The world's richest families' staggering wealth

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

I'd make awesome wine too if I had 700 trillion dollars to sit on.

I don’t really know why you folk have to sidetrack so much into unrealistic comparisons and mythologies. Everyone is very clear here about the issue except you guys. American workers have decreasing power. Oligarchs have too much power. Forget the money, forget the titles. Oligarchs and the wealthy elite, not some millionaire bums y’all talk about, not some self made unicorns. People who control industries and legislation with a flick of their pen.

The issue is democracy and fair voice vs oligarchy and exploitation. Can one in a million Americans get lucky? Sure. Call it hard work all you want but you’re delusional If you think the us is a meritocracy. I think trump has proved that any moron with a boatload of cash can do whatever they want.

But congratulate yourselves for your success all you like. Many of us here debating the other side are equally successful. But rather than basking in self adulation as the system confirms how great we are, we recognize that it’s a ludicrous system that we succeeded in spite of, not because of.

In a successful society one shouldn’t have to “play the system” to be successful. And those who have succeeded should not be able to stack the deck, manipulate the market, or enact legislation to encode their success into a dynasty. The us is becoming a dynastic feudalism, and sticking your head in the sand isn’t going to benefit your descendants.

originally posted by: JAGStorm
a reply to: chr0naut

It is not easy to become a billionaire because no-one has much extra money left to give.

So by your own example.......if it is not easy, it is soooo difficult, so rare, so hard to do,
those that do make it deserve to have it taken away... yea that makes a lot of sense...

Sure. If you want to misrepresent his and everyone else’s argument. Which is a #ty tactic for honest discourse, but we are all well aware that none of you are really interested in honest discourse.

Is anyone talking about taking away bezos’ fortune? Or gates? No. It’s never been about taking away their fortune. It’s about taxing it for the community the same way ours is taxed, and other variations along those lines.

And you guys think you know “human nature” ayn rand And Gordon gecko style. Greed is not the primary human motivator. But it’s a great justification for inequality and predatory capitalism.

originally posted by: Edumakated
There has always been extreme wealth and poverty at the margins.

Yes, when you are living paycheck to paycheck it is hard to imagine someone having tens of millions or billions at their disposal. Heck, most people just want an extra 50k a year.

However, the world does not and never will work that way. Wealth is not is fixed pie. The entire pie grows.

Most of these billionaires have created many times their wealth on a global scale which is why they are so rich in the first place.

Most are extremely charitable. Go to any city and see all things that are funded by their charitable giving.

Envy can eat at you. Just live your life and dont worry about what others have. Many are rich in material goods but poor in their personal lives.

I have a beautiful wife, two great kids, and my health. I am rich.

I rather have that than riches but kids who hate me because I'm never around or a gold digging spouse, etc.

All that is true, and what it means is that any claims to operating under democratic principles are void. They do not apply.

What we have is an oligarchy, plain and simple.

originally posted by: dfnj2015
a reply to: Bluntone22

I was in Beijing in 2003. Everything cost 1/7th of what it cost here.

Probably..
To bad they make 1/50 of the income.

I told you how to do it. It does require work, dedication and a bit of luck. The small town I grew up in has three pizza places and a four that does make pizzas but mostly burgers. The population has ranged from 1700-2200. There has been as many as six different places to buy a pizza.

77,000 x $13 = $1,001,000
30 x 365 x 7 = 76,650 which close enough ($996,450)
30 pizzas per day on average is realistic, Friday and Saturday will make up for Monday Tuesday and Wednesday. You can diversify your menu if you insist on operating out of a large space.

Oxford, Ohio population 22,000 Miami University has an enrollment of 24,500. There are off the top of my head 15 places to get a pizza. And there used to be 5 or 6 more that changed the menu to other venues when the owners retired. And that doesn’t count dining halls on campus that do pizza daily. Three of those, I think. But those places would be closed if they only did 30 pizzas a day. Not really about location, it is about making a good pizza.

But if you would rather do burgers or chili dogs out of a push cart stand or trailer. We can work those numbers too.

LINK

Global wealth reached $317 trillion this year, a figure that is 18 times the size of the U.S. gross domestic product. The number rose 4.6 percent from last year. The nation with the most wealth is the U.S. at $98 trillion

2018 numbers. Clearly the source in the OP is garbage.

originally posted by: gallop
I'd make awesome wine too if I had 700 trillion dollars to sit on.

If I had $700trillion I'd make pruno and force all you sheeple snacks to drink it.

POST REMOVED

a reply to: pexx421

Do you honestly think the Rothschilds have more wealth than actually exists on the entire planet?

Majority stock ownership is a pretty easy thing to discover.

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus
a reply to: pexx421

Do you honestly think the Rothschilds have more wealth than actually exists on the entire planet?

Majority stock ownership is a pretty easy thing to discover.

Stock ownership ain’t everything, Brenda. From what I understand, Murdock’s empire is almost all privately owned businesses. There was a real good article on it recently, one sec......

