Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

Their "house"? Their ""insurance policy""?

Do you know what a billionaire *is*?



This x 1000. This is one of the cognitive problems we're facing. All too many people think that these billionaires are like the rest of us, just with a bit more money. These people do not experience the world as we do. At all. And they do not care how we do. We are mere counter ants to them. In their quest for more "efficiency" (i.e. becoming even more wealthy, faster) they don't gaf how many lives and careers they destroy.


> All too many people think that these billionaires are like the rest of us, just with a bit more money.

Hey, I think that!

> These people do not experience the world as we do.

They have the same senses: sight, hearing, smell, touch, ...

They're subject to the same problems as all us: mental problems, health issues, death, ...

Yes, having infinite money can solve quite a few problems, but it also introduces new ones!

> And they do not care how we do. We are mere counter ants to them.

I'm sure some don't. And I'm also sure others do. It's disingenious to put all billionaires in the same bucket.


Sure, they're human beings with all that implies.

They also live in a world that is almost completely alien and disconnected from the one the rest of us live in. That's why they're not like the rest of us. They're socially aliens who have zero understanding of what life is like outside of their social fortresses.


> It's disingenious to put all billionaires in the same bucket.

No, its pretty clear that having that much money changes people. To even reach that level of wealth there has to be something "wrong" with you compared to regular people. A willingness to take risks regardless of the cost, exploit your fellow humans, and being so disconnected from that you think you achieved it solely through your own hard work and talent.

On top of that, if you have a billion dollars, and there is poverty and starving children in the world, and you're not giving as much as you can to fix it, then you're simply unethical. I give what I can, but I'm just a regular worker bee. If I had more money than I could spend in a hundred lifetimes, I don't know how I could sleep at night knowing there's kids going to bed hungry, and I could have a significant impact on fixing it.


> and you're not giving as much as you can to fix it, then you're simply unethical.

That's one of the "new problems" referred to.


Ok, maybe they'll mind when a downburst sinks their yacht with their family ob board.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0l8kj1p0ylo


When today's children are old, "house" may well imply "billionaire" in many places. At 11% appreciation, it only takes 67 years to gain a factor of a thousand.

Then we will be ruled by trillionaires.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: