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AMA: Bill Gates

207 points by dcx 8y ago

elektor 8y ago
Do people derive pleasure from these AMAs? Gates seems to reply with the same platitudes and non-answers to the point where its hard to tell if it’s him or the BMGF publicist.
- tills13 8y ago
  What an odd complaint to an otherwise enjoyable experience that Bill absolutely did not have to participate in.
- belltaco 8y ago
  The AMAs are not really relevant for everyone. For a subset, I would say they definitely derive pleasure.
- whatislovecraft 8y ago
  His answers seem quite concrete to me. He even links further reading after answering questions directly. I don't really see any platitudes or non-answers at all. Maybe it's predictable? But it seems his answers are genuine, to-the-point, and even provides the reader with further reading. Not sure what more you could ask for really. Edit: I mean, look at this answer: https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/aunv58/im_bill_gates_cochair_of_the_bill_melinda_gates/eh9ca9p/?context=8&depth=9 https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/aunv58/im_bill_gates_... Seems solidly real to me.
  - mc32 8y ago
    I too think the answers are mostly fine. I think the medium is a problem. Personally, I’d probably prefer submitting questions and then getting answers later at some point (there’s only so much you can answer right of the top of your head like that). How the questions get selected would be a problem. Voting obviously ends up with results like “Boaty McBoat Face”.
  - rmrfrmrf 8y ago
    In response to your edit: he said the same thing on The Verge [1] a week or two ago. I think maybe what the OP is getting at is that there's really nothing revealing or exclusive that comes out of these AMAs; it's just another media outlet. [1] https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/12/18220756/bill-gates-tax-rate-70-percent-marginal-modern-monetary-theory https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/12/18220756/bill-gates-tax-r...
    - whatislovecraft 8y ago
      I must be missing it, but I don't see the "same thing" at all. On reddit, he is a lot more human, providing a direct answer to the question and revealing personal information and opinions (like the $10BO) that doesn't seem to be written in that Verge article or elsewhere. Seems super valuable and interesting to me to have Reddit AMAs, and I'm just not seeing this "platitudes" thing or "just another media outlet" attitude. Sure, he's on a talking tour or whatever, but he's on reddit answering real questions with real answers not seen elsewhere. Seems interesting enough to me, and not at all like what OP is decrying here for being "platitudes"/"non-answers".
      - rmrfrmrf 8y ago
        ...you listened to a 33 minute interview in 3 minutes?
- rmrfrmrf 8y ago
  No, it's just another stop on the publicity tour now. They're coordinated with Reddit ahead of time and most don't even bother to answer candidly or even answer questions themselves. Reddit was able to suspend disbelief until ~2014 when the Morgan Freeman AMA really exposed the whole operation.
- curiousDog 8y ago
  The AMAs I enjoyed the most were by Jerry Seinfeld.
- i_cant_speel 8y ago
  What non-answers are you referring to? Most of the ones I read were responded with what the askers were wanting to know. They might get repetitive, but that's because people ask the same questions all the time.
  - pastor_elm 8y ago
    He didn't really answer the billionaire happiness question.
    - i_cant_speel 8y ago
      What do you mean? He said yes, then gave some reasoning. What more are you looking for?
    - what_ever 8y ago
      He seems to have answered this one - https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/aunv58/im_bill_gates_cochair_of_the_bill_melinda_gates/eh9a9x2/ https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/aunv58/im_bill_gates_... Doesn't feel like a non-answer as well.
      - pastor_elm 8y ago
        it's a non-answer because he doesn't describe the benefits of being a billionaire. Only the benefits of being above middle class. It would have appeared crass of him to say, 'yeah i love living in a $200 million 66,000 sq ft mansion and having the world's biggest foundation named after me. Having a such a legacy produces genuine happiness.' But he played the false modesty card.
        solveit 8y ago
        I think his point was that a $200 million home doesn't actually buy you all that much more happiness than a $20 million home. Well, apart from the trampoline room that he seems very fond of.
- 40acres 8y ago
  For me, not really. A live text interview is probably the worst medium for this type of content (exhibit A: Kara Swisher & Jack Dorsey). There is also a lot of subtly missed when comparing speech to text, and due to the time delay it gives the interviewee time to apply any relevant PR spin.
- creato 8y ago
  I skimmed the AMA for a few minutes, and saw him say that: - He thought nuclear weapons, bioterrorism, and climate change were the biggest threats to humanity. - He thought paying $10B in capital gains taxes was not enough and he should have paid more. Maybe those are platitudes but it's real enough for me.
  - kome 8y ago
    in other words, war is dangerous and he pays too little tax. i think too they are platitudes.
    - jonas21 8y ago
      And yet... how many other billionaires do you see going out and saying that the capital gains tax rate is too low and climate change is the biggest threat to humanity.
      - phkahler 8y ago
        Well his buddy Warren Buffet also says he should pay more taxes. I find his stance refreshing - he's going to pay only what's required while advocating changing the rules so that everyone pays more. Lots of people say "well he's free to pay more if he want's to but he's not". Some call it hypocrisy. Some call it humility.
