Where Do Billionaires Come From?

[georgephillip]

Do the richest among us owe their wealth to hard work and high IQs or government monopolies like patents and copyrights, minimum wage laws, or campaign finance contributions?

Should We Have Billionaires?

"The basic story is that if we have a market economy, some people can get very rich.

"If we buy the right-wing story, the super-rich got their money from their great contribution to society.

"If we look at it with clearer eyes, the super-rich got their money because we structured the economy in a way that allowed them to get super-rich..."

"This is a point which seems very obvious, but for some reason is largely ignored in policy debates.

"Most typically these debates take the market distribution of income as a given, and then ask the extent to which we might want to redistribute to have less inequality...."

"But it is completely absurd to treat the market distribution of income as given.

"The market is incredibly flexible and it can literally be structured in an infinite number of different ways."

Instead of arguing over a redistribution of income, restructure markets in such a way that vast private fortunes never come into existence in the first place.

You’re a jealous little piggy aren’t you? Asshole.

The Rising Costs of U.S. Income Inequality | HuffPost

 

[georgephillip]

If you don't think we exist in a cyclical economy construed towards the top .01% winning when the fertilizer hits the ventilator, stop reading this post/link now

The Economic Collapse

~S~

Your link:

"The global economy is already in the worst distress that we have seen since 2008, and it appears that the global slowdown is actually picking up pace as we head into 2020.

"And this is happening even though central banks around the world have been cutting interest rates and pumping massive amounts of money into their respective financial systems.

"The central bankers appear to be losing control, and it certainly wouldn’t take much of a push for this new crisis to evolve into a complete and utter nightmare.

"The U.S. economy hasn’t been hit quite as hard as economies in Asia and Europe have been, but without a doubt things are slowing down here too.

"Corporate earnings have been falling quarter after quarter, auto loan delinquencies just hit a record high, the Cass Freight Index has declined for 11 consecutive months, and we just witnessed the largest drop for U.S. industrial production since 2009."

For the last couple months, the Federal Reserve has found it necessary to bail out the Repo market:

"The New York Fed has now pumped out upwards of $3 trillion in a period of 63 days to unnamed trading houses on Wall Street to ease a liquidity crisis that has yet to be credibly explained."

These Are the Banks that Own the New York Fed and Its Money Button

When the rich crash the US economy, how many USMB squeals will blame the government?

 

[georgephillip]

Trickle down created them

How did you arrive at that idiocy?

 

[Andylusion]

What can we learn from this?

Nothing. "We" already knew you were just a dull tool desperate to appear sharp.

What part of what I posted, was not established historical fact?
Are you really saying that you can not learn anything from empirical data?

 

[basquebromance]

like getting fit and having a muscular body, virtually anyone can become a billionaire if they are smart and are willing to do what it takes, my friends!

 

[basquebromance]

Ravishing Ray Dalio was a mediocre student yet he became a billionaire. anyone can become a billionaire my friends, and i mean everyone!

 

[Jitss617]

Trickle down created them

How did you arrive at that idiocy?

FActs

 

[Andylusion]

Market distribution of income, is in fact a given, because it's part of the market.

Due to lobbyists legislation...

Manipulating government contracting to their advantage.

Because wealth controls governance here....

China was home to more members of the global top 10% than ... For the first time ever, there are more ultra-wealthy people in China than the US .

top 10% is a statistical facade , try the top 1%, or better yet, top point 1% , and get back to us on wealth inequity....

You cannot restructure markets in such a way that vast private fortunes never come into existence in the first place without removing the ability of a family like mine to go from just above poverty level to the top 10% in 5 years.

You're asking if a meritocracy can exist in a 'casino capitalist' society

Rather grand Q Gator....

How many children were helped by Dr. Salk, who didn't patent his polio vaccine so he could be a billionaire?

A lot, his story is iconic....

~S~

One thing is certain about billionaires, they are psychopaths. They could alleviate much suffering, but they don’t.

That moron Bezos is using his massive wealth not to help the poor or sick, but to build a space station on Mars because he thinks our time is limited on Earth. What a fucking jack ass.

One thing is certain about billionaires, they are psychopaths. They could alleviate much suffering, but they don’t.

That moron Bezos is using his massive wealth not to help the poor or sick

Jeff Bezos’ Whole Foods slashes medical benefits for nearly 2,000 part-time workers

"Amazon-owned grocery chain Whole Foods Market announced last month that it is eliminating medical benefits for nearly 2,000 part-time workers employed at its stores across the United States...."

"The healthcare cuts for his employees stands in sharp contrast with the vast wealth of Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos who sits atop a personal fortune of $115 billion.

