patrick.net

Vincente, I googled PERCENTAGE OF WEALTH INHERITED. There you'll find significant evidence against your contention "Most wealth is inherited".

Even in the Forbes 400 wealthiest Americans, just 42% inherited significant wealth. Thats 400 people out of 320 million.
With all due respect, I don't think you've proved your point - yet.

Finally this, the rags to riches stories are reality, not myth. Evidenced by Dr's, Dentists, lawyers, small business owners by the millions (bad choice of words) who begin to earn good incomes, live below their means, then save and invest the difference. This has nothing to do with inheritence.

Leo -what, no books in Oakland? What about libraries...too unsafe to walk the streets? Lets see...got it! Amazon dot com. You can get books shipped right to your door. Many times the postage (less than $4) is MORE than the cost of the book. Just sayin'. Get to it - a mind is a terrible thing to waste.

Cheers!

Honest Abe says

Leo -what, no books in Oakland? What about libraries...too unsafe to walk the streets? Lets see...got it! Amazon dot com.

What, and waste my limited reading time with my nose buried in a book or pointed at an e-reader?

Why do that when I can get some chuckles reading the inane prattling of right wing nut-jobs? Sooo, much more entertaining, and who know perhaps I could even pickup a gem of wisdom that I could pass on to the downtrodden masses of Oakland. That way they can get rich and successful too!

I walk through downtown a lot. I will be sure to start telling anyone who is begging -- yes I include "selling" Street Spirit as begging -- to develop the ability to sell their ideas/products/vision and make wise investments. I am sure that they will find such advice invaluable and they will soon be on their way to riches!

Honest Abe says

Finally this, the rags to riches stories are reality, not myth. Evidenced by Dr's, Dentists, lawyers, small business owners by the millions (bad choice of words) who begin to earn good incomes, live below their means, then save and invest the difference. This has nothing to do with inheritence.

Those people are not WEALTHY, they are not even "rich".

Doctors are middle class typically with large school debts & insurance policies attached in this day & age.

At best a doctor is a well-trained workman, and a lot of them have to toady before an HMO executive who makes a lot more than they do. How many are in the Forbes 400? None.

Recently the Forbes 400 is increasingly dominated by people who make money...from money. Not manufacturing or new ideas but rather the shuffling of bonds, etc.

Out of the Forbes top 10 list, only three guys are there who are self-made:

Soros, Adelson and Ellison.

1 Bill Gates - top 1% (Parents both VIP Corporate Lawyers, Prep School, Alumni admission)
2 Warren Buffett - top 1% (Grandparent Congressman; Alumni admission)
3 Larry Ellison - middle class background, MIC beneficiary ("Oracle" is named after a project of his at a MIC Contractor for the CIA)
4 Charles Koch - top 1%, inherited
5 David Koch - top 1%, inherited
6 Christy Walton - top 1%, inherited
7 George Soros - Self-made Financier
8 Sheldon Adelson - Self-made Financier
9 Jim Walton - top 1%, inherited
10 Alice Walton - top 1%, inherited

Every other one was helped by virtue of both money and connections, or flat out inherited it.

Soros is the only person on that list who ever worked a non-professional, non-prestigious job AFAIK: He was a waiter in London after WW2.

Don't know much about Adelson, the first job he is mentioned as having was as in the financial industry after quitting CUNY.

But the Vincente's contention was that MOST of the people who are wealthy got it thru inheritance.

Even on the Top 10 list, I count five who "inherited". Five out of ten is not MOST. And those are the 10 richest people in America. That list does not include the thousands (multi) millionaires in existence today who did not inherit any wealth.

BTW, where is Mark Zuckerberg? isn't he the richest person in our local group of galaxies? I don't see him on the list...did he inherit his megagatrillionbillions???

Honest Abe says

BTW, where is Mark Zuckerberg? isn't he the richest person in our local group of galaxies? I don't see him on the list...did he inherit his megagatrillionbillions???

I thought his dad owned a slew of used car dealerships, just like Debbie Gibson's father, or like the bad kids from "Scent of a Woman".

He did go to Philips Exeter, THE Elite Prep School.

But did he inherit his wealth?

Honest Abe says

But did he inherit his wealth?

You don't go to Philips Exeter for free. Just like Jobs would never have been the man he became, had his parents not sent him to an exclusive prep school that had mainframe access for it's students, something not available to 99.99999999% of other American teenagers at the time.

Based on the fact he's from Dobbs Ferry, he went to an incredibly expensive and exclusive prep school, and other small details tells me Zuckerberg wasn't exactly from the Conner Family.