        deleted 8y ago
        [deleted]
      - rchaud 8y ago
        Buffett has been beating the "higher taxes for rich people" drum at least since the 2008 recession, maybe longer. He won't actually open his wallet to push for these policies mind you. That would be a bridge too far.
        batmenace 8y ago
- tptacek 8y ago
  You think the BGMF publicist decided to say Gates watches American Vandal and has a trampoline room in his house?
  - bitwize 8y ago
    Well, that explains his Mario-tier jumping skills: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TCxE0bWQeQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TCxE0bWQeQ He talked about the trampoline on the Ellen Show, so yes, it still counts as a PR-y answer.
  - gist 8y ago
    Publicist sure, no. But this has been totally sanitized by Bill when he makes as one example statements like this: [1] > 'The other thing is that I sometimes use a private jet. It does help me do my foundation work but again it is a very privileged thing to have.' He inserts the word 'sometimes' to lessen the impact of 'private jet'. He adds that it helps him do foundation work implying that that should make it ok in normal people's eyes. [2] He doesn't mention that it's actually importantly needed for security purposes he is obviously a target and not flying like the general public. He then acknowledges that it's a privileged thing to have. [1] Remember the movie "An Officer and a Gentlement" when Lou Gosset character fights Richard Gear character? And Gosset character replies (something like) 'oh I see you've had some training!'. Well Bill Gates has had training. [2] Which is should be anyway. Without saying that.
    - metabagel 8y ago
      Gates apparently flied coach until about 1997. I'm not his biggest fan, but I find that interesting about him.
      - gist 8y ago
        I remember that. That is a technique that is often used to impose frugality and get savings [1] out of the rest of the execs by setting an example. If he flies coach well then so do a hundred others. [1] I knew a guy who owned a small company and bought a low end car until he had locked up his union contract. He knew if he was seen with a nice car it was going to cost him a boat load. Likewise in my old school company years ago I never even drove up to the business in my nice car and I went out of my way to hide it's existence. It goes along with staying late and arriving early to set an example.
- skywhopper 8y ago
  Really? Sure he has some practicd answers to questions he gets hundreds of times a week, and he is careful about what he says. But I wouldn't call them "non-answers", and I don't think he pulls any punches. I feel like his personality comes through, and yes he has opinions that I don't really agree with. Maybe it's not really a worthwhile way to spend time, but it all feels real enough. Do you have some examples of what's so egregious that it doesn't seem like it's really him?
- trumped 8y ago
  Is that a real question? I guess you couldlook at the upvotes
- porpoisely 8y ago
  AMAs, like everything on social media, used to be great years ago when it was raw and relatively uncensored. Now it's just an ad platform for people and their PR team to push their products, ideas, etc. It is no longer Ask Me "Anything". It really isn't even "Ask Me". I bet half the comments on these threads are by PR company staff. AMAs went from being one of the great parts of reddit to one of the worst.
- cmroanirgo 8y ago
  > The goal of the Foundation is that all kids grow up healthy - no matter where they are born. That means getting rid of malaria and many of the other diseases that affect poor countries. There's something about this guy that seems 'off' to me. I should assume it's because he's a tech guy originally and not a politician. Is it just me or do other people see the convoluted logic that links 'lack of money' with disease and therefore unhealthy kids? If so, then all that needs to be done is for Mr Gates to give all his money to those poor countries, ipso facto disease is gone and kids are healthy. I'd love to see him try it this out! A later quote: > However if I had one wish to make a new technology it would be a solution to malnutrition. Almost half the kids in poor countries grow up without their body or brain developing fully so they miss most of their potential. From "How much would it cost to end hunger?" [0], the answer is $160 pp in poverty. Or from Quora [1]: "With say 2.5 billion people short of food, $166 billions per year would "theoretically" eliminate hunger. Just as a comparison, "During FY 2013, the federal government spent $3.45 trillion on a budget or cash basis, down $84 billion or 2.4% vs. FY 2012 ", or about 20 times as much" Now, the US military budget was $637 billion in 2015 [2], which is enough to feed the poor several times over. To me, it sounds like he should turn his Foundation into a lobbying group to end all war (or greatly reduce the military industrial complex) and use that money to reach his goals. Just sayin'. (This is why his words keep seeming 'off' to me) [0] https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/07/how-much-would-it-cost-to-end-hunger/ https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/07/how-much-would-it-cos... [1] https://www.quora.com/How-much-would-it-cost-to-feed-the-world https://www.quora.com/How-much-would-it-cost-to-feed-the-wor... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_budget_of_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_budget_of_the_United_... (Edited)
Causality1 8y ago
I wonder, if Gates was still driving Windows development would Windows 10 still spy on users and restrict their ability to control updates like it does with Nadella at the helm?
- devoply 8y ago
  Yes I remember Gates was a true Saint when he was running Microsoft.
