[The Godfather]

http://slashdot.org/articles/06/06/25/1917238.shtml

If I were any member of his family, I'd be nauseatingly pissed!

[Ozmodiar]

Originally Posted by The Godfather

If I were any member of his family, I'd be nauseatingly pissed!

Why? You didn't earn the money, and who says you deserve it?

[Scotttheking]

Originally Posted by The Godfather

If I were any member of his family, I'd be nauseatingly pissed!

Why? He's always said he will give his money to charity. His family has plenty.

[Kevin]

Good for him.

[aberdeenwriter]

I agree with you, Kev!

That is a lesson to us.

What do you do when you have more money than you or your family will EVER need?

What becomes the goal in life?

Take a closer look at what the Gates Foundation does and how it does it.

[Madrag]

but he is donating to the gates foundation?, I mean, good for all foundations, but donating to the foundation of the world's richest person?

looks like "I scratch your back now"...

[Albert Pujols]

He's leaving his family some money but he wants them to earn their own fortunes. I don't see what's wrong with that.

[darth-vader000]

Good for him

I suppose he realized you cannot take it with you and might as well put it to some good use instea of stockpiling it.

Now what's his email address

[Scotttheking]

Originally Posted by Madrag

but he is donating to the gates foundation?, I mean, good for all foundations, but donating to the foundation of the world's richest person?

looks like "I scratch your back now"...

...
Do you understand how a charitable foundation works? He is giving it to Gates' because it is a good one, and Bill is focusing most of his time on the foundation.

[aberdeenwriter]

Originally Posted by Madrag

but he is donating to the gates foundation?, I mean, good for all foundations, but donating to the foundation of the world's richest person?

looks like "I scratch your back now"...

No, when you have a lot of $$ you want to do good with it. But that is a job all in itself. Very difficult to know who deserves it and who doesn't and how much they should get and etc. and etc.

A GOOD philanthropic foundation is a real help to someone who wants their $$ to be well used to help humanity.

The Gates Foundation does just that.

[Ozmodiar]

Originally Posted by Albert Pujols

He's leaving his family some money but he wants them to earn their own fortunes.

Not really. Twenty years ago Buffet was quoted in Fortune Magazine as saying you want to leave your children enough money to do anything, but not enough to do nothing. I'm sure his kids will be taken care of, just as their respective foundations will be.

[rickey939]

I've always enjoyed a good Buffet.®

[davesimondotcom]

Originally Posted by Madrag

but he is donating to the gates foundation?

My guess would be there is no reason to create another foundation, another charity, another board of directors, another bureaucracy, etc. when you can just make use of the cogs already in place.

More steps along the way would just waste some of his hard earned donation...

As far as the trend of the ultrawealthy giving away their fortunes to make the world a better place:

[Kerrigan]

It's good that he's giving it to Gates's charity foundation. He knows that the money is well spent there. Gates is very hands on with the charity and finds increasingly clever ways to solve the problems presented by third world poverty.

[davesimondotcom]

The question is, when is Jimmy Buffett going to donate margaritas to the world?

[rickey939]

Cheeseburger in Paradise.®

[Doofy]

This makes me ill. Not the giving the money away, but giving it away to Gates' foundation. Gates hasn't come up with a decent operating system... ...ever... ...so what makes people think his foundation isn't equally flawed?

Are you guys just falling for Gates' marketing habit when you say that his foundation is good? Because last time I looked, Gates' charity work usually includes the creation of some new Windows users.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

[Ozmodiar]

Originally Posted by Doofy

Correct me if I'm wrong.

Grand Challenges in Global Health
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation created this initiative to help solve health problems in developing countries. Scientists from around the world were invited to submit proposals on how to save the world, and the Foundation was going to pick the most plausible ones and pay for them. In the end, I think they picked all of them and Gates gave them half a billion dollars to start doing it.

This is the New York Times article about it. It's kind of a long read but it talks about all the science projects and it's really interesting. If it asks for registration, put in stupidnyt6 for the username and password.

[tooki]

Am I the only one that sees something perverted about this situation?

I don't think it's bad that Buffett is giving away all that money -- it's better than hoarding it away where it serves nobody.