Here ya go.
www.truthdig.com...

As to whether I think they (rothschilds) have 7 trillion, see my response to bird boy above.

a reply to: pexx421

So which 'private businesses' could they possibly own that could justify the absurd wealth claims, sugar pie?

And it isn't $7 trillion being alleged, it's $700trillion. Try to follow along snookums.

Rothschild family: net worth estimated at up to $700 trillion.

If you look at it objectively you have to ask yourself what it really means to have a net worth of 700 trillion.

No extended family could ever hope to spend all of that money on luxury in a life time. So when you boil it down what you are lamenting over is that some family has more luxury than you ... that's always going to be true whether we are talking about a family with 10 million dollars more than you or 700 trillion.

Maybe it means someone other than you has a lot of influence on governments... again so what that's always going to be the case. There have always been a king and his nobles; it didn't end the world in the past and it won't now.

Maybe its bad because these people should use the money to end world hunger or something ... first how do you know they aren't? 700 trillion isn't just sitting in a bank somewhere. It's buildings and businesses and equipment and ext ext. Things the rest of us don't own but we do use and rely on them every day.

So yes a handful of families sit on top of everything; but so what? How does that really change your life? Someone always has to and always will be at the top of the pyramid if its not the Rothschild family it would be the Smith family... it still wouldn't be you. Would life feel better if we had a square instead of a pryramid? Maybe, but someone would still be at the bottom of the square... complaining about the top of the square.

My biggest take from this thread is Americans pay top dollar for really crap coffee, Starbucks is rubbish....

originally posted by: DanDanDat

Rothschild family: net worth estimated at up to $700 trillion.

If you look at it objectively you have to ask yourself what it really means to have a net worth of 700 trillion.

No extended family could ever hope to spend all of that money on luxury in a life time. So when you boil it down what you are lamenting over is that some family has more luxury than you ... that's always going to be true whether we are talking about a family with 10 million dollars more than you or 700 trillion.

Maybe it means someone other than you has a lot of influence on governments... again so what that's always going to be the case. There have always been a king and his nobles; it didn't end the world in the past and it won't now.

Maybe its bad because these people should use the money to end world hunger or something ... first how do you know they aren't? 700 trillion isn't just sitting in a bank somewhere. It's buildings and businesses and equipment and ext ext. Things the rest of us don't own but we do use and rely on them every day.

So yes a handful of families sit on top of everything; but so what? How does that really change your life? Someone always has to and always will be at the top of the pyramid if its not the Rothschild family it would be the Smith family... it still wouldn't be you. Would life feel better if we had a square instead of a primed? Maybe, but someone would still be at the bottom of the square... complaining about the top of the square.

The effect it has on us is it destabilizes democracy. When individuals accumulate that much they use that money and power to manipulate governments, manipulate markets, and change the rules for the rest of us in ways we are limited in our ability to protect ourselves from. There’s a long and glorious history of robber barons and tycoons and you can easily read up on it...... however I’d be highly disappointed if I had to explain the “rothschilds problem” to anyone on ats.

originally posted by: pexx421

originally posted by: DanDanDat

Rothschild family: net worth estimated at up to $700 trillion.

If you look at it objectively you have to ask yourself what it really means to have a net worth of 700 trillion.

No extended family could ever hope to spend all of that money on luxury in a life time. So when you boil it down what you are lamenting over is that some family has more luxury than you ... that's always going to be true whether we are talking about a family with 10 million dollars more than you or 700 trillion.

Maybe it means someone other than you has a lot of influence on governments... again so what that's always going to be the case. There have always been a king and his nobles; it didn't end the world in the past and it won't now.

Maybe its bad because these people should use the money to end world hunger or something ... first how do you know they aren't? 700 trillion isn't just sitting in a bank somewhere. It's buildings and businesses and equipment and ext ext. Things the rest of us don't own but we do use and rely on them every day.

So yes a handful of families sit on top of everything; but so what? How does that really change your life? Someone always has to and always will be at the top of the pyramid if its not the Rothschild family it would be the Smith family... it still wouldn't be you. Would life feel better if we had a square instead of a primed? Maybe, but someone would still be at the bottom of the square... complaining about the top of the square.

The effect it has on us is it destabilizes democracy. When individuals accumulate that much they use that money and power to manipulate governments, manipulate markets, and change the rules for the rest of us in ways we are limited in our ability to protect ourselves from. There’s a long and glorious history of robber barons and tycoons and you can easily read up on it...... however I’d be highly disappointed if I had to explain the “rothschilds problem” to anyone on ats.

While that's all true ... why does it require such lemnt? When there has been a long history of robber barons and tycoons; and kings and queens before them; and tribal leaders before them; why are we so preoccupied with the current cast of the same old thing?

Do they destabilizes democracy? Maybe ... but is democracy better or worse now than it was 300 years ago? 3000 years ago? Seems like democracy is marching forward dispite the kings of our age.

a reply to: pexx421

How about answering my question sweetie pie? Or maybe it's too difficult for you.