On Wed 30 Jul 2003 04:31:47a, Pat Winstanley <wallopcods2003@yahoo.co.uk>
wrote in news:MPG.199192d1d877a0698a5f7@News.CIS.DFN.DE: 

> In article <bg7fl7$kt3g0$1@ID-105084.news.uni-berlin.de>, 
> kgowenNOSPAM@myfastmail.com says...
>
>>> Unearned income, dear, unearned! ;-))
>>
>> How is it unearned?
>
> You didn't earn it... other people did the work that earned (produced) 
> the money. Or you might say your capital earned it by working for you.
>
> You did not earn it because you did no work at all to get it.

He earned it by taking a risk using his own money.