OP has yet to answer what the point of the post was.

Can't we all just get along?

Honest Abe says

The libs are not imaginary enemies. They're very real and they are amongst us.

"I have here in a my hand a list of names...."

McCarthy also had delusions that all other Americans than himself were suspect and should be rounded up for questioning.

It's clear who the fascist is.

Honest Abe says

The libs are not imaginary enemies. They're very real and they are amongst us.

I heard when the moon is full, liberals grow horns and seek out the blood of babies.

Honest Abe says

The libs are not imaginary enemies. They're very real and they are amongst us.

Know your liberal fiend. You will not be able to see his eyes because of tea shades, but his knuckles will be white from inner tension and his pants will be crusted with semen from constantly jacking off when he can't find a rape victim.

Why do all of these posts wind up turning into embaressments? Seriously.

I'll grant you that millionaires are generally hard working, two income families. However, billionaires are a totally different story.

Millionaires

They were well disciplined
They were honest
They got along with others
They had a supportive spouse
They worked harder than most
They had strong leadership qualities
They had a very competitive personality
They loved their career/business
They were very well organized
They had the ability to sell their ideas/products/vision
They made wise investments

Billionaires

They are sociopaths and psychopaths

They are pathological liars. CEOs are better at lying than the rest of us.

They screw others on the way to the top. See Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg.

They have support of bought politicians.

They profit off of other's people's work.

They drive companies into bankruptcy and mass layoffs.

They had a very competitive personality, which leads them to cheat.

They love money, but not working hard for it.

They find it easier and faster to take wealth from others than to create wealth. They are all for this efficiency.

They are very good talkers.

They got lucky on gambles, or if often unlucky, it was with other's people's money.

leoj707 says

For someone like Donald Trump, Paris Hilton and George W Bush I would guess luck plays a role close to 99.9% in their financial success.

GW Bush was handed success by his father, who was handed success by his father. The Bush family is an aristocracy. Luck or hard work might have been the first successful one's reason for success, but since then it's all been nepotism and cronyism.

Trump's success is pure luck and sleaziness. He made a lot of bad investments but got others to cover his losses at their expense.

As for Paris Hilton's success, I could give you a link to the video.

Reading everyone else's posts, it seems to me that people have forgotten that being a millionaire doesn't make you rich. It makes you upper, upper, middle class, but you are a long way from the opulence of the wealthy.

It is possible, although very hard, for intelligent, educated middle class people to become millionaires after decades of working, investing for the long term, and spending only 20% of their income. There are lots of such millionaires driving 10+ year-old cars. And I'm talking Toyotas, not Porches.

The problem is with the people who become billionaires, the truly wealthy. They never become wealthy by producing such enormous wealth, because short of being an engineer who invents something truly revolutionary, you cannot as a single individual generate billions of dollars of actual wealth.

The only way to acquire such wealth is at the expense of others through zero-sum games. This is why the ultra-rich are composed almost entirely of unethical slimeballs. They aren't the proverbial ant in The Ant and Grasshopper Story. They are parasites siphoning off the wealth creation of many, many workers. And that is why the middle class, the wealth producing class, hates the 0.1%.

Dan8267 says

Trump's success is pure luck and sleaziness.

He also had an incredibly wealthy father, and got a very large inheritance.

Dan8267 says

As for Paris Hilton's success, I could give you a link to the video.

No need, I am familiar with her video.

Yes, that did kick-start (perhaps there is a better word than "kick") her success.

From what I understand there have been thousands of young ladies who have made similar videos available on the internet. But, alas, without the Hilton name they have not been able to parlay it into a career of movies, singing, reality shows, ringtone, etc.

Another success factor is living in a certain kind of country.

One with an immensely built up infrastructure, including universal access to telecommunications, public roads, well-run airways, reliable electric power, sewage.

One where workers don't necessarily have to stay home as caregivers if if they have elderlay parents. Where those workers are educated. Where those workers earn enough to buy the products that the entrepeneur wishes to bring to market.

One where everyone has a reasonable baseline level of education, and where help is available to attend college if it's needed.

Oh fuck it. I've got mine. All of the above can go to hell. Just give me my 14% tax rate so I can coast to early retirement. The next generation pull itself up by the frayed bootstraps left to me by generations past.

I pulled myself up by those bootstraps. They haven't quite snapped yet. And I am Taxed Enough Already.

