fortunes without paying taxes.