I really like this thought experiment. It really gets to the core of our collective collapsed value system. Why do so many people worship people who are billionaires?
The money doesn't make them happier. I've known a few very wealthy guys. Shit happens to them that money can't fix. Wives who cheat. Sons who commit suicide. Illness without cures.
And it begs the moral question: Why should anyone have more than a 24 by 24 by 9 room of money?
Yep. A few years after my first wife and I divorced, she married our former next-door neighbor and moved to California. He was then an executive VP of a very large company in electronics. A year or two later, he was named CEO. My daughters told me that when that happened, they asked him if he wanted a Lincoln. His response--this was back early '90s--was "No, I'll keep the Taurus." To him, while the money was very good to have, and he used it, the pay and benefits were more symbols of achievement. (About that thing of my ex-wife marrying the former next-door neighbor, it's true. But not as dramatic as it sounds. He and his first wife had been transferred to California. A year or so later, his first wife started having headaches the doctors could not diagnose--until she fell into a coma. She died of a brain tumor at age 37, one of the nicest people in the entire world. I never inquired about what happened after that, but my impression is that my first wife was a good friend and things developed from there. And he was a terrific step-father.)
Thanks Jon. Sounds like he had his head fairly well straight and, if the other had to happen, it's good that the kids were well cared for and you were able to move on.
It shows a sociopathic thinking, or 'hungry while eating'. That is how Tomson Highway describes the Settler's disposition. We are not satisfied for various reasons, and one of these is fear that Indigenous people say is because of our intergenerational wounds. If you look at childhood and upbringing, the pattern learned are forged in the past and having enormous wealth means there is no one to oversee his behaviour, or at least that is the current view. A peaceful life has to be felt first, to be embraced.
Enough is enough! Great experiment, Dave. I'm still working on my first billion, as I'm sure you are. My view is that nothing worth anything comes at the expense of others. Gluttony takes from others, either directly or indirectly. I don't begrudge anyone's success, as long as it's achieved fairly and without gaming the system.
I really like this thought experiment. It really gets to the core of our collective collapsed value system. Why do so many people worship people who are billionaires?
The money doesn't make them happier. I've known a few very wealthy guys. Shit happens to them that money can't fix. Wives who cheat. Sons who commit suicide. Illness without cures.
And it begs the moral question: Why should anyone have more than a 24 by 24 by 9 room of money?
Good one, Dave!
Thanks Bill. We have to keep in mind that there's more to life than political cults and, as you note, more money doesn't always solve the problem.
Yep. A few years after my first wife and I divorced, she married our former next-door neighbor and moved to California. He was then an executive VP of a very large company in electronics. A year or two later, he was named CEO. My daughters told me that when that happened, they asked him if he wanted a Lincoln. His response--this was back early '90s--was "No, I'll keep the Taurus." To him, while the money was very good to have, and he used it, the pay and benefits were more symbols of achievement. (About that thing of my ex-wife marrying the former next-door neighbor, it's true. But not as dramatic as it sounds. He and his first wife had been transferred to California. A year or so later, his first wife started having headaches the doctors could not diagnose--until she fell into a coma. She died of a brain tumor at age 37, one of the nicest people in the entire world. I never inquired about what happened after that, but my impression is that my first wife was a good friend and things developed from there. And he was a terrific step-father.)
Thanks Jon. Sounds like he had his head fairly well straight and, if the other had to happen, it's good that the kids were well cared for and you were able to move on.
It shows a sociopathic thinking, or 'hungry while eating'. That is how Tomson Highway describes the Settler's disposition. We are not satisfied for various reasons, and one of these is fear that Indigenous people say is because of our intergenerational wounds. If you look at childhood and upbringing, the pattern learned are forged in the past and having enormous wealth means there is no one to oversee his behaviour, or at least that is the current view. A peaceful life has to be felt first, to be embraced.
Thanks Kelly. That adds some perspective.
Dave, as always your thinking and writing are cogent, clear, accessible, and sensible. Keep writing!
Thanks JJ. I'll do that.
Enough is enough! Great experiment, Dave. I'm still working on my first billion, as I'm sure you are. My view is that nothing worth anything comes at the expense of others. Gluttony takes from others, either directly or indirectly. I don't begrudge anyone's success, as long as it's achieved fairly and without gaming the system.
Thanks Bob.