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What do you mean “extracted”? The wealth is sitting there in his 401(k) being risked through (highly) fractional ownership of various publicly traded business v
by twoodfin 4mo ago
What do you mean “extracted”? The wealth is sitting there in his 401(k) being risked through (highly) fractional ownership of various publicly traded business ventures.
- saghm 4mo agoI mean "not earned through work", as evidenced by your description of it "as as sitting there". Risk isn't the same as work.
- zarathustreal 4mo agoDo you think “work” means literally “manual labor”?
- well_ackshually 4mo agoWork means the creation of things. Clicking on stocks for your 401k is not working.
- zarathustreal 4mo agoThe counter-examples are so obvious it makes me feel that pointing them out wouldn’t actually help you understand reality
- ForHackernews 4mo agoThe counter-examples are so obvious you didn't feel the need to cite even one? Please provide an example of how logging in to fidelity.com to see that today my net worth increased by a multiple of my annual salary constitutes "work". Define your terms so it's clear to readers.
- twoodfin 4mo agoIf I spend 30 minutes this week looking at my investments, but a fund manager spends 60 hours, that’s a difference in quality and quantity not kind.
- ForHackernews 4mo agoFund managers are paid to do a job by the owners of capital. Obviously that job is is work. The overwhelming majority of the gains accrue to the owners, and only a small fraction to the diligent fund manager who did the work. Are you sure you tried to come up with a counter example?
- twoodfin 4mo agoNow you’re just question-begging. If the only kind of “work” is “selling your labor” then sure, but I think a farmer tilling his own soil is “working”.
- thrance 4mo agoWork implies the creation of value: physical artifacts, services, or more generally, stuff that adds to the world. Capital gails isn't work, you're getting money without adding anything to the world.
- twoodfin 4mo agoWhat is being “extracted” from what? I described it as “sitting there” to contrast my viewpoint that in fact it’s not being “extracted” from anything as far as I can tell.
- inigyou 4mo agoSome Nvidia employees are making graphics cards, that cost $1000, and use $300 of materials, and being paid $200. $500 is being extracted from the value chain at that point and some of that is going to you because you own Nvidia stock.