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Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

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Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#61

Post by dunpeal »

pinewurst wrote: post #42
etaty wrote: post #26

All hail to Bezos... Earlier this year, under pressure from Amazon and other large employers, Seattle’s City Council repealed an employee head tax designed to provide housing and services for the homeless. In a statement, Amazon called the vote “the right decision for the region’s economic prosperity. We are deeply committed to being part of the solution to end homelessness in Seattle and will continue to invest in l…

Speaking as a Seattle resident, and despite my dislike for Bezos, this was a stupid tax - more connected to Seattle's dysfunctional politics than solving our bad homeless problem. Among other things, it was keyed to revenues not profits (specifically to target Amazon) but it ended up burning the likes of grocers who provide decent jobs but don't have a lot of margin even with large revenues. Good riddance to it and a…

As a Seattle resident, what do you think of the argument that Amazon greatly contributed to homelessness in Seattle?

I read somewhere that Amazon's explosive growth raised the property values in Seattle, which in turn caused a surge in homelessness. Is that true?

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#62

Post by vivekys »

stochastic_monk wrote: post #37
woah wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What is the problem with the employees using public benefits? Genuinely curious.

They use them because they aren’t paid enough to live on. Therefore, the government and thereby our taxes subsidize the company.

Why don't they quit and find other better paying job?

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#63

Post by gamegoblin »

noobermin wrote: post #17
mc32 wrote: post #4

I don’t agree with Bezos on a few things, but this is big. It’s about time companies care for their down and out compatriots. Progressives make all kinds of noise and virtue signal for people outside our care, but where the rubber meets the road, they fall short on helping fellow Americans—this is a nice start. Let’s see where it goes. Wonder if he’ll get Bernie to contribute (tongue in cheek)

The best way for companies to care for their down and out compatriots is to pay their workers their due instead of profiting handsomely from underpaying them.

This is something I have legitimately wondered for a while now, and maybe someone on here with an economics background has some links to share:

Which is more economically efficient:

1. Pay workers above-market wages

2. Pay workers market wages, but use taxes and some sort of welfare to bring the workers effective income up to where it would be had you paid them above-market wages.

Presumably the taxes used to fund Option 2 would be something like a wealth tax (including corporate wealth).

My non-economist intuition is that Option 1 could have weird effects on the economy due to paying non-market-based wages.

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#64

Post by istjohn »

sabalaba wrote: post #18
karangoeluw wrote: post #2

I have always wondered which one is better: 1. Contribute early on little by little 2. Contribute nothing to very little for a while amassing huge fortunes (and compound interest magic), then donate big. Pretty much the same question as lump sum vs dollar cost averaging in investing. Have there been studies on this?

1. Usually will end when you pass away. 2. (Especially if establishing a foundation.) Will outlive you and continue on for potentially hundreds of years into the future. For example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Foundation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnegie_Endowment_for_Interna... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rockefeller_Foundation

Money given today pays dividends in the lives of those who benefit and the lives of people who are around them, it just doesn't show up on any balance sheet. The after school program that provides the missing support network for a child, keeping them out of a street gang and later prison, and helping them develop the skills to find gainful employment pays hidden dividends of tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars for society. Also there are second and third order effects that amplify those gains further. If that money was instead earning 5% in an endowment fund, it may keep the name of a robber baron alive for perpetuity, but it does far less for society today. And if you could trace the knock-on effects of the money given today, you would likely find that the benefits distributed throughout society accumulate quicker than the 5% rate of growth achieved by that endowment fund.

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#65

Post by mrighele »

woah wrote: post #32
kolanos wrote: post #10

Call me cynical, but shouldn't this $2B go towards compensating his employees well enough to not have to use government welfare programs? [0] [0]: https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-takes-walmarts-spot-w...

What is the problem with the employees using public benefits? Genuinely curious.

Those benefits are public resources that could be used for other things, like helping the homeless. You could say that taxpayers are subsidizing Bezos' PR stunt

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#66

Post by iooi »

DoreenMichele wrote: post #31
maxxxxx wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is more glory in philanthropy than in paying your employees. The ROI in terms of reputation is higher. Addition: the same is true for funding something like a computer lab at a school. Lots of good PR for funding a new one but nothing for keeping an existing one funded for the next few years. Although I think it's more valuable to make sure existing infrastructure stays funded.

You aren't anywhere near cynical enough. Taken far enough, programs to "help the homeless" -- instead of programs to reduce homelessness -- are a de facto plot to keep homelessness alive and well. It's a form of oppression of the masses. https://streetlifesolutions.blogspot.com/2018/07/the-shirky-...

I don't necessarily agree with you, but another interesting take on this is by Slavoj Zizek, who argues that charitable giving perpetuates the problem:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpAMbpQ8J7g

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#67

Post by tehsauce »

maxxxxx wrote: post #43
woah wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What is the problem with the employees using public benefits? Genuinely curious.

This means that the public is subsidizing a company owned by the richest man in the world because he refuses to pay his employees a living wage. Doesn't this sound wrong?

It's wrong but how is it the company's fault? It is the government's responsibility to set a minimum wage. How come the blame doesn't fall on the policy makers and lobbyists?

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#68

Post by tptacek »

geofft wrote: post #19
mc32 wrote: post #4

I don’t agree with Bezos on a few things, but this is big. It’s about time companies care for their down and out compatriots. Progressives make all kinds of noise and virtue signal for people outside our care, but where the rubber meets the road, they fall short on helping fellow Americans—this is a nice start. Let’s see where it goes. Wonder if he’ll get Bernie to contribute (tongue in cheek)

> Progressives make all kinds of noise and virtue signal for people outside our care, but where the rubber meets the road, they fall short on helping fellow Americans Can you expand on this?

The right way to respond to inflammatory political comments is to flag them, not to feed them oxygen.

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#69

Post by skrebbel »

ianleeclark wrote: post #46
kolanos wrote: post #10

Call me cynical, but shouldn't this $2B go towards compensating his employees well enough to not have to use government welfare programs? [0] [0]: https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-takes-walmarts-spot-w...

There's a good 2-part podcast about Benevolent Billionaires from the "Citations Needed" podcast that goes a bit over the history of billionaire benevolence and what the good deeds cover up.

Any chance you could braindump a tl;dl?

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#70

Post by toomuchtodo »

s3m4j wrote: post #25
kolanos wrote: post #10

Call me cynical, but shouldn't this $2B go towards compensating his employees well enough to not have to use government welfare programs? [0] [0]: https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-takes-walmarts-spot-w...

$2B divided by 600k employees would be more than $3000, which is actually huge for many people.

If you're making $50k/year, that's a one time 6 percent bonus. Color me unimpressed.
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