My new deadline: 20 years to give away virtually all my wealth • Hacker News Board

Re: My new deadline: 20 years to give away virtually all my wealth

#291

Post by ToValueFunfetti » Thu, May 08, 2025, 4:18 PM UTC

monooso wrote: post #111

9rx wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> without paying capital gains tax. It's a funny day when you're feeling charitable, but go out of your way to avoid helping the entity that should be the ideal charitable recipient.

That assumes a lot about the current administration.

Assumes a lot about every administration. I don't see how anyone can look at what the US Government has done and failed to do over the last decades and call it the ideal charitable recipient. Even when it's doing the right things, it wastes enormous amounts of money to do so and the primary beneficiary is one of the wealthiest populations in the world.

Of course, you wouldn't expect them to be the ideal charity; they are explicitly not a charity. Anyone who is actually trying to be a charity should have little trouble using funds more charitably than any government in the world.

Re: My new deadline: 20 years to give away virtually all my wealth

#292

Post by PieTime » Thu, May 08, 2025, 4:19 PM UTC

tough wrote: post #211

Every billionaire running these are just doing tax avoidalnce at the highest levels i assume?

Yes, https://youtu.be/KO3-xkVACgE?si=suWJxu_TCPq37V6W

Cannot ignore that his communicable disease research and treatment has been effective. But his school voucher and farming initiative have been awful. Ultimately it would have been better as general revenue to provide these services through government.

Re: My new deadline: 20 years to give away virtually all my wealth

#293

Post by PieTime » Thu, May 08, 2025, 4:20 PM UTC

wormlord wrote: post #205

argsnd wrote: post #186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There were, I think, fair reasons to do this. A patent-free "people's vaccine" may well have reached fewer people because there's got to be money in scaling up the production of something like this.

It also conveniently benefits him greatly.

He’s also buying up a lot of farm land in US…

Re: My new deadline: 20 years to give away virtually all my wealth

#294

Post by didgetmaster » Thu, May 08, 2025, 4:20 PM UTC

9rx wrote: post #100

Ozzie_osman wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For you (or other folks) working in tech and giving to charity, apart from corporate match, another couple pieces of advice are to consider a Donor Advised Fund. They are really easy to set up, and then you get some benefits, like the ability to "bunch" your donations (can help with tax deductions) or donate appreciated investments (like RSUs) without paying capital gains tax.

> without paying capital gains tax. It's a funny day when you're feeling charitable, but go out of your way to avoid helping the entity that should be the ideal charitable recipient.

Perhaps the government 'should' be the ideal charitable entity; but it most definitely is not.

The waste, fraud, and abuse that runs rampant throughout the government tells us that the powerful often use taxpayer dollars as their own slush fund.

Sure the government does much to relieve the suffering of people around the globe; but it could do far more with substantially less.

Re: My new deadline: 20 years to give away virtually all my wealth

#295

Post by _bin_ » Thu, May 08, 2025, 4:21 PM UTC

justsocrateasin wrote: post #145

_bin_ wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

did you even read the article? He talks about how he has/will continue to invest significant resources into alzheimers research.

Sure I did. I'm aware his giving isn't just mosquito nets. That doesn't mean I believe the money is being directed correctly.

If your position is "it's his money so none of us should comment", I'd expect equal pushback on people saying "wow I really agree with how he's spending it."

Re: My new deadline: 20 years to give away virtually all my wealth

#296

Post by zozbot234 » Thu, May 08, 2025, 4:22 PM UTC

ryandrake wrote: post #279

zozbot234 wrote: post #264

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The problem with leaving everything to private charity is that the wealthy people doing the donating dictate what counts as "public good" without you and I having any say over it. The thing about public goods is that people tend to agree pretty closely about what they are. The wealthiest person in the world benefits from, e.g. clean air just as much as you do. You should be a lot more worried about wealthy folks wh…

Given (at least the USA's) increasingly polarized population, I don't think it's at all true that people agree closely about what should be funded, and I'll admit that fact makes my argument weaker: The danger of a particular wealthy person "donating to evil" is similar to the danger that the majority of the country votes to "fund evil." I also agree that wealthy folks spending their wealth on luxury yachts while the…

Shouldn't we be a lot more worried about how political polarization might impact government choices, compared to private sector ones? Private actors who spend their own money have to pay for their own choices and are accountable to themselves in a way that political operatives fundamentally don't. I see a lot more potential for 'evil' on the political/state actor side.

Re: My new deadline: 20 years to give away virtually all my wealth

#297

Post by titzer » Thu, May 08, 2025, 4:22 PM UTC

hiuyty wrote: post #252

jarbus wrote: post #16

Say what you want, but I respect this a lot. Sure as hell beats giving it all to your kids.

[flagged]

Don't take a dime then either. Good luck generating your own power, homeschooling your kids, and building your own roads.

Re: My new deadline: 20 years to give away virtually all my wealth

#298

Post by _bin_ » Thu, May 08, 2025, 4:23 PM UTC

energy123 wrote: post #223

_bin_ wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

This is just cruel nativism, a rejection of humanity except for the in group you happened to be born in. I hope everyone rejects this sociopathic outlook on the world. And Gates is investing in Alzheimer's research FYI.

Reducing rightly-ordered love to "cruel nativism" is an incredibly uncharitable representation. I'd urge you to do some reading in comparative religion. Although I'm a Christian, I've found it instructive to spend some time going through other religions' texts, other philosophies, because dismissing them as backward or wrong does nobody any good. Learning more makes my conversations more productive and helps me better understand my own beliefs.

Re: My new deadline: 20 years to give away virtually all my wealth

#299

Post by 0_____0 » Thu, May 08, 2025, 4:23 PM UTC

RataNova wrote: post #33

How much power is concentrated in the hands of individuals... It's great that Gates is choosing to use that power philanthropically, but it also raises questions about the long-term role of private wealth in solving public problems.

His letter basically says this, explicitly stating that government is needed for things like eradicating Polio.

Re: My new deadline: 20 years to give away virtually all my wealth

#300

Post by altruios » Thu, May 08, 2025, 4:24 PM UTC

haarolean wrote: post #263

skandium wrote: post #48

One of the great tragedies of the world is that while he is arguably the philanthropist with the highest positive impact in human history, a significant part of the population seems to still think he is the literal Antichrist.

It's hard to take him seriously or consider him a good guy. While advocating for the environment, he doesn't hesitate to short tesla, an EV company (questionable nature aside). There are two possible reasons for this (the 'why' remains -- not enough money?): - He's admitting he doesn't care about the environmental mission, just the returns - He thinks tesla is a fraud, but isn't saying it publicly Either way, it's su…

Well it seems obvious why anyone would (and morally should) short tesla... but let me break it down for those in the bleachers with two facts.

Musk 1: behind the presidential podium during the inauguration with the country watching twice did a salute of the enemy of the American people in WW2. And 2: controls the vast majority of tesla shares and is their current CEO.

It is patriotic to short tesla. And Bill Gates clearly cares about the future direction of this country.