I agree that people who work harder than others or take a bigger risk should have more money but to say that it is fantastic that there are 3.5 b people living in poverty is just dumb. That's how the world works but what is "fantastic" about this?
He was being purposefully obtuse to rustle jimmies. It's his "character."
What's fantastic is that the people you've described, those who are willing to work harder, longer, smarter, and manage risk, and provide great value to the world can be rewarded for it. Having this inequality means there are things to aspire to and for.
If we redistributed wealth like all these idiots are saying, what we'd have is a 1% who controlled the redistribution living like super-kings, with everyone else in poverty (but an equal poverty!) not educating themselves, with no motivations, no goals, just transforming into a species of super-sloth potatoes.
And I think that's the reality of this whole argument. It's got nothing to do with suffering. It has to do with the idea that someone is more successful. That what they do and work for provides more value. That sitting around playing the Xbox all day isn't rewarded with millions of dollars.
It's crabs in a bucket. Seeing someone successful and then literally proposing that we steal their money that they earned and give it to someone who hasn't earned it is a way of saying...
"Fuck that. I'm not going to work that hard. Money doesn't mean EVERYTHING. And look how he wastes it. I'd spend it better! I'd blah blah, and I'd also blah blah"
It's a mutually exclusive dream. When they say they want socialism, they are saying:
"I want to be super fucking filthy rich too, I just don't want to work for it. I know that redistributing wealth means nobody is super fucking filthy rich, but that's okay. I'd rather NOBODY be rich than me not be rich."
Of course, I'm just talking within the confines of the first world. The 1% do so much charity work and share and help the third world and a lot of times don't get recognized for it. The Clinton Global Initiative, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, etc. These guys are in the trenches, but we are willing to crucify them because they aren't redistributing the wealth in the way we want them to. "Don't save lives, just give us cash!"