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Elon Musk is the #1 richest man in the world, out of >7 billion. Everyone knows who he is. Celebrities to him are almost what commoners are to rich people. Joe

Elon Musk is the #1 richest man in the world, out of >7 billion. Everyone knows who he is. Celebrities to him are almost what commoners are to rich people. Joe Rogan, the biggest podcaster, has <0.1% net worth. Most have far less: they actually need to make money from podcasting and can't afford certain things, whereas 0.001% of Musk's net worth is enough to live an entire life well-off. And it's not just money; I'm sure far, far more people learned about Rogan when he interviewed Musk than vice versa. Wealth, attention, and power influence people. If you had more of them, or a solid chance at more, you'd be influenced too.

alsoforgotmypwd 2y ago
Integrity means not being moved by the appearance, demands, or actions of others from a course of ethical/moral behavior. It isn't as common as it used to be, and was especially prevalent amongst the Greatest Generation.
- armchairhacker 2y ago
  Many people decide to maintain their morals and integrity instead of gambling them, maybe even the majority. You just don't hear about those people.
- MisterBastahrd 2y ago
  Totally. One of the two generations (along with the Silent Generation) who got their pensions and cheap houses and pulled that ladder up after them because it would inconvenience them for the companies they invested in to pay for pensions for the next generation. Also, the vast majority of them were rabid racists. That was bigtime integrity.
Spooky23 2y ago
Rogan isn’t really about money. He has a value beyond dollars… in the end, he likely has a lot more staying power than Elon, whose fall will probably be faster than the rise. He’s like a cross of Rush Limbaugh in his early prime, Howard Stern and Art Bell. Exceptional broadcast talent with a safe space to deliver a message.
- smokeydoe 2y ago
  As a long time listener, lately to me he has become more of a republican mouthpiece. He can’t help but to consistently bring up republican talking points and whatever the democrats did that was crazy this week, while still trying to say “But I’m not democrat or republican”. It’s cringy when he has a good guest on (rare now) who doesn’t want to talk politics but he doesn’t stop. I quit listening after many years, and I tried for last few months to give it a chance. Lets not forget how in his “comedy” special, he literally says he is like Elon’s puppy following him around believing whatever he says because he’s a “genius”. He changed.
  - Spooky23 2y ago
    Agreed. Honestly, he reminds me alot of Rush. Early Rush was very conservative, but also very irreverent. At some point it flipped and turned into the angry guy issuing the talking points of the day.
cduzz 2y ago
This whole thing puzzles me. These dingos are wealthy because they've got money in banks and stocks in brokerages. If the US dollar is managed like the 1980s iraqi dinar, and the stock market is regulated as strictly as the 1980s baghdad stock exchange, what happens to their wealth? Apologies to the lackeys of Saddam Hussein, some of whom I'm sure were quite professional.
- avs733 2y ago
  Less than what happens to other people’s wealth. That leaves others needing to sell things that the wealthy might want. Look for example at wealth recovery post 2008
  - cduzz 2y ago
    Whatever was broken in 2008 (and a lot was broken in 2008) regarding how people win or lose in the markets, it's nothing compared to if the markets are simply no longer actually following accounting rules. https://www.newsbreak.com/raw-story-2096750/3790568619352-go-haywire-onlookers-freak-out-as-25-year-old-set-loose-on-treasury-computer-system https://www.newsbreak.com/raw-story-2096750/3790568619352-go... What is money if there's someone out there just "number go up" people's accounts?
    - hypothesis 2y ago
      You have to be willing to go deeper to see what can be done. Say they start fudging numbers at DoL, so only them would know real truth and everyone else is just blundering in the dark. Combined with ownership of power structures, there is no need for money per se, you can acquire all of the critical infrastructure by applying blunt force. Check your nearest dictatorship for an example, we have plenty to choose from in recent history.
- ANewFormation 2y ago
  The problem you have here is differing perspectives on, for instance, current government financial responsibility. The government is currently $36 trillion in debt with that debt growing at an exponential rate. Our annual expenditure of interest on the debt has exceeded $1 trillion per year and will soon exceed the entire discretionary budget of the US. And this is happening as growth starts to slow and other countries continue to reduce both their reserves and dependency upon the dollar. Many don't see this as sustainable, or really even remotely sustainable. And so working to create more sound governance and spending today is motivated precisely by an effort to prevent a catastrophic crash. Like think about to back before the housing crash. There were numerous shows on TV about people getting a house (often with near 0 deposit), adding granite counter tops, and then reselling it within weeks for a $20k+ profit. Anybody could see that that sort of economic system could not possibly be stable, but most people have this instinct that a status quo must inherently be stable, but that's just not true. That unstable things have not crashed today is hardly an argument against them crashing tomorrow.
h0l0cube 2y ago
> Wealth, attention, and power influence people I think in this case, it attracts the avaricious rather than changes their beliefs. Joe Rogan can be influenced by poor lunatics as much as rich ones. As much as I can tell of peoples' opinions of the All In pod (never listened), it sounds like they were always sell-outs (or their beliefs have not strayed)
- armchairhacker 2y ago
  It's true that some people won't sacrifice their beliefs no matter how much they're tempted. And I think most people who've unexpectedly got rich and famous actually became nicer and saner. You don't hear about people who quietly maintain their integrity and rich people who quietly live their lives, you hear about those who aren't quiet and especially those who generate negativity. At the same time, I don't think anyone can truly understand what power does to the human brain in general and their brain specifically. It doesn't mean everyone with power is corrupt and certainly doesn't excuse those who are, but IMO it does mean one can't underestimate power's influence and assume they're one of the incorruptible "good ones"*. * There are ways to mitigate being corruptible, such as planning ahead, delegating power to others, and finding other sources of truth besides your unreliable judgement. They're the same techniques to avoid impulsiveness, dumb crush behavior, and other mental distortions.
  - h0l0cube 2y ago
    > I don't think anyone can truly understand what power does to the human brain in general and their brain specifically But you purport to? :) Power is such a nebulous term and can mean a lot of things. Of course, persuasive power, such as by reputation or actual charisma (not the case here), is a thing. But I think also in this case, at least as much as I can glean from others, Musk already had them at hello.

