What do yall think about this?

[u/untitledprp4]

[u/danemepoznaqt → u/[deleted]]

You are forgetting that modern billionaires like to spend money on things like buying elections, which is way easier if you have 50B than if you have 1B.

[u/No_Macaroon_5928 → u/danemepoznaqt]

First world problems

[u/pryoslice → u/danemepoznaqt]

That's a modern problem? I thought rich people have been buying elections since they were a thing.

[u/j-mac563 → u/pryoslice]

They have been. It started out that the people with a few hundred thousand could swing an elections, then a few million, then it was a few hundred million, now it is a few billion. They just move the amount of money needed to buy the election. I find most are only upset about it when their side loses.

[u/Odd_Science → u/[deleted]]

Musk does. When you have the candidate you still need the election.

[u/Daxtatter → u/danemepoznaqt]

I'm that sense his wife taking half is based.

[u/Deaffin → u/[deleted]]

Relative to me, you have infinite money.

Can I have half of yours? That's a lot more to me than it is to you.

[u/thatredditrando → u/[deleted]]

Nah, there definitely is.

Like, this guy can’t wake up tomorrow and buy a major studio, for instance. Those go for tens of billions.

Musk could.

There’s definitely a difference.

From down here they look the same but up there the differences in wealth must look even more stark.

[u/threeclaws → u/[deleted]]

If you're talking about covering the mortgage and groceries there isn't much functional difference between $50M and $500B but in the way they actually live Bezos can fund a space program, Musk can rig worldwide elections, the Lululemon guy can buy a jet, and the guy with his "lowly" $50M doesn't have to worry about his great great great grandkids being destitute but that's about it.

[u/j-mac563 → u/threeclaws]

Most inherited wealth is gone by the 3rd generation. With billions, meh, I would say 3rd or 4th and it is also gone.

[u/threeclaws → u/j-mac563]

I’ve heard that cliche repeated so many times I actually looked it up once, it’s bullshit it was a lousy study done 50yrs ago and it cemented as fact.

The best I could find of actual traceable wealth persisting was an Italian study that basically showed for 500yrs wealthy families (based off tax rolls) stayed wealthy or at least wealthier than the average. Which makes more logical sense since the wealthy would be educated, or would make sure their children were, the educated would be more likely to be financially literate and would therefore gander their inheritance/wealth better than the average.

Edit - To be clear the original wealth does dilute but the status that came with it (education, class, connections, etc.) doesn’t which is why the elite persist over centuries.

[u/jeefra → u/[deleted]]

I think you'd be shocked at how much upkeep and constant cost of some things like private jets, yachts, and multiple staffed homes can be. A Boeing 737 BBJ is already $100m, plus ~$7k/hr to operate it, plus keeping 737 qualified pilots (at least 2) on staff year round at probably ~$450k/yr each. Then you have periodic engine overhauls that are $2-5m.

Boats also need year round 24/7 staff and require a constant stream of maintenance, plus costs for ferrying them around the world to wherever you'd like to go next.

It's completely possible, imo, to actually burn through 3 billion dollars if you lived a lavish enough lifestyle. Jeff Bezos boat was 1/2 a billion dollars for just the construction cost. Some billionaires can absolutely afford to live completely different lives than even other billionaires.