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Jeff Bezos Becomes the Richest Man in Modern History, Topping $150B

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Re: Jeff Bezos Becomes the Richest Man in Modern History, Topping $150B

#71

Post by untog »

tmpz22 wrote: post #65
FussyZeus wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or the 1%. Something Rich people tend to forget is that the system of law and order we have now prevents armed uprising of the lower classes, which has a history of cropping up during very hard economic times. Not advocating, and I doubt I'd be one of them holding a pitchfork, but it is something to keep in mind.

Except nowadays even small local police departments have tanks and swat teams.

Small local police departments are also staffed by the 90%, though.

I find it difficult to imagine an uprising against the 1% in America any time soon, but if it did happen I can absolutely imagine the police siding against the 1%.

Re: Jeff Bezos Becomes the Richest Man in Modern History, Topping $150B

#72

Post by shawn »

elif wrote: post #27
sandworm101 wrote: post #6

Putin tops him. At these levels the dollar value is not a good measure. Bezos owns shares. If he started selling them their value would quickly drop. Monarchs (Putin) are different. They own things outright, or have such influence that they effectively own things that are legally in other people's names. The Saudi royal house has more wealth under their king's control, although not all in his name. What is scary is t…

can you please cite putin's monarchic ascendancy? i'm having trouble sourcing even the premise of your claim...

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0utzB6oDan0

Re: monarch, the rule of law is the baseline for not being one. And laws don’t really apply to Putin. He’s able to hold onto the presidency for as long as he wants it, and assassinate whomever he wishes.

Re: Jeff Bezos Becomes the Richest Man in Modern History, Topping $150B

#73

Post by vlunkr »

Endama wrote: post #15

I feel that America is in the midst of a new gilded age; instead of Standard Oil, we have Amazon. Like the late 1920s, we saw losses in purchasing power of the average American, the collection of wealth among the top 1%, and disruption of our civic spaces as a result. I think the thing that many Americans aren't aware of was just how violent that time in US history was[1]. The US economy isn't just about how comforta…

Are average Americans losing purchasing power? This is a real question, I don't know where to look that up.

Re: Jeff Bezos Becomes the Richest Man in Modern History, Topping $150B

#74

Post by dclowd9901 »

dgacmu wrote: post #31
josephjrobison wrote: post #11

If modern history goes back to the 1900s though, Rockefeller still has Bezos beat by more than double: "By the time of his death in 1937, estimates place his net worth in the range of US$300 billion to US$400 billion in adjusted dollars for the late 2000s (decade)." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_wealthiest_historical_...

Time for Bezos to endow a university and some libraries? An earlier major technical university endowed by the richest person of the time is a pretty awesome place... (he says with no bias whatsoever. :-) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Carnegie

I'd rather see him endow the treasury with the fucking taxes he owes.

Re: Jeff Bezos Becomes the Richest Man in Modern History, Topping $150B

#75

Post by irrational »

FussyZeus wrote: post #60
aphextron wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Except we actually had a functioning federal government during the last gilded age, so we ended up with things like the Sherman Antitrust Act, and eventually the New Deal. I doubt we'll be so lucky this time around. Things are about to get absolutely brutal for the 90%.

Or the 1%. Something Rich people tend to forget is that the system of law and order we have now prevents armed uprising of the lower classes, which has a history of cropping up during very hard economic times. Not advocating, and I doubt I'd be one of them holding a pitchfork, but it is something to keep in mind.

Back in the day, most people grew up working on a farm/ranch/etc. and actually knew how to use a pitchfork. I'm trying to imagine today's obese generation trying to physically overthrow the government and can't help thinking that it wouldn't go so well.

Re: Jeff Bezos Becomes the Richest Man in Modern History, Topping $150B

#76

Post by CamTin »

whack wrote: post #8

> "Gates would have had a net worth of more than $150 billion if he’d held onto assets that he’s given away, largely to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation." Sorry Bezos, you've still got some catching up to do. Lifetime earnings are what really count, even if you give it all away to charity.

Why not simply avoid making billions so you don't have to give it all away to assuage your guilt and come out close to neutral?

Re: Jeff Bezos Becomes the Richest Man in Modern History, Topping $150B

#77

Post by dplgk »

tmpz22 wrote: post #65
FussyZeus wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or the 1%. Something Rich people tend to forget is that the system of law and order we have now prevents armed uprising of the lower classes, which has a history of cropping up during very hard economic times. Not advocating, and I doubt I'd be one of them holding a pitchfork, but it is something to keep in mind.

Except nowadays even small local police departments have tanks and swat teams.

But which side will they be on?

Re: Jeff Bezos Becomes the Richest Man in Modern History, Topping $150B

#78

Post by untog »

nsx147 wrote: post #12
whack wrote: post #8

> "Gates would have had a net worth of more than $150 billion if he’d held onto assets that he’s given away, largely to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation." Sorry Bezos, you've still got some catching up to do. Lifetime earnings are what really count, even if you give it all away to charity.

Gates does have an ~8 year lead

I wonder how Gates' charitable givings 8 years ago compare to Bezos' today. I suspect Bezos wouldn't look fantastic by comparison.

Re: Jeff Bezos Becomes the Richest Man in Modern History, Topping $150B

#79

Post by crazygringo »

bsvalley wrote: post #41

most of it is virtual money... He could be worth $50B tomorrow if his company crashes. Still a lot of money though, but $150B don't mean anything. It would be interesting to see when/if bitcoin reaches $1 million USD. That Forbes list would get totally disrupted.

> $150B don't mean anything

That's the silliest thing I ever heard.

Anyone with more than $50K net worth is or ought to be keeping nearly all of it in investments of some sort, what you're calling "virtual money". It's no more virtual than your 401(k) or Schwab account or home. By your logic, nearly the entire American economy "doesn't mean anything."

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