A company that&#x27;s willing to make a product for a 20% margin might not be willing to make that same product for a 5% margin.  Would you put all of your savings in an account with 1% interest and zero-risk?  The opportunity cost is important too.  Also, remember that your pay as an employee depends on the success of the company, just as much as the dividends for the owners do.  Not to mention that the owners include just about all of society, through mutual funds, pension funds, and retirement accounts. The more you raise burdens to business and profit, the poorer your society gets.<p>That&#x27;s not to say we shouldn&#x27;t regulate pollution, but we can&#x27;t ignore the trade-offs involved. It&#x27;s not just a matter of the rich taking less of a cut; that&#x27;s not how it works.