I like how the two questions point out a cognitive dissonance in people's opinions.
I think of lot of wealth difference comes from interest rates. The interest poor people have to pay and slowly work off for a loan, vs. the interest rates that people with large capital get for "parking" their assets with a bank.
It's definitely more complicated than that, and up for discussion. But it's great that you wrote an article about this very useful anecdote. Thanks!