3 ms·

Money is only one kind of power as I learned from going from working stiff to millionaire (thanks software biz!) to homeless broke person (cursed alcohol.) Ther

Money is only one kind of power as I learned from going from working stiff to millionaire (thanks software biz!) to homeless broke person (cursed alcohol.) There is the shamanic-like power of a deeply spiritual person. There is the leadership power of a good manufacturing supervisor or ship captain. There is the moral power of Martin Luther King or Solzhenitsyn. I've come to the conclusion that accumulating money is how people who otherwise wouldn't have any power to purchase it. There's a easy test I do in this industry when a rich person publishes a thought piece that doesn't move me: Would this person have any power if they weren't rich? A lot of times the answer is no. This Victoria man has another kind of power: The power that gets other people to take care of his needs for him without objecting or rejecting him.

kevmo 5y ago
> Would this person have any power if they weren't rich? A lot of times the answer is no. In my experience, the answer is no like a solid 90-99% of the time. At least in America, the wealthy buy their kids into elite high schools, which feed into elite colleges, which feed into jobs at elite, increasingly monolithic institutions/corporations. Junior gets to fail again and again until they succeed, and then the return on capital further institutionalizes their family's power. It's just aristocracy, but with more steps.
- okareaman 5y ago
  I feel a bit sorry for them, because with money you can build yourself a really nice gilded cage (or be born in one), which is extremely difficult to escape from because it would take giving up the money. This makes it hard to develop the other kinds of powers I mentioned. I believe these thoughts are not my own, but are the basis of ideas like "The love of money is the root of all evil" and "Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God." (I am not a Christian but I am familiar with it - I'm sure I could find similar thoughts in other religions)
- imtringued 5y ago
  >In my experience, the answer is no like a solid 90-99% of the time. At least in America, the wealthy buy their kids into elite high schools, which feed into elite colleges, which feed into jobs at elite, increasingly monolithic institutions/corporations. Well, this may be bad but what is the alternative? It's not like the life of an average citizen is any different other than in degree. They also use money to go to a good school and good college to get good jobs at good companies. I don't see the injustice here as substantial. I see bigger flaws in the money system than our society maintaining itself.
missedthecue 5y ago
Usually those "rich people's" thoughts are interesting not because they're worth millions or billions, but because they've built something impressive over their lifetime and probably have gained valuable insight as a result. Most people wouldn't be very interested in an interview with a Walton heir for instance, but Sam Walton himself would have no problem drawing an audience.
- okareaman 5y ago
  He cultivated those other powers before he became rich, or he most likely wouldn't have been able to build what he did. I think a good example is Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. Jobs went to India, practiced Zen and experimented with psychedelics before he built Apple. He found his power and used it. Bill Gates was born rich and is having a tough time inspiring people at the moment.

kevmo 5y ago

> Would this person have any power if they weren't rich? A lot of times the answer is no. In my experience, the answer is no like a solid 90-99% of the time. At least in America, the wealthy buy their kids into elite high schools, which feed into elite colleges, which feed into jobs at elite, increasingly monolithic institutions/corporations. Junior gets to fail again and again until they succeed, and then the return on capital further institutionalizes their family's power. It's just aristocracy, but with more steps.

okareaman 5y ago
I feel a bit sorry for them, because with money you can build yourself a really nice gilded cage (or be born in one), which is extremely difficult to escape from because it would take giving up the money. This makes it hard to develop the other kinds of powers I mentioned. I believe these thoughts are not my own, but are the basis of ideas like "The love of money is the root of all evil" and "Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God." (I am not a Christian but I am familiar with it - I'm sure I could find similar thoughts in other religions)
imtringued 5y ago
>In my experience, the answer is no like a solid 90-99% of the time. At least in America, the wealthy buy their kids into elite high schools, which feed into elite colleges, which feed into jobs at elite, increasingly monolithic institutions/corporations. Well, this may be bad but what is the alternative? It's not like the life of an average citizen is any different other than in degree. They also use money to go to a good school and good college to get good jobs at good companies. I don't see the injustice here as substantial. I see bigger flaws in the money system than our society maintaining itself.

missedthecue 5y ago

Usually those "rich people's" thoughts are interesting not because they're worth millions or billions, but because they've built something impressive over their lifetime and probably have gained valuable insight as a result. Most people wouldn't be very interested in an interview with a Walton heir for instance, but Sam Walton himself would have no problem drawing an audience.

okareaman 5y ago
He cultivated those other powers before he became rich, or he most likely wouldn't have been able to build what he did. I think a good example is Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. Jobs went to India, practiced Zen and experimented with psychedelics before he built Apple. He found his power and used it. Bill Gates was born rich and is having a tough time inspiring people at the moment.