Rich people are really clever about getting non rich people to take their losses, so don't count on it. E.g. Bail outs and QE spread the pain away from those who took the risks, avoiding such moral hazards.
Since the 1980's the US has gone on massive borrowing.
When the US borrows, it prints TBills. TBills are what backs the dollar. Very crudely - more TBills = more liquidity.
Also, things like 'quantitative easing' have flushed markets full of liquidity, lifting stocks up - relative to all other forms of capital. Or in other words, it shifts value from other places, into the pockets of those who have most of their wealth in equities etc..
This is the tip of the iceberg.
'Very wealthy people' are usually very smart and hard-working, and about 1/2 of them 'made their own fortunes'. That's all well and good - but the system in America hugely favours capital.
So, basically, all that's changed recently is that stocks have been going up.
And when they eventually go down, 80% of the losses will be held by the richest 10% also.