  - HenryBemis 8y ago
    I hate Windows10 like anyone with any self respect and appreciation to Privacy, and this is why I am still on a heavily fortified Win8.1 (with Classic Shell UI). Microsoft is doing what Facebook is doing. You either 'shut up' and accept the T&C, or go your merry way and use Fedora and SMS. They don't do it for the fun of it, they do it for the $$$ of it. And since both they got greedy shareholders to keep happy, there is only one way forward (for these/such companies).
    - HenryBemis 8y ago
      Apologies for the follow-up, no spam intended. For this AMA he self-identified as "co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation", and I have to admit that as a syst-admin 'some time ago', I made my living with Microsoft products. And now as a 'wiser' (snicker) human being, I appreciate his efforts to improve Humanity via his dedication and actions.
  - metabagel 8y ago
    LOL, your humor is much appreciated. :-) https://www.seattlepi.com/business/article/No-Bull-Bill-Gates-blunt-legacy-1277370.php https://www.seattlepi.com/business/article/No-Bull-Bill-Gate...
  - criddell 8y ago
    History will forget all of that. His humanitarian efforts are going to have a much larger and longer lasting positive impact than anything he did at Microsoft.
marricks 8y ago
I feel like every other month Gates guest edits the Verge or has an interview there. Or I see his annual letter all over LinkedIn, or an AMA... He gets so much exposure I imagine because he’s a “good billionaire trying to fix the world.” I guess it’s the most we can hope for these days from our growing class of ultra wealthy, but I really don’t think that means they should get the right to shout their opinions at us from every corner of the web.
- aglavine 8y ago
  You'll be surprised how many people ignore Gates Foundation's deep involvement on ending Polio
  - reaperducer 8y ago
    It's at least as any as the number of people who ignore the way George W. Bush is hailed as a hero for his work stemming the tide of AIDS in Africa. https://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/04/george-w-bushs-legacy-on-africa-wins-praise-even-from-foes/ https://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/04/george-w-bushs...
    - metabagel 8y ago
      His ledger is still in the red.
  - walrus01 8y ago
    The problem with ending polio is primarily with religious fundamentalists in Pakistan, who spread rumors that all western-funded vaccination programs are a secret plot by the CIA to sterilize people, or some similar nonsense. https://ourworldindata.org/polio https://ourworldindata.org/polio
    - what_ever 8y ago
      https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/jul/11/cia-fake-vaccinations-osama-bin-ladens-dna https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/jul/11/cia-fake-vacci...
m23khan 8y ago
is there a way to be notified about upcoming AMAs on reddit?
- thatguythatname 8y ago
  Here is a link to a Google calendar created by the IAmA team. Not sure how often it's updated, I assume as they get arranged https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=amaverify@gmail.com&pli=1 https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=amaverify@gma...
  - jonluca 8y ago
    IAmA mod here - we have a bot that updates it every time a guest schedules a new AMA, so it should always be up to date. We also manually add events in as they come from other sources. Bill likes to do his AmA's as "surprises", though, so we don't usually schedule those!
    - m23khan 8y ago
      thank you guys
meowface 8y ago
>I have not written code in a shipping product for a long time but I do write enough code to understand the new tools like Typescript or Github (shameless Microsoft plugs). Cool to see he still tries to stay up to date on new technologies.
- babypuncher 8y ago
  You left out the part of that comment where he solved the tabs v spaces war.
  - lucb1e 8y ago
    You left that out, too :-). For anyone else wondering what his answer is: > I actually do use tabs. It is easy to convert tabs to spaces and vice-versa so we shouldn't waste too much time on this issue.
graycat 8y ago
Bill, thanks to you for Microsoft and to you and Melinda on health. For Climate Change, your position is wildly destructive and based on just sewage instead of science. Net, CO2 has essentially nothing to do with the climate. The main driver of climate change for 1+ million years is just changes in the rates of sun spots. Period. Nice details from some real experts, e.g., Lindzen at MIT, are summarized in the quite good video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52Mx0_8YEtg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52Mx0_8YEtg "The Great Global Warming Swindle". Take an hour to watch that and save your efforts on Climate Change and stop your highly destructive efforts against CO2. Sorry 'bout that. Just consider the video and its information. But for more, on the science, there were some models and predictions of big increases in temperature. The big increases were supposed to have happened already. They never happened at all. Details of predictions versus real observed are summarized, with the dozens of individual predictions named (in small print!) in http://www.energyadvocate.com/gc1.jpg http://www.energyadvocate.com/gc1.jpg In science, we have to make good predictions. When we make bad predictions, we junk the candidate science. So, we have to junk the candidate science of the climate models in that graph. Net, we are left with no meaningful science that CO2 from humans or anything else is causing significant or even measurable climate change or ever will. Some of Lindzen's remarks in the video explain more. Net, in total, we have to junk any threat from CO2. Fighting Climate Change is not worth even 10 cents -- that the alarmists want to throw $trillions at it is a grand disaster for civilization, in particular for the poor people you and Melinda are trying to help. Look at the evidence and think again.
