3 ms·

Or you know... Bill Gates et al created a segment of the economy that didn't exist. Inflammatory language like "gobbled up" really annoys me. It's not like al

Or you know... Bill Gates et al created a segment of the economy that didn't exist. Inflammatory language like "gobbled up" really annoys me. It's not like all that Microsoft stock would be evenly distributed among the middle class if he had never come along.

ryandrake 11y ago
OK, so entrepreneurs "grow the pie" while gobbling up most of the newly created pie.
- adventured 11y ago
  That's definitely not true at all. Entrepreneurs typically take a small fraction of the pie they started. Show me how much of the pie Bill Gates has kept from the total value Microsoft has created over nearly 40 years, including for public investors, the software industry, hardware industry, all global productivity gains related to Microsoft software, Microsoft employees, and so on (including all salaries paid out over 40 years by Microsoft). Now let's do the same math for Elon Musk, Larry Page, Steve Jobs / Wozniak, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Ellison, and so on. Don't forget to quantify the benefits to consumers, including quality of life gains. What's Google's search engine worth to consumers? How much time does it save them? What kind of quality of life boost - even if small in per capita terms - has it provided to over a billion people?
seanmcdirmid 11y ago
This is true and false. Software is great for creating value: a few smart people can change the world. But the distribution of that profit is greatly uneven (a "few smart people"). As automation kicks in, we will see more value created by fewer and fewer people, leaving everyone else behind. So even if the middle class doesn't go technically backwards, they still have to compete with Microsoft and Google millionaires for assets like housing. We are seeing that already in markets with lots of high tech employees.

3 ms·

Or you know... Bill Gates et al created a segment of the economy that didn't exist. Inflammatory language like "gobbled up" really annoys me. It's not like al

by bpodgursky 11y ago

ryandrake 11y ago
OK, so entrepreneurs "grow the pie" while gobbling up most of the newly created pie.
- adventured 11y ago
  That's definitely not true at all. Entrepreneurs typically take a small fraction of the pie they started. Show me how much of the pie Bill Gates has kept from the total value Microsoft has created over nearly 40 years, including for public investors, the software industry, hardware industry, all global productivity gains related to Microsoft software, Microsoft employees, and so on (including all salaries paid out over 40 years by Microsoft). Now let's do the same math for Elon Musk, Larry Page, Steve Jobs / Wozniak, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Ellison, and so on. Don't forget to quantify the benefits to consumers, including quality of life gains. What's Google's search engine worth to consumers? How much time does it save them? What kind of quality of life boost - even if small in per capita terms - has it provided to over a billion people?
seanmcdirmid 11y ago
This is true and false. Software is great for creating value: a few smart people can change the world. But the distribution of that profit is greatly uneven (a "few smart people"). As automation kicks in, we will see more value created by fewer and fewer people, leaving everyone else behind. So even if the middle class doesn't go technically backwards, they still have to compete with Microsoft and Google millionaires for assets like housing. We are seeing that already in markets with lots of high tech employees.