"Analysis provided by consumer tracking group Decision Data found that Bezos makes enough money in 2 to 6 hours to more than cover the cost of an entire year of benefits for all of the workers facing cuts."

First, that is bull crap.
Jeff Bezos made $81,840 last year. He's still the richest person in the world - CNN

Bezos only makes $81K a year in cash. All the rest of his money, is tied up in stock. So unless you plan to magically pay for healthcare, by handing part-time employees stocks they can't sell..... then your entire article is absolute rubbish.

Nevertheless, you once again are failing to understand how economics works.

Say that you are the CEO of a major lawn care service. You make Billions.

I'm a part-time employee for one of your small operations. I want $20/hour. The customer is only willing to pay $15 for mowing their lawn.

Now you make enough money in 2 hours, to pay me $20/hour. Would you do it? And the answer is, no you would not.

Why? Because you are losing money on me. If you pay me $20, and the customer is only willing to pay $15, then that means you lose money for every single hour I work.

It would be better for you, not to employ me at all, and simply not serve those customers. I would be making you poorer every hour I worked for you. You wouldn't do that. No one would.

Would you hire a retirement advisor who made you poorer the more you paid him?
Would you hire a house contractor, that made your house worth less money the more you paid him?
Would you hire an insurance broker that made you poorer every time you used the insurance?
Would you hire a mechanic that made your car worth less money every time he worked on it?
Would you use a bank, that confiscated more of your money every time you went to the bank?

No, you would never do any of that. You would never employ people, that cost you more money, than the value of what they did.

Similarly, you would not hire any employee, if every single hour they worked, you were worse off for hiring them.

If the customers at Whole foods, are not willing to pay enough money, to make it profitable to hire part time people and give them full benefits.... then they are either not going to hire part time people, or they are going to cut the cost of labor down to whatever level is profitable for them to hire part time people.

And by the way...

This is one of the most ignorant aspects of left-wingers when talking about chain stores or businesses.

How much money Jeff Bezos or any CEO makes, is completely irrelevant when talking about a chain store.

You people need to start grasping that each individual store, is run like a self-contained business. If you work at a store, and you want a raise.... that can only happen if *THAT STORE*.... has the money to pay you a raise. Jeff Bezos has nothing to do with it.

That store itself, has to have the money. Does not matter what corporate head quarters has, or how much the CEO makes.

I was working at a McDonald back in high school, and all the employees were pissed off, because a report came out that McDonald's HQ was reporting massive profits.

What those employees didn't know, that I did because I was friendly with management, was that the store was actually losing money. They all wanted raises, and the store was on the verge of closing. And a year after I quit that job, the McDonald's did in fact close.

This is how chains work. Corporate HQ isn't going to come bailout your store, if your store is losing money. That's why stores close. The CEO isn't going to subsidize your failing store. They just let you close, and you lose your store.

So when you say that this or that employee wants more money, or more benefits.... does that store have the money to pay for them? If not, then I as the store owner, can't pay you the store employee more money or benefits. Does not matter how much money the CEO has, or the corporate HQ has. If the customers don't pay me enough, to pay you more, then I can't.

That's how it works. CEO has nothing to do with it.

 

[Grumblenuts]

40% of Americans are not benefitting from the Trump economy. That's a lot of families for whom life is not getting any better.

I'd love to share your optimism. Trump's economy is great for billionaires, not for working people | Bernie Sanders

Government really worked for millionaire Bernie Sanders.........getting rich by government is his super power...

So jealous of a still working 78 year-old finally amassing, not the minimum savings recommended for an average 65 year-old, but a total net worth. Truly pathetic!

 

[Meister]

Most billionaires were millionaires to start

Most millionaires were billionaires before they started fishing.

 

[Grumblenuts]

A boat being a hole in the water into which you just keep pouring money?

 

[AzogtheDefiler]

Do the richest among us owe their wealth to hard work and high IQs or government monopolies like patents and copyrights, minimum wage laws, or campaign finance contributions?

Should We Have Billionaires?

"The basic story is that if we have a market economy, some people can get very rich.

"If we buy the right-wing story, the super-rich got their money from their great contribution to society.

"If we look at it with clearer eyes, the super-rich got their money because we structured the economy in a way that allowed them to get super-rich..."

"This is a point which seems very obvious, but for some reason is largely ignored in policy debates.

"Most typically these debates take the market distribution of income as a given, and then ask the extent to which we might want to redistribute to have less inequality...."

"But it is completely absurd to treat the market distribution of income as given.

"The market is incredibly flexible and it can literally be structured in an infinite number of different ways."

Instead of arguing over a redistribution of income, restructure markets in such a way that vast private fortunes never come into existence in the first place.

