Even if the government taxed me 4 times and I only ended up keeping 10% of it, that's still money I own.

A wealth tax means I don't own it, as the government can just take part of it back if they determine I didn't spend enough of it.

That's why people use "stealing" as a metaphor.

Even if you 100% believe in income taxes, the fact is that they remove ownership of money. It's okay to think that's a good thing (I guess), but you can't act surprised when someone else interprets that as stealing.

It's not some giant leap in logic.

PS: Wealth taxes are most often implemented for wealth above $700k-$1.1m, which is barely enough for a $35k-$45k per year retirement if you retire at the normal age.

And that's assuming you don't own a house. If you own a $200k house, then a net wealth of $500k earns you a retirement bordering on poverty.