I don't expect you were genuinely seeking an answer, however I'll point out that the crux of the mystery described in TFA was that it was such a rare event - someone tremendously wealthy didn't avoid this tax - that it was note-worthy.

we regularly get comments like this, and people on HN still question the value of a liberal arts education

Are you joking? How is here is an extreme case of X doesn't relate to an extreme case of -X?