You’re a jealous little piggy aren’t you? Asshole.

The Rising Costs of U.S. Income Inequality | HuffPost

I like the inequality. Poor people like you make me feel better about myself. Thanks.

 

[Dont Taz Me Bro]

Do the richest among us owe their wealth to hard work and high IQs or government monopolies like patents and copyrights, minimum wage laws, or campaign finance contributions?

Should We Have Billionaires?

"The basic story is that if we have a market economy, some people can get very rich.

"If we buy the right-wing story, the super-rich got their money from their great contribution to society.

"If we look at it with clearer eyes, the super-rich got their money because we structured the economy in a way that allowed them to get super-rich..."

"This is a point which seems very obvious, but for some reason is largely ignored in policy debates.

"Most typically these debates take the market distribution of income as a given, and then ask the extent to which we might want to redistribute to have less inequality...."

"But it is completely absurd to treat the market distribution of income as given.

"The market is incredibly flexible and it can literally be structured in an infinite number of different ways."

Instead of arguing over a redistribution of income, restructure markets in such a way that vast private fortunes never come into existence in the first place.

Just think about how much better your life could have been if you spent as much time working to better yourself as you do bitching about how you failed

 

[Grumblenuts]

Do the richest among us owe their wealth to hard work and high IQs or government monopolies like patents and copyrights, minimum wage laws, or campaign finance contributions?

Should We Have Billionaires?

"The basic story is that if we have a market economy, some people can get very rich.

"If we buy the right-wing story, the super-rich got their money from their great contribution to society.

"If we look at it with clearer eyes, the super-rich got their money because we structured the economy in a way that allowed them to get super-rich..."

"This is a point which seems very obvious, but for some reason is largely ignored in policy debates.

"Most typically these debates take the market distribution of income as a given, and then ask the extent to which we might want to redistribute to have less inequality...."

"But it is completely absurd to treat the market distribution of income as given.

"The market is incredibly flexible and it can literally be structured in an infinite number of different ways."

Instead of arguing over a redistribution of income, restructure markets in such a way that vast private fortunes never come into existence in the first place.

Just think about how much better your life could have been if you spent as much time working to better yourself as you do bitching about how you failed

Just think, George. You could be moderating a political discussion board,.. injecting personal attacks here and there against people for starting impersonal topics that you happen to disagree with. Now that's success baby!

 

[AzogtheDefiler]

Do the richest among us owe their wealth to hard work and high IQs or government monopolies like patents and copyrights, minimum wage laws, or campaign finance contributions?

Should We Have Billionaires?

"The basic story is that if we have a market economy, some people can get very rich.

"If we buy the right-wing story, the super-rich got their money from their great contribution to society.

"If we look at it with clearer eyes, the super-rich got their money because we structured the economy in a way that allowed them to get super-rich..."

"This is a point which seems very obvious, but for some reason is largely ignored in policy debates.

"Most typically these debates take the market distribution of income as a given, and then ask the extent to which we might want to redistribute to have less inequality...."

"But it is completely absurd to treat the market distribution of income as given.

"The market is incredibly flexible and it can literally be structured in an infinite number of different ways."

Instead of arguing over a redistribution of income, restructure markets in such a way that vast private fortunes never come into existence in the first place.

Just think about how much better your life could have been if you spent as much time working to better yourself as you do bitching about how you failed

Just think, George. You could be moderating a political discussion board,.. injecting personal attacks here and there against people for starting impersonal topics that you happen to disagree with. Now that's success baby!

Success = being a 61 year old Bernie Sanders supporter? LMAO. I think not. You’re a loser sir and you have wasted your life.

 

[dblack]

People might become billionaires for any number of reasons. But in general it's because people gave them a lot of money.

 

[georgephillip]

Trickle down created them

How did you arrive at that idiocy?

FActs

What evidence do you have to support your alleged facts?

 

[sparky]

I like the inequality. Poor people like you make me feel better about myself. Thanks.

Then you'll be in heaven when the dollar crashes.....

~S~

 

[georgephillip]

Market distribution of income, is in fact a given, because it's part of the market.

Due to lobbyists legislation...

Manipulating government contracting to their advantage.

Because wealth controls governance here....

China was home to more members of the global top 10% than ... For the first time ever, there are more ultra-wealthy people in China than the US .

top 10% is a statistical facade , try the top 1%, or better yet, top point 1% , and get back to us on wealth inequity....

You cannot restructure markets in such a way that vast private fortunes never come into existence in the first place without removing the ability of a family like mine to go from just above poverty level to the top 10% in 5 years.

You're asking if a meritocracy can exist in a 'casino capitalist' society

Rather grand Q Gator....