- mamurphy 8y ago
  I looked up that film and found a Wikipedia article on it. I hardly find credible a "documentary" wherein multiple scientists interviewed complained to regulators that they were misrepresented[0]. Of course, many other scientists complained about the film as well [1]. One stated that "First, let's deal with the main thesis: that the presence or absence of cosmic rays in Earth's atmosphere is a better explanation for temperature variation than the concentration of CO2 and other gases. This is not a new assertion and it is patently wrong: there is no credible evidence that cosmic rays play a significant role...Let scepticism reign, but let's not play games with the evidence" The the regulators found partially in favor of the scientists and further sanctioned the film [2] for not presenting an objective outlook on the politics surrounding global warming. The regulators only declined to take a position on the science of the piece as it was beyond their regulatory scope. It seems as though that film is misinformation propaganda that doesn't belong on HN. Am I missing something? [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Global_Warming_Swindle#Criticism_from_two_scientists_featured_in_the_programme https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Global_Warming_Swind... [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Global_Warming_Swindle#Reactions_from_scientists https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Global_Warming_Swind... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Global_Warming_Swindle#Ofcom_investigation_of_complaints https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Global_Warming_Swind...
iambateman 8y ago
Hot take: Bill Gates is massively underrated today, compared to how he will be viewed by history. When the reckoning of history books happens, I could see him in the running for “most positive social influence of anyone 1800-2100”. His humanitarian work is second to none and we can expect 20+ more years of his direct influence on global policy. The world is a better place thanks to Mr and Mrs Gates.
- MediumD 8y ago
  Completely agree with you, although I'm not sure how much of 'Hot take' that is.
  - blueside 8y ago
    Definitely not a "hot take" but there are certainly a lot of users on here who would argue otherwise. A lot of older programmers who were well into their careers during Microsoft in the 90's seem to have a different opinion of Bill and his business practices.
    - SkyMarshal 8y ago
      The irony is that ultimately Gates and MS did relatively little significant or lasting damage to the world, and FOSS eventually took over many important parts of global infrastructure. Afterwards, Gates went on to create the most effective and well-funded philanthropy since the Carnegie Foundation, eradicated Malaria, etc. While his former competitors spent their riches on superyachts and the like.
      - solveit 8y ago
        The irony could go deeper now that MS has github. Only time will tell...
- soperj 8y ago
  Not really. You look at Andrew Carnegie who has a similar history, and even a hundred years out, no one cares. People like Einstein and Picasso are who lasts. No one really gives a shit about businessmen, regardless of their philanthropy.
apo 8y ago
Can anyone point to a list of problems the Gates foundation has solved through program(s) it has funded? Edit: took out some things about Gates and the dual nature of his work at Microsoft and the Gates Foundation.
- jcomis 8y ago
  it's almost like you've never read a single thing about the organization. nearly every annual letter and report details their impact.
  - dang 8y ago
    Please follow the site guidelines when posting here. Your comment would be fine with just the second sentence. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
  - apo 8y ago
    Impact isn't the same thing as solving problems, which is what I'm interested in. Yes, I have read none of the annual reports. I did pop over to the site and found this for 2017: https://www.gatesfoundation.org/Who-We-Are/Resources-and-Media/Annual-Reports/Annual-Report-2017 https://www.gatesfoundation.org/Who-We-Are/Resources-and-Med... Maybe the site's layout is just hiding the actual report, but this just looks like an executive summary, and enumerates no solved problems. Either way, I'd like to get something that would span multiple years of effort and billions spent. It would talk about the specific problems the Gates Foundation has solved through its efforts. Does something like that exist?
- lenova 8y ago
  Regarding character, three things to consider: a) The impact his wife Melinda had on his worldview; b) That people are nuanced and full of contradictions; c) The person you are at 30 and the person you are at 60 is defined by the accumulation of experiences, not the accumulation of wealth.
- Gpetrium 8y ago
  I would have to half disagree with your statement on the business side. If we looked at the products and services that Microsoft under Bill Gates have created/promoted throughout its history, we can clearly see a market leader that has helped society advance to what it is today. Even the fights that they lost (e.g. cellphone), have helped shape the economy we live in today and improved the competition. Were there errors and misjudgments in the process? Absolutely, I am not sure we can point to a single individual with power that hasn't had its ups and downs. Bill Gates is an interesting character that should be analyzed in all ways and I encourage everyone to see the good and the bad. Not just pick one aspect and characterize the whole individual.
TheTruestKyle 8y ago
Stop being a cunt dang. Stop raping!

