Notice how your response is even less than a restatement of Piketty's thesis, just the observation that theoretically, it is possible that some papers have valid criticisms. Well yes, but which ones?
The article cites Smith, Zidar and Zwick who have tweaked Saez and Zucman's equations regarding top income growth. Assuming different weights and biases results in--surprise, slightly different outputs. But it's a matter of degree, not a reversal of direction. After a couple paragraphs of quibbling, the Economist admits as much with the conclusion: "Few dispute that wealth shares at the top have risen in America, nor that the increase is driven by fortunes at the very top, among people who really can be considered an elite. The question, instead, is by just how much."
The article cites Smith, Zidar and Zwick who have tweaked Saez and Zucman's equations regarding top income growth. Assuming different weights and biases results in--surprise, slightly different outputs. But it's a matter of degree, not a reversal of direction. After a couple paragraphs of quibbling, the Economist admits as much with the conclusion: "Few dispute that wealth shares at the top have risen in America, nor that the increase is driven by fortunes at the very top, among people who really can be considered an elite. The question, instead, is by just how much."