alsoforgotmypwd 2y ago

Integrity means not being moved by the appearance, demands, or actions of others from a course of ethical/moral behavior. It isn't as common as it used to be, and was especially prevalent amongst the Greatest Generation.

armchairhacker 2y ago
Many people decide to maintain their morals and integrity instead of gambling them, maybe even the majority. You just don't hear about those people.
MisterBastahrd 2y ago
Totally. One of the two generations (along with the Silent Generation) who got their pensions and cheap houses and pulled that ladder up after them because it would inconvenience them for the companies they invested in to pay for pensions for the next generation. Also, the vast majority of them were rabid racists. That was bigtime integrity.

Spooky23 2y ago

Rogan isn’t really about money. He has a value beyond dollars… in the end, he likely has a lot more staying power than Elon, whose fall will probably be faster than the rise. He’s like a cross of Rush Limbaugh in his early prime, Howard Stern and Art Bell. Exceptional broadcast talent with a safe space to deliver a message.

smokeydoe 2y ago
As a long time listener, lately to me he has become more of a republican mouthpiece. He can’t help but to consistently bring up republican talking points and whatever the democrats did that was crazy this week, while still trying to say “But I’m not democrat or republican”. It’s cringy when he has a good guest on (rare now) who doesn’t want to talk politics but he doesn’t stop. I quit listening after many years, and I tried for last few months to give it a chance. Lets not forget how in his “comedy” special, he literally says he is like Elon’s puppy following him around believing whatever he says because he’s a “genius”. He changed.
- Spooky23 2y ago
  Agreed. Honestly, he reminds me alot of Rush. Early Rush was very conservative, but also very irreverent. At some point it flipped and turned into the angry guy issuing the talking points of the day.