207 points by dcx 8y ago

Do people derive pleasure from these AMAs? Gates seems to reply with the same platitudes and non-answers to the point where its hard to tell if it’s him or the BMGF publicist.

tills13 8y ago
What an odd complaint to an otherwise enjoyable experience that Bill absolutely did not have to participate in.
belltaco 8y ago
The AMAs are not really relevant for everyone. For a subset, I would say they definitely derive pleasure.
whatislovecraft 8y ago
His answers seem quite concrete to me. He even links further reading after answering questions directly. I don't really see any platitudes or non-answers at all. Maybe it's predictable? But it seems his answers are genuine, to-the-point, and even provides the reader with further reading. Not sure what more you could ask for really. Edit: I mean, look at this answer: https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/aunv58/im_bill_gates_cochair_of_the_bill_melinda_gates/eh9ca9p/?context=8&depth=9 https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/aunv58/im_bill_gates_... Seems solidly real to me.
- mc32 8y ago
  I too think the answers are mostly fine. I think the medium is a problem. Personally, I’d probably prefer submitting questions and then getting answers later at some point (there’s only so much you can answer right of the top of your head like that). How the questions get selected would be a problem. Voting obviously ends up with results like “Boaty McBoat Face”.
- rmrfrmrf 8y ago
  In response to your edit: he said the same thing on The Verge [1] a week or two ago. I think maybe what the OP is getting at is that there's really nothing revealing or exclusive that comes out of these AMAs; it's just another media outlet. [1] https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/12/18220756/bill-gates-tax-rate-70-percent-marginal-modern-monetary-theory https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/12/18220756/bill-gates-tax-r...
  - whatislovecraft 8y ago
    I must be missing it, but I don't see the "same thing" at all. On reddit, he is a lot more human, providing a direct answer to the question and revealing personal information and opinions (like the $10BO) that doesn't seem to be written in that Verge article or elsewhere. Seems super valuable and interesting to me to have Reddit AMAs, and I'm just not seeing this "platitudes" thing or "just another media outlet" attitude. Sure, he's on a talking tour or whatever, but he's on reddit answering real questions with real answers not seen elsewhere. Seems interesting enough to me, and not at all like what OP is decrying here for being "platitudes"/"non-answers".
    - rmrfrmrf 8y ago
      ...you listened to a 33 minute interview in 3 minutes?
rmrfrmrf 8y ago
No, it's just another stop on the publicity tour now. They're coordinated with Reddit ahead of time and most don't even bother to answer candidly or even answer questions themselves. Reddit was able to suspend disbelief until ~2014 when the Morgan Freeman AMA really exposed the whole operation.
curiousDog 8y ago
The AMAs I enjoyed the most were by Jerry Seinfeld.
i_cant_speel 8y ago
What non-answers are you referring to? Most of the ones I read were responded with what the askers were wanting to know. They might get repetitive, but that's because people ask the same questions all the time.
- pastor_elm 8y ago
  He didn't really answer the billionaire happiness question.
  - i_cant_speel 8y ago
    What do you mean? He said yes, then gave some reasoning. What more are you looking for?
  - what_ever 8y ago
    He seems to have answered this one - https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/aunv58/im_bill_gates_cochair_of_the_bill_melinda_gates/eh9a9x2/ https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/aunv58/im_bill_gates_... Doesn't feel like a non-answer as well.
    - pastor_elm 8y ago
      it's a non-answer because he doesn't describe the benefits of being a billionaire. Only the benefits of being above middle class. It would have appeared crass of him to say, 'yeah i love living in a $200 million 66,000 sq ft mansion and having the world's biggest foundation named after me. Having a such a legacy produces genuine happiness.' But he played the false modesty card.
      - solveit 8y ago
        I think his point was that a $200 million home doesn't actually buy you all that much more happiness than a $20 million home. Well, apart from the trampoline room that he seems very fond of.
40acres 8y ago
For me, not really. A live text interview is probably the worst medium for this type of content (exhibit A: Kara Swisher & Jack Dorsey). There is also a lot of subtly missed when comparing speech to text, and due to the time delay it gives the interviewee time to apply any relevant PR spin.
creato 8y ago
I skimmed the AMA for a few minutes, and saw him say that: - He thought nuclear weapons, bioterrorism, and climate change were the biggest threats to humanity. - He thought paying $10B in capital gains taxes was not enough and he should have paid more. Maybe those are platitudes but it's real enough for me.
- kome 8y ago
  in other words, war is dangerous and he pays too little tax. i think too they are platitudes.
  - jonas21 8y ago
    And yet... how many other billionaires do you see going out and saying that the capital gains tax rate is too low and climate change is the biggest threat to humanity.
    - phkahler 8y ago
      Well his buddy Warren Buffet also says he should pay more taxes. I find his stance refreshing - he's going to pay only what's required while advocating changing the rules so that everyone pays more. Lots of people say "well he's free to pay more if he want's to but he's not". Some call it hypocrisy. Some call it humility.
