4 ms·
It's a mistake to conflate the work of entire companies with one man, and I strongly disagree about the state of progress in America if billionaires did not exi
by chillwaves 6y ago
It's a mistake to conflate the work of entire companies with one man, and I strongly disagree about the state of progress in America if billionaires did not exist.
Someone else would have taken Musk's place. There is no inherent quality to billionaires that make them valuable outside of their wealth.
> especially if you consider the potential scarcity of funding in this scenario.
how is this an argument? I assume banks still exist in this world without billionaires?
- refurb 6y agoSomeone else would have taken his place? You mean another billionaire? But the thought experiment is there would be no billionaires.
- chillwaves 6y agoWhy would a billionaire by necessary? As mentioned, there are other vehicles to obtain financing. Secondly, when billionaires disappear, their wealth doesn't disappear with them. Not sure what you are asking.
- refurb 6y agoBecause at least for big moonshot ideas, it's much easier for one billionaire to bankroll some crazy idea everyone else thinks is a waste of money. And even if you could gather the funding, you now have to keep a few dozen investors happy versus just pursuing your idea however you want. And sure the money doesn't disappear, but would you really expect an Amazon warehouse worker who now makes $70k instead of $35k to be investing in highly risky ventures? I mean, they wouldn't even qualify to invest.