But why bother amassing that much money to begin with? Wouldn't it have been better to just have charged your customers lower prices, thus giving them improved buying power, and thus potentially averting a lot of the troubles the charities set out to fix?!? If you, as a business owner, know that you have reached the point that you have more money than you could ever spend, why not stop being greedy then and there and just remove your profits from the cost of the product?

tooki

[CRASH HARDDRIVE]

Originally Posted by tooki

But why bother amassing that much money to begin with?

I think most of Buffet's fortune is in Berkshire Hathaway shareholdings. If he had relinquished his controlling interest just to satisfy someone else's arbitrary idea of what's “too much”, then it would have only served to burn shareholders who no longer benefit from Buffet guiding the company.

Wouldn't it have been better to just have charged your customers lower prices, thus giving them improved buying power, and thus potentially averting a lot of the troubles the charities set out to fix?!? If you, as a business owner, know that you have reached the point that you have more money than you could ever spend, why not stop being greedy then and there and just remove your profits from the cost of the product?

This assumes Buffet has had a controlling interest in Berkshire Hathaway holding companies to dictate their prices. That's not the case. He can't tell Coke what to charge. Or GE, American Express, etc. He merely runs the company that itself holds non-controlling percentages of their stock (and a lot of other companies).

Also, there's cause and effect to everything. If you could leverage your own fortune to artificially undercut a market, you end up with something of a Walmart effect- your undercutting the market price drives competitors out of business, or to extremes of cost-cutting measures to compete with your below market prices (such as lower employee wages , for example). You end up with as many or more problems than you thought you were 'solving'.

[christ]

Originally Posted by Albert Pujols

He's leaving his family some money but he wants them to earn their own fortunes. I don't see what's wrong with that.

15% of $37 billion means he is leaving his family more that a a little. I doubt that they will be forced into work by only having $5 billion between them.

[aberdeenwriter]

Originally Posted by CRASH HARDDRIVE

I think most of Buffet's fortune is in Berkshire Hathaway shareholdings. If he had relinquished his controlling interest just to satisfy someone else's arbitrary idea of what's “too much”, then it would have only served to burn shareholders who no longer benefit from Buffet guiding the company.


This assumes Buffet has had a controlling interest in Berkshire Hathaway holding companies to dictate their prices. That's not the case. He can't tell Coke what to charge. Or GE, American Express, etc. He merely runs the company that itself holds non-controlling percentages of their stock (and a lot of other companies).

Also, there's cause and effect to everything. If you could leverage your own fortune to artificially undercut a market, you end up with something of a Walmart effect- your undercutting the market price drives competitors out of business, or to extremes of cost-cutting measures to compete with your below market prices (such as lower employee wages , for example). You end up with as many or more problems than you thought you were 'solving'.

I agree. In addition, think back to the people you've heard who have said that money is just a way of keeping score.

If you did something a lot and you really enjoyed it and you were paid for it, your compensation would be important and would play a part in what you did and how you did it. But if you would do that same activity for free or without the 'obscene' compensation (think athletes) then imagine yourself being REALLY into investing.

I get the impression that Buffet was into investing as a kid and just loved it and kept doing it until he eventually became the 2nd richest man in the world.

If you took away every cent he has I bet he would still be an investor and still perform the investment processes that he has his whole life.

The money is a result of his love of the process and the fact that he does it well, IMO.

[Montezuma58]

Originally Posted by CRASH HARDDRIVE

. He merely runs the company that itself holds non-controlling percentages of their stock (and a lot of other companies).

Also, even if he had a controlling interest in a company that is publicly traded it would be illegal to deliberately run the company in a way that reduces the profit. In addition to the anti-trust aspects mentioned above, there are legal responsibilities he has for the other share holders and he has to avoid the appearance of securities fraud.

[Dakar]

Showoff.














...

[Millennium]

Originally Posted by The Godfather

http://slashdot.org/articles/06/06/25/1917238.shtml

If I were any member of his family, I'd be nauseatingly pissed!