      - deleted 8y ago
        [deleted]
    - rchaud 8y ago
      Buffett has been beating the "higher taxes for rich people" drum at least since the 2008 recession, maybe longer. He won't actually open his wallet to push for these policies mind you. That would be a bridge too far.
      - batmenace 8y ago
tptacek 8y ago
You think the BGMF publicist decided to say Gates watches American Vandal and has a trampoline room in his house?
- bitwize 8y ago
  Well, that explains his Mario-tier jumping skills: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TCxE0bWQeQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TCxE0bWQeQ He talked about the trampoline on the Ellen Show, so yes, it still counts as a PR-y answer.
- gist 8y ago
  Publicist sure, no. But this has been totally sanitized by Bill when he makes as one example statements like this: [1] > 'The other thing is that I sometimes use a private jet. It does help me do my foundation work but again it is a very privileged thing to have.' He inserts the word 'sometimes' to lessen the impact of 'private jet'. He adds that it helps him do foundation work implying that that should make it ok in normal people's eyes. [2] He doesn't mention that it's actually importantly needed for security purposes he is obviously a target and not flying like the general public. He then acknowledges that it's a privileged thing to have. [1] Remember the movie "An Officer and a Gentlement" when Lou Gosset character fights Richard Gear character? And Gosset character replies (something like) 'oh I see you've had some training!'. Well Bill Gates has had training. [2] Which is should be anyway. Without saying that.
  - metabagel 8y ago
    Gates apparently flied coach until about 1997. I'm not his biggest fan, but I find that interesting about him.
    - gist 8y ago
      I remember that. That is a technique that is often used to impose frugality and get savings [1] out of the rest of the execs by setting an example. If he flies coach well then so do a hundred others. [1] I knew a guy who owned a small company and bought a low end car until he had locked up his union contract. He knew if he was seen with a nice car it was going to cost him a boat load. Likewise in my old school company years ago I never even drove up to the business in my nice car and I went out of my way to hide it's existence. It goes along with staying late and arriving early to set an example.
skywhopper 8y ago
Really? Sure he has some practicd answers to questions he gets hundreds of times a week, and he is careful about what he says. But I wouldn't call them "non-answers", and I don't think he pulls any punches. I feel like his personality comes through, and yes he has opinions that I don't really agree with. Maybe it's not really a worthwhile way to spend time, but it all feels real enough. Do you have some examples of what's so egregious that it doesn't seem like it's really him?
trumped 8y ago
Is that a real question? I guess you couldlook at the upvotes
porpoisely 8y ago
AMAs, like everything on social media, used to be great years ago when it was raw and relatively uncensored. Now it's just an ad platform for people and their PR team to push their products, ideas, etc. It is no longer Ask Me "Anything". It really isn't even "Ask Me". I bet half the comments on these threads are by PR company staff. AMAs went from being one of the great parts of reddit to one of the worst.
cmroanirgo 8y ago
> The goal of the Foundation is that all kids grow up healthy - no matter where they are born. That means getting rid of malaria and many of the other diseases that affect poor countries. There's something about this guy that seems 'off' to me. I should assume it's because he's a tech guy originally and not a politician. Is it just me or do other people see the convoluted logic that links 'lack of money' with disease and therefore unhealthy kids? If so, then all that needs to be done is for Mr Gates to give all his money to those poor countries, ipso facto disease is gone and kids are healthy. I'd love to see him try it this out! A later quote: > However if I had one wish to make a new technology it would be a solution to malnutrition. Almost half the kids in poor countries grow up without their body or brain developing fully so they miss most of their potential. From "How much would it cost to end hunger?" [0], the answer is $160 pp in poverty. Or from Quora [1]: "With say 2.5 billion people short of food, $166 billions per year would "theoretically" eliminate hunger. Just as a comparison, "During FY 2013, the federal government spent $3.45 trillion on a budget or cash basis, down $84 billion or 2.4% vs. FY 2012 ", or about 20 times as much" Now, the US military budget was $637 billion in 2015 [2], which is enough to feed the poor several times over. To me, it sounds like he should turn his Foundation into a lobbying group to end all war (or greatly reduce the military industrial complex) and use that money to reach his goals. Just sayin'. (This is why his words keep seeming 'off' to me) [0] https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/07/how-much-would-it-cost-to-end-hunger/ https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/07/how-much-would-it-cos... [1] https://www.quora.com/How-much-would-it-cost-to-feed-the-world https://www.quora.com/How-much-would-it-cost-to-feed-the-wor... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_budget_of_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_budget_of_the_United_... (Edited)