How many children were helped by Dr. Salk, who didn't patent his polio vaccine so he could be a billionaire?

A lot, his story is iconic....

~S~

One thing is certain about billionaires, they are psychopaths. They could alleviate much suffering, but they don’t.

That moron Bezos is using his massive wealth not to help the poor or sick, but to build a space station on Mars because he thinks our time is limited on Earth. What a fucking jack ass.

One thing is certain about billionaires, they are psychopaths. They could alleviate much suffering, but they don’t.

That moron Bezos is using his massive wealth not to help the poor or sick

Jeff Bezos’ Whole Foods slashes medical benefits for nearly 2,000 part-time workers

"Amazon-owned grocery chain Whole Foods Market announced last month that it is eliminating medical benefits for nearly 2,000 part-time workers employed at its stores across the United States...."

"The healthcare cuts for his employees stands in sharp contrast with the vast wealth of Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos who sits atop a personal fortune of $115 billion.

"Analysis provided by consumer tracking group Decision Data found that Bezos makes enough money in 2 to 6 hours to more than cover the cost of an entire year of benefits for all of the workers facing cuts."

First, that is bull crap.
Jeff Bezos made $81,840 last year. He's still the richest person in the world - CNN

Bezos only makes $81K a year in cash. All the rest of his money, is tied up in stock. So unless you plan to magically pay for healthcare, by handing part-time employees stocks they can't sell..... then your entire article is absolute rubbish.

Nevertheless, you once again are failing to understand how economics works.

Say that you are the CEO of a major lawn care service. You make Billions.

I'm a part-time employee for one of your small operations. I want $20/hour. The customer is only willing to pay $15 for mowing their lawn.

Now you make enough money in 2 hours, to pay me $20/hour. Would you do it? And the answer is, no you would not.

Why? Because you are losing money on me. If you pay me $20, and the customer is only willing to pay $15, then that means you lose money for every single hour I work.

It would be better for you, not to employ me at all, and simply not serve those customers. I would be making you poorer every hour I worked for you. You wouldn't do that. No one would.

Would you hire a retirement advisor who made you poorer the more you paid him?
Would you hire a house contractor, that made your house worth less money the more you paid him?
Would you hire an insurance broker that made you poorer every time you used the insurance?
Would you hire a mechanic that made your car worth less money every time he worked on it?
Would you use a bank, that confiscated more of your money every time you went to the bank?

No, you would never do any of that. You would never employ people, that cost you more money, than the value of what they did.

Similarly, you would not hire any employee, if every single hour they worked, you were worse off for hiring them.

If the customers at Whole foods, are not willing to pay enough money, to make it profitable to hire part time people and give them full benefits.... then they are either not going to hire part time people, or they are going to cut the cost of labor down to whatever level is profitable for them to hire part time people.

And by the way...

This is one of the most ignorant aspects of left-wingers when talking about chain stores or businesses.

How much money Jeff Bezos or any CEO makes, is completely irrelevant when talking about a chain store.

You people need to start grasping that each individual store, is run like a self-contained business. If you work at a store, and you want a raise.... that can only happen if *THAT STORE*.... has the money to pay you a raise. Jeff Bezos has nothing to do with it.

That store itself, has to have the money. Does not matter what corporate head quarters has, or how much the CEO makes.

I was working at a McDonald back in high school, and all the employees were pissed off, because a report came out that McDonald's HQ was reporting massive profits.

What those employees didn't know, that I did because I was friendly with management, was that the store was actually losing money. They all wanted raises, and the store was on the verge of closing. And a year after I quit that job, the McDonald's did in fact close.

This is how chains work. Corporate HQ isn't going to come bailout your store, if your store is losing money. That's why stores close. The CEO isn't going to subsidize your failing store. They just let you close, and you lose your store.

So when you say that this or that employee wants more money, or more benefits.... does that store have the money to pay for them? If not, then I as the store owner, can't pay you the store employee more money or benefits. Does not matter how much money the CEO has, or the corporate HQ has. If the customers don't pay me enough, to pay you more, then I can't.

That's how it works. CEO has nothing to do with it.

Bezos only makes $81K a year in cash. All the rest of his money, is tied up in stock. So unless you plan to magically pay for healthcare, by handing part-time employees stocks they can't sell..... then your entire article is absolute rubbish.

How does someone buy the Washington Post on $81,000 a year?

How does one purchase a billion dollar residence on $81,000 a year?

Why do you waste people's time posting your trite idiocies?

 

[Jitss617]

Trickle down created them

How did you arrive at that idiocy?

FActs

What evidence do you have to support your alleged facts?

70% of all billionaires started out poor