at the time someone wiser than me said “never trust a man with a permatan.” He was again proven right 8 years later.
The stuff you can't do? Unless you think owning a house or buying life insurance makes people "rich" in America.
"Government investment in infrastructure" Using the money it earned from some other profitable enterprises? Like profits from postal services? Unless you think that business people have no expenses. But somehow they use their own money to pay for them. How come people are rich and self reliant but US govt is poor?
How is it any different to "bail out once" when the bailout is worth several lifetimes of ordinary Americans? Oh, yeah, welfare to the tune of trillions is different than a weekly welfare check, give me a break
Sure, support the needy by printing money and make everybody rich. I have no problem with that. After all it's a prerogative of the govt.
I read this thread and I'm surprised how potentially smart people don't get simple things. So, step by step: 1. That "wealth" (or let's better say their "price") - where it came from ? From solid business value ? Nope, sorry, that mechanism is no longer working like that. It came from biggest robbery in human history - US dollar. Yes, I said it many times and I will say this again, USA is robbing whole the world from years (exactly starting in Bretton Woods), which USD (that is really worth as much as toilet paper) used in the "system" and with all the "printing business" those in power can add wealth to anything or anyone they want. You just print fake money, give it to institutions, institutions buy corporate obligations and/or stocks and voila - just type who you want on podium this year. 2. Is it connected to value of that person ? No, it's not. This is like topic of price and value. 3. Are they special ? Inreplaceable ? Complete nonsense. There are tons of Gates, Musks etc. The only difference is those we know were basically lucky. There were tons of people like Gates at their garages at his times, they were also hard working, they were also smart etc. etc., he had just that luck to win that contest. That's all. In fact Taleb described it nicely once. 4. When I read sentences like "the system keeps rewarding those who have proven their worth". Are you kidding me ? You have billions people in India or other poorer parts of the world, and among those people there are also geniuses or people who want to change their lives and work hard for it. But you will never heard of them, they just don't get their chance. And if someone want to start the topic of "ohh doesn't matter where you are born in what situation you can accomplished anything, you just need to want it and work hard" etc. Guys... cut the crap. Go outside your comfort zone, outside most developed and reaches countries and go see how life looks like in really poor places. 5. And about that adding value ? Is it really adding value or maybe subtracting value ? If we look at those billionaires (mostly US, whose "price" is pumped mostly with fake money) what are those people (and whole US) exporting to the world ? Consumptionism, corporationism, idolization of idiots and celebrities, lack of morality, in short words, you are killing the value not adding the value. World and life is not only about technological progress or about having as much as you can, everything as big as you can etc.. In fact it is the opposite. Now, let's look at Musk, what is this guy promoting with his person ? Is this really person you consider as strong authority ? If yes, I'm sorry for you. What about Gates ? Bill is so nice, gives so much to charity, nope, he gives just to those projects that can bring him more money... I'm not sure if you are aware but hist actually worth is not from Microsoft (that was long time ago), it's from charity. So good man, made billions on charity, testing his vaccines (old ones) in 3rd world countries, causing health problems and on many other things... Now Bill doesn't want you to eat meat, so I'm sure in near future he will growth some in laboratory. You know, for your good. Come one. THINK. USE YOUR BRAINS. Those people don't care about humanity, what they care of is themselves, only. They want to make changes, they want to be in control, to feel it, this is what it is about. And they always have purpose and it's not your better life or anyone's else. People who really contribute and add value to world do it "in silence", they don't want you to clap hands for them. 6. Are 41 people more valueable to world than 1/2 of population ? No. The sytem want you to think that way. Of course there will be many arguments like - they create jobs (but is that true nowadays ? when like said before their "price" is from fake pump of money and if we think about business that are virtual and scalable without much new stuff ?), they have ideas etc. etc. (like I said before - there are tons of other peoples with great ideas, you just don't heard about them and they don't have their chance). Have you ever thought why most of billionaires are semi-socialists or socialists now ? they support big taxes etc. ? They build their businesses on low taxes (and they were happy about it then), now they are able to run out with profits so they pay no taxes at all, bur for you they want big taxes (because they are so nice that want government to have a lot of money for a lot of programs for you), why is that so ? It's easy, they want it so you can't growth and be competition for them. No, big taxes and all the social programs it's not for people, it's for governments and corporations, so they can have control and eliminate potential competition. Btw: that destroys people morality and they view on values (which is also one of purposes implementing all that stuff). If you will allow people to growth on their one (by eliminating personal income tax, and many other things, just to release their potential) stop using people from half the world as semi-slaves just to pumping your own wealth (and telling them it's best option for them, at least they have "job") and you will stop brainwash them (telling them that they need to possess as much as possible, to have the newest personal technologies, etc. etc.), those people will add much more value to the world than 41 created by the system. Why ? Because true wealth is built from low, so from tons of small businesses (were people make money from themselves not for their "owners"), that are not restrained by system and crushed by corporations. And those people when they are no longer slaves of government-corporation oppression can add some little value to the world (living good live, helping others, trying to improve) and those all little values added together will be for sure more valuable then any single or 10 or 41 persons value. The problem is the system.
Correct. But why do you say that "seemingly smart people disagree with reality"? I can't consider anyone intelligent and educated who denies even basic facts and science. When someone claims that 41 people deserve the same wealth as half the world population then that person is simply uneducated and stupid and has probably not even thought about the claims that person just made.
Imagine claiming to be smart and being blind to how you can corrupt a government to redistribute wealth to the top earners when you have the means to do so?
When I look at my fellows - traders, they are really smart people and inteligent (comparing to average), reading a lot, seeing a lot, traveling, knowing very different places, points of view and circumstances. Here on the forum I laso see some interesting discussions (albo made by people that are discussing in this thread), and those are pretty smart conversations. So, that's why I'm surprised that potentially smart people (in my opinion), who have some knowledge in economy, finance and trading (which is very demanding field) don't get that kind of simple (in my opinion) things.
That is also very interesting topic. Ford once said "It is well enough that people of the nation do not understand our banking and monetary system, for if they did, I believe there would be a revolution before tomorrow morning." And imagine how long ago It was, the system he described was not even close to that we have today. When I sometimes explain my non-trading or non-economic friends how it works (and make them aware what is they payment for normal hard work compared to money day after day sucked out of whole financial system and what they get in return from this system and how could be worked if we change mechanisms) they are in solid shock...