Causality1 8y ago

I wonder, if Gates was still driving Windows development would Windows 10 still spy on users and restrict their ability to control updates like it does with Nadella at the helm?

devoply 8y ago
Yes I remember Gates was a true Saint when he was running Microsoft.
- HenryBemis 8y ago
  I hate Windows10 like anyone with any self respect and appreciation to Privacy, and this is why I am still on a heavily fortified Win8.1 (with Classic Shell UI). Microsoft is doing what Facebook is doing. You either 'shut up' and accept the T&C, or go your merry way and use Fedora and SMS. They don't do it for the fun of it, they do it for the $$$ of it. And since both they got greedy shareholders to keep happy, there is only one way forward (for these/such companies).
  - HenryBemis 8y ago
    Apologies for the follow-up, no spam intended. For this AMA he self-identified as "co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation", and I have to admit that as a syst-admin 'some time ago', I made my living with Microsoft products. And now as a 'wiser' (snicker) human being, I appreciate his efforts to improve Humanity via his dedication and actions.
- metabagel 8y ago
  LOL, your humor is much appreciated. :-) https://www.seattlepi.com/business/article/No-Bull-Bill-Gates-blunt-legacy-1277370.php https://www.seattlepi.com/business/article/No-Bull-Bill-Gate...
- criddell 8y ago
  History will forget all of that. His humanitarian efforts are going to have a much larger and longer lasting positive impact than anything he did at Microsoft.

marricks 8y ago

I feel like every other month Gates guest edits the Verge or has an interview there. Or I see his annual letter all over LinkedIn, or an AMA... He gets so much exposure I imagine because he’s a “good billionaire trying to fix the world.” I guess it’s the most we can hope for these days from our growing class of ultra wealthy, but I really don’t think that means they should get the right to shout their opinions at us from every corner of the web.

aglavine 8y ago
You'll be surprised how many people ignore Gates Foundation's deep involvement on ending Polio
- reaperducer 8y ago
  It's at least as any as the number of people who ignore the way George W. Bush is hailed as a hero for his work stemming the tide of AIDS in Africa. https://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/04/george-w-bushs-legacy-on-africa-wins-praise-even-from-foes/ https://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/04/george-w-bushs...
  - metabagel 8y ago
    His ledger is still in the red.
- walrus01 8y ago
  The problem with ending polio is primarily with religious fundamentalists in Pakistan, who spread rumors that all western-funded vaccination programs are a secret plot by the CIA to sterilize people, or some similar nonsense. https://ourworldindata.org/polio https://ourworldindata.org/polio
  - what_ever 8y ago
    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/jul/11/cia-fake-vaccinations-osama-bin-ladens-dna https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/jul/11/cia-fake-vacci...

m23khan 8y ago

is there a way to be notified about upcoming AMAs on reddit?

thatguythatname 8y ago
Here is a link to a Google calendar created by the IAmA team. Not sure how often it's updated, I assume as they get arranged https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=amaverify@gmail.com&pli=1 https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=amaverify@gma...
- jonluca 8y ago
  IAmA mod here - we have a bot that updates it every time a guest schedules a new AMA, so it should always be up to date. We also manually add events in as they come from other sources. Bill likes to do his AmA's as "surprises", though, so we don't usually schedule those!
  - m23khan 8y ago
    thank you guys

meowface 8y ago

>I have not written code in a shipping product for a long time but I do write enough code to understand the new tools like Typescript or Github (shameless Microsoft plugs). Cool to see he still tries to stay up to date on new technologies.

babypuncher 8y ago
You left out the part of that comment where he solved the tabs v spaces war.
- lucb1e 8y ago
  You left that out, too :-). For anyone else wondering what his answer is: > I actually do use tabs. It is easy to convert tabs to spaces and vice-versa so we shouldn't waste too much time on this issue.

graycat 8y ago

Bill, thanks to you for Microsoft and to you and Melinda on health. For Climate Change, your position is wildly destructive and based on just sewage instead of science. Net, CO2 has essentially nothing to do with the climate. The main driver of climate change for 1+ million years is just changes in the rates of sun spots. Period. Nice details from some real experts, e.g., Lindzen at MIT, are summarized in the quite good video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52Mx0_8YEtg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52Mx0_8YEtg "The Great Global Warming Swindle". Take an hour to watch that and save your efforts on Climate Change and stop your highly destructive efforts against CO2. Sorry 'bout that. Just consider the video and its information. But for more, on the science, there were some models and predictions of big increases in temperature. The big increases were supposed to have happened already. They never happened at all. Details of predictions versus real observed are summarized, with the dozens of individual predictions named (in small print!) in http://www.energyadvocate.com/gc1.jpg http://www.energyadvocate.com/gc1.jpg In science, we have to make good predictions. When we make bad predictions, we junk the candidate science. So, we have to junk the candidate science of the climate models in that graph. Net, we are left with no meaningful science that CO2 from humans or anything else is causing significant or even measurable climate change or ever will. Some of Lindzen's remarks in the video explain more. Net, in total, we have to junk any threat from CO2. Fighting Climate Change is not worth even 10 cents -- that the alarmists want to throw $trillions at it is a grand disaster for civilization, in particular for the poor people you and Melinda are trying to help. Look at the evidence and think again.