cduzz 2y ago

This whole thing puzzles me. These dingos are wealthy because they've got money in banks and stocks in brokerages. If the US dollar is managed like the 1980s iraqi dinar, and the stock market is regulated as strictly as the 1980s baghdad stock exchange, what happens to their wealth? Apologies to the lackeys of Saddam Hussein, some of whom I'm sure were quite professional.

avs733 2y ago
Less than what happens to other people’s wealth. That leaves others needing to sell things that the wealthy might want. Look for example at wealth recovery post 2008
- cduzz 2y ago
  Whatever was broken in 2008 (and a lot was broken in 2008) regarding how people win or lose in the markets, it's nothing compared to if the markets are simply no longer actually following accounting rules. https://www.newsbreak.com/raw-story-2096750/3790568619352-go-haywire-onlookers-freak-out-as-25-year-old-set-loose-on-treasury-computer-system https://www.newsbreak.com/raw-story-2096750/3790568619352-go... What is money if there's someone out there just "number go up" people's accounts?
  - hypothesis 2y ago
    You have to be willing to go deeper to see what can be done. Say they start fudging numbers at DoL, so only them would know real truth and everyone else is just blundering in the dark. Combined with ownership of power structures, there is no need for money per se, you can acquire all of the critical infrastructure by applying blunt force. Check your nearest dictatorship for an example, we have plenty to choose from in recent history.
ANewFormation 2y ago
The problem you have here is differing perspectives on, for instance, current government financial responsibility. The government is currently $36 trillion in debt with that debt growing at an exponential rate. Our annual expenditure of interest on the debt has exceeded $1 trillion per year and will soon exceed the entire discretionary budget of the US. And this is happening as growth starts to slow and other countries continue to reduce both their reserves and dependency upon the dollar. Many don't see this as sustainable, or really even remotely sustainable. And so working to create more sound governance and spending today is motivated precisely by an effort to prevent a catastrophic crash. Like think about to back before the housing crash. There were numerous shows on TV about people getting a house (often with near 0 deposit), adding granite counter tops, and then reselling it within weeks for a $20k+ profit. Anybody could see that that sort of economic system could not possibly be stable, but most people have this instinct that a status quo must inherently be stable, but that's just not true. That unstable things have not crashed today is hardly an argument against them crashing tomorrow.

h0l0cube 2y ago

> Wealth, attention, and power influence people I think in this case, it attracts the avaricious rather than changes their beliefs. Joe Rogan can be influenced by poor lunatics as much as rich ones. As much as I can tell of peoples' opinions of the All In pod (never listened), it sounds like they were always sell-outs (or their beliefs have not strayed)

armchairhacker 2y ago
It's true that some people won't sacrifice their beliefs no matter how much they're tempted. And I think most people who've unexpectedly got rich and famous actually became nicer and saner. You don't hear about people who quietly maintain their integrity and rich people who quietly live their lives, you hear about those who aren't quiet and especially those who generate negativity. At the same time, I don't think anyone can truly understand what power does to the human brain in general and their brain specifically. It doesn't mean everyone with power is corrupt and certainly doesn't excuse those who are, but IMO it does mean one can't underestimate power's influence and assume they're one of the incorruptible "good ones"*. * There are ways to mitigate being corruptible, such as planning ahead, delegating power to others, and finding other sources of truth besides your unreliable judgement. They're the same techniques to avoid impulsiveness, dumb crush behavior, and other mental distortions.
- h0l0cube 2y ago
  > I don't think anyone can truly understand what power does to the human brain in general and their brain specifically But you purport to? :) Power is such a nebulous term and can mean a lot of things. Of course, persuasive power, such as by reputation or actual charisma (not the case here), is a thing. But I think also in this case, at least as much as I can glean from others, Musk already had them at hello.