Arguably, achieving substantive equality of opportunity
is easier than achieving equality of outcome. In theory,
achieving equality of opportunity could be done by
redistributing the inherited economic endowments
of each individual, and may not require continuous
intervention by the government at all stages of the life
course. The “market distortions” induced by redistributing
inheritances could then be relatively moderate – compared
to taxing and regulating economic activity across the
life course – and so a social consensus to achieve
equality of opportunity could in theory be easier to
obtain. In practice, however, there are substantial political
constraints on imposing high inheritance taxes in the face
of opposition from prosperous voters with much to lose,
substantial possibilities for avoiding high inheritance
taxes by giving away or squandering private wealth, and
although financial wealth can be taxed it is hard to prevent
people from passing on the non-financial advantages of
“good parenting” to their children – at least not without
collectivizing the care of children to an extent that most
societies would consider unacceptable.