mamurphy 8y ago
I looked up that film and found a Wikipedia article on it. I hardly find credible a "documentary" wherein multiple scientists interviewed complained to regulators that they were misrepresented[0]. Of course, many other scientists complained about the film as well [1]. One stated that "First, let's deal with the main thesis: that the presence or absence of cosmic rays in Earth's atmosphere is a better explanation for temperature variation than the concentration of CO2 and other gases. This is not a new assertion and it is patently wrong: there is no credible evidence that cosmic rays play a significant role...Let scepticism reign, but let's not play games with the evidence" The the regulators found partially in favor of the scientists and further sanctioned the film [2] for not presenting an objective outlook on the politics surrounding global warming. The regulators only declined to take a position on the science of the piece as it was beyond their regulatory scope. It seems as though that film is misinformation propaganda that doesn't belong on HN. Am I missing something? [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Global_Warming_Swindle#Criticism_from_two_scientists_featured_in_the_programme https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Global_Warming_Swind... [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Global_Warming_Swindle#Reactions_from_scientists https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Global_Warming_Swind... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Global_Warming_Swindle#Ofcom_investigation_of_complaints https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Global_Warming_Swind...

iambateman 8y ago

Hot take: Bill Gates is massively underrated today, compared to how he will be viewed by history. When the reckoning of history books happens, I could see him in the running for “most positive social influence of anyone 1800-2100”. His humanitarian work is second to none and we can expect 20+ more years of his direct influence on global policy. The world is a better place thanks to Mr and Mrs Gates.

MediumD 8y ago
Completely agree with you, although I'm not sure how much of 'Hot take' that is.
- blueside 8y ago
  Definitely not a "hot take" but there are certainly a lot of users on here who would argue otherwise. A lot of older programmers who were well into their careers during Microsoft in the 90's seem to have a different opinion of Bill and his business practices.
  - SkyMarshal 8y ago
    The irony is that ultimately Gates and MS did relatively little significant or lasting damage to the world, and FOSS eventually took over many important parts of global infrastructure. Afterwards, Gates went on to create the most effective and well-funded philanthropy since the Carnegie Foundation, eradicated Malaria, etc. While his former competitors spent their riches on superyachts and the like.
    - solveit 8y ago
      The irony could go deeper now that MS has github. Only time will tell...
soperj 8y ago
Not really. You look at Andrew Carnegie who has a similar history, and even a hundred years out, no one cares. People like Einstein and Picasso are who lasts. No one really gives a shit about businessmen, regardless of their philanthropy.

apo 8y ago

Can anyone point to a list of problems the Gates foundation has solved through program(s) it has funded? Edit: took out some things about Gates and the dual nature of his work at Microsoft and the Gates Foundation.

jcomis 8y ago
it's almost like you've never read a single thing about the organization. nearly every annual letter and report details their impact.
- dang 8y ago
  Please follow the site guidelines when posting here. Your comment would be fine with just the second sentence. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
- apo 8y ago
  Impact isn't the same thing as solving problems, which is what I'm interested in. Yes, I have read none of the annual reports. I did pop over to the site and found this for 2017: https://www.gatesfoundation.org/Who-We-Are/Resources-and-Media/Annual-Reports/Annual-Report-2017 https://www.gatesfoundation.org/Who-We-Are/Resources-and-Med... Maybe the site's layout is just hiding the actual report, but this just looks like an executive summary, and enumerates no solved problems. Either way, I'd like to get something that would span multiple years of effort and billions spent. It would talk about the specific problems the Gates Foundation has solved through its efforts. Does something like that exist?
lenova 8y ago
Regarding character, three things to consider: a) The impact his wife Melinda had on his worldview; b) That people are nuanced and full of contradictions; c) The person you are at 30 and the person you are at 60 is defined by the accumulation of experiences, not the accumulation of wealth.
Gpetrium 8y ago
I would have to half disagree with your statement on the business side. If we looked at the products and services that Microsoft under Bill Gates have created/promoted throughout its history, we can clearly see a market leader that has helped society advance to what it is today. Even the fights that they lost (e.g. cellphone), have helped shape the economy we live in today and improved the competition. Were there errors and misjudgments in the process? Absolutely, I am not sure we can point to a single individual with power that hasn't had its ups and downs. Bill Gates is an interesting character that should be analyzed in all ways and I encourage everyone to see the good and the bad. Not just pick one aspect and characterize the whole individual.

TheTruestKyle 8y ago

Stop being a cunt dang. Stop raping!