I don't get it.
Were I a billionaire, and given all the benefits of the doubt that I had some knowledge of economics and a semblance of insight into the world around me, would it not make the most sense to raise the standard of living of your employees and the average joe as fast as possible?
More spending power will benefit each and every corporation. Every dollar that survives being spent on basic needs will either be used for luxuries or savings, both of which will pad the triple foundation of any business. Power to the consumer will feed into innovation, because companies will have a reason to build better products: People will be willing to pay for them.
Eventually that compounds into invention of superior technologies, literally everyone benefits. Don't worry, you'll still be rich if you're rich. It's just that you'll be a rich person among other rich people, not just a rich person among the poor. I've heard adages saying that it's better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of a dragon. But the choice is between the head of chicken and the head of a dragon.
Lying about record profits by carving from the wages of your workers. It's literally a diminishing return. At some point you can't gouge them all. Ever read “The Prince” by Machiavelli? Even a rat, if cornered with no way to escape, will claw at a cat's eyes. Fine, let's say that the upper class have perfected the formula for keeping the working class just sated enough to keep us from revolting. Surely the long-term consequences (value lost over compounding years, the opportunity cost of having the average consumer have tens of thousands in spending income over decades) is less potent than whatever we have now?
You get your billions now, all for what? You traded it in for trillions in the long run. Ok, let's say you're in in for a good time, not a long time. So far, we haven't seen any billionaires return from the dead. But what about your kids? Your heirs? Surely you must love them enough to leave a legacy. Don't they deserve a better life. Wouldn't you want them to have more money than you in the future?
I started this rant with idea that I'd end by saying that the only explanation for current events is the evil within people. But that doesn't even make sense anymore. It has to be stupidity also.