I suppose that if I were a member of his family, there's a good chance I'd be pissed off about it. However, if I were a member of his family, I think there's a good chance that I'd be a very different person than I am now, and I don't think some of those changes would be for the better.

What he's done is commendable. It pisses me off that there are people saying that what he's done isn't good because he hasn't suffered enough for it to be good ("Well he still has $5 billion; this is trivial stuff for him!" and all that crap).

[MrsLarry]

Talk about a Tax Write-Off...

[Peter]

its pretty sad when someone donates billions to charity and all everyone can do is point out all the negatives

[CRASH HARDDRIVE]

Originally Posted by finboy

If he STILL thinks taxes are too low, why is he giving his money to a charitable organization and not the government?

Rather than the usual softballs, some reporter who's actually on the ball should ask him that, and hold out for a legitimate answer.

[smacintush]

Color me impressed.

I hope that this kind thing catches on among the mega-wealthy.

[Kerrigan]

Jokingly asking if he had left anyone insulted, [Buffett] described how offended he was when he heard rich Americans at country clubs describe their feeling that giving welfare to poor people keeps them in poverty "while they are trying to leave their children a more-than-lifetime-supply of food stamps and are substituting a trust officer for a welfare officer."

That's an interesting view on things.

[finboy]

Originally Posted by Dakar

Showoff.

Buffet has gone a little off the deep end in his old age. He spent years riding the system, learning how to play off regulators (in the insurance industry) and making some good stock picks, and now feels guilty about his success in the market. For what reason, I don't know, but he's decided that taxes are too low, etc. A couple of years ago this was his mantra.

If he STILL thinks taxes are too low, why is he giving his money to a charitable organization and not the government?

[Gossamer]

Originally Posted by finboy

Buffet has gone a little off the deep end in his old age. He spent years riding the system, learning how to play off regulators (in the insurance industry) and making some good stock picks, and now feels guilty about his success in the market. For what reason, I don't know, but he's decided that taxes are too low, etc. A couple of years ago this was his mantra.

If he STILL thinks taxes are too low, why is he giving his money to a charitable organization and not the government?

He feels guilty about his success? Link?

[olePigeon]

Originally Posted by The Godfather

http://slashdot.org/articles/06/06/25/1917238.shtml

If I were any member of his family, I'd be nauseatingly pissed!

Dude, he still has like $15 billion. He ain't Mother Teresa.

Good news that he's giving all that money away. Personally, I woulda set up a facility for stem cell research and protein resequencing, scholarship programs related to biometrics, and other funding opportunities for companies looking to do the same.

I also woulda given $10 billion or so in scholarships and funding for space exploration. Maybe set up a building at NASA or something that could have my name on it. It would be state of the art and intended for testing and building a replacement shuttle.

I also woulda personally financed 1 shuttle mission from start to finish and held a lottery for 3 lucky people to go with me.

Oh, and I can't forget my Not Using Apostrophes for Plural Words With No Exceptions Foundation.

[Kerrigan]

$15bn isn't 15% of $44bn

He's left with a miserly $6-7bn

[aberdeenwriter]

http://www.charlierose.com/

6/26/2006  



AN EXCLUSIVE TELEVISION INTERVIEW ABOUT A
NEW PARTNERSHIP IN PHILANTHROPY WITH
WARREN BUFFETT, Chairman, Berkshire Hathaway Inc.
MELINDA GATES, Co-Chair, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
BILL GATES, Co-Chair, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation /
Chairman, Microsoft Corporation

Watch it tonite on PBS or tomorrow for free, all day on Google Video.

[Oisín]

Originally Posted by Kerrigan

$15bn isn't 15% of $44bn

He's left with a miserly $6-7bn

He’ll be out of business by Christmas.™

[Gamoe]

I don't know about this guy, so I don't have an opinion on him or his philanthropy either way, but I do know that "great philanthropy" cannot excuse the means by which money is gotten or excuse immoral and detrimental actions that an unrepentant individual has committed, or is committing, against others.

[nredman]

with this money windows will crash os x ....oh wait

[CRASH HARDDRIVE]

Originally Posted by Kerrigan

Jokingly asking if he had left anyone insulted, [Buffett] described how offended he was when he heard rich Americans at country clubs describe their feeling that giving welfare to poor people keeps them in poverty "while they are trying to leave their children a more-than-lifetime-supply of food stamps and are substituting a trust officer for a welfare officer."

Keyword: THEIR children. Buffet is to be commended for giving to charity, but he's a little full of himself as though he's the only person who does, and to be 'offended' over what others choose to do with their own money.

[Gossamer]

Originally Posted by CRASH HARDDRIVE

Keyword: THEIR children. Buffet is to be commended for giving to charity, but he's a little full of himself as though he's the only person who does, and to be 'offended' over what others choose to do with their own money.

Too many 'theys' and 'theirs' in that quote, couldn't figure out of whom you were speaking.

[aberdeenwriter]

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...3ACharlie_Rose

Free today.

[CRASH HARDDRIVE]

Originally Posted by Gossamer

Too many 'theys' and 'theirs' in that quote, couldn't figure out of whom you were speaking.

It was just a comment on the apples/oranges comparison that Buffet was making in that quote.

Someone can have the opionion that welfare harms the poor and leave their children whatever money they wish. It should be an obligation of parents to provide for their own offspring, but not everyone elses. Buffet did what he wanted with his money too (which probably includes leaving his own offspring puh-lenty)- and he didn't leave it to the government to hand out as welfare either. (Finboy's point above.) He's also not the only person to ever give to charity, though his being 'offended' over someone else's desire to also do what they please with their own money comes off a little like he thinks he is.

[olePigeon]

They should donate their money to the Derek Zoolander Center For Children Who Can't Read Good And Wanna Learn To Do Other Stuff Good Too.

[finboy]

Originally Posted by Gossamer

He feels guilty about his success? Link?

I've seen it in print (not on the Internet - haven't looked) more than a few times, and I heard him speak about his "debt to society" in person during the summer of 2003 (or 04, I forget). His angst is the same that Carnegie and others have had, although I'd bet that Buffet is nowhere close to being a "robber baron," whatever that means.

[olePigeon]

Originally Posted by finboy

His angst is the same that Carnegie and others have had, although I'd bet that Buffet is nowhere close to being a "robber baron," whatever that means.

I thought it was "Robber Knight"? Anyway, it's using your position of power to take what you want with no need for reason.

[Gossamer]

Originally Posted by olePigeon

I thought it was "Robber Knight"? Anyway, it's using your position of power to take what you want with no need for reason.

Wikipedia

It's baron.

[itai195]

Originally Posted by finboy

If he STILL thinks taxes are too low, why is he giving his money to a charitable organization and not the government?

Source? All I recall in this vein was that he opposed Bush's tax cuts, claiming they were regressive, and he favored repealing CA's Prop 13, which would improve the equality of CA property tax assessments. As someone not fortunate enough to have been born before 1960, I strongly agree with him on that one. I pay 8x as much property tax on a 3br townhome as my parents in law, who have a much more valuable 4br detached home in a better neighborhood. Talk about age discrimination. Neither stance seems like a black and white declaration that 'taxes are too low,' though any opposition toward Prop 13 is blasphemous to Republicans.

Anyway, good for him that he's donating his wealth. My understanding is that he's donating most of it to the Gates Foundation but is also donating smaller portions to foundations run by his children.

[ink]

Originally Posted by finboy

If he STILL thinks taxes are too low, why is he giving his money to a charitable organization and not the government?

To avoid the EVIL estate tax, of course.

to Buffet

[aberdeenwriter]

WATCH THE INTERVIEW BEFORE THE FREEBIE EXPIRES TONITE.

That way you'll know everything there is to know about it. Almost.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...3ACharlie_Rose

[Millennium]

Originally Posted by CRASH HARDDRIVE

Keyword: THEIR children. Buffet is to be commended for giving to charity, but he's a little full of himself as though he's the only person who does, and to be 'offended' over what others choose to do with their own money.

I agree with this. Buffet's morality in this is commendable, but I cannot agree with his desire to force that morality on all people in his position. If morality is not to be enshrined in law, then this needs to apply equally to all moral systems.