What is the official definition of a millionaire?
1. Net worth(including primary residence)>$1mil?
2. Net worth-primary residence>$1mil?
3. Net worth-(primary residence+retirement funds)>1mil?

leoj707 says

Dan8267 says

Trump's success is pure luck and sleaziness.

He also had an incredibly wealthy father, and got a very large inheritance.

Did not know that, but not surprised either.

burritos says

What is the official definition of a millionaire?

The people I was thinking of would be millionaires on the basis of their cash, bonds, stocks, but excluding their houses.

With all the dot com millionaires, you will think that most millionaires are self-made.
Wrong. Most millionaires inherited.

Bill Gates. He was rich before he was ever born.
The list can go on.

They were honest
True. They can freely tell his workers sucks.
But you have to lie, and say "how great your boss is" to keep your job.

They got along with others
Wrong, others try to get alone with them.

They had a supportive spouse
Wrong, his spouse supports his money.
How often do you see a 20 year old marry a 60 year old poor man?

They worked harder than most
Wrong, they tell other to work hard for them

They loved their career/business
Everyone loves his career as long as he owns it

They were very well organized
Then why do they need secretary?

They made wise investments
Wrong, millionaires own more bonds than stocks.

xenogear3 says

With all the dot com millionaires, you will think that most millionaires are self-made.
Wrong. Most millionaires inherited.
Bill Gates. He was rich before he was ever born.
The list can go on

Vicente says

Most "wealth" in this country is not derived from hard work but inheritance.

Billy Gates had nothing.. nor did Jobs Woz Ellison or any of the Tech titans many never speak of.. long before you came to Silicon Valley.. those who founded the semi software or storage industries.

Dan8267 says

The problem is with the people who become billionaires, the truly wealthy. They never become wealthy by producing such enormous wealth, because short of being an engineer who invents something truly revolutionary, you cannot as a single individual generate billions of dollars of actual wealth.
The only way to acquire such wealth is at the expense of others through zero-sum games. This is why the ultra-rich are composed almost entirely of unethical slimeballs. They aren't the proverbial ant in The Ant and Grasshopper Story

No you dont need to be an Engineer, just a different mindset. And how would your comments explain Route 128 in Boston or Silicon Valley ?

xenogear3 says

They made wise investments
Wrong, millionaires own more bonds than stocks

They have neither.. they have a crazy idea they cant shake off until they fulfill it. When it becomes a product, and it works, they patent or copyright it.

xenogear3 says

With all the dot com millionaires, you will think that most millionaires are self-made.

Wrong. Most millionaires inherited.

Bill Gates. He was rich before he was ever born.

The list can go on.

They were honest

True. They can freely tell his workers sucks.

But you have to lie, and say "how great your boss is" to keep your job.

They got along with others

Wrong, others try to get alone with them.

They had a supportive spouse

Wrong, his spouse supports his money.

How often do you see a 20 year old marry a 60 year old poor man?

They worked harder than most

Wrong, they tell other to work hard for them

They loved their career/business

Everyone loves his career as long as he owns it

They were very well organized

Then why do they need secretary?

They made wise investments

Wrong, millionaires own more bonds than stocks.

Steve Jobs was not rich to begin with. His parents did sell everything for him to go to Reed College which he did not graduate from. In return he gave them 750k, after apple IPO'd and he became worth 250 million. Steve Jobs did make the future, but he was an asshole and a half.

Catchy title.. and worth the read...

Accidental Empires: How the Boys of Silicon Valley Make Their Millions, Battle Foreign Competition, and Still Can't Get a Date

http://www.amazon.com/Accidental-Empires-Silicon-Millions-Competition/dp/0887308554

See what I mean.
Everyone talks about .con millionaires.

The truth is that there are far more OTHER millionaires than the .con ones.
You don't even know their names.

If you know their names, the chance is high that they are self-made.

thomas.wong1986 says

No you dont need to be an Engineer, just a different mindset. And how would your comments explain Route 128 in Boston or Silicon Valley ?

Both are filled with engineers.

xenogear3 says

Everyone talks about .con millionaires.

Typo, Freudian slip, or social commentary?

Nomo, I said I was "probably" on the government assaination list. You probably are too. Nevertheless, you need to take a readin class.

Why would I be on "the list"? I dono - because I drive a pickup truck? I own a shotgun? Because I have a Ron Paul sticker on my Mercedes SL500? Because I protest the out of control waste, fraud, and mismanagement of our government?

Or would it be because I'm anti-war? Because I'm against the political agenda of creeping tyranny? Because I'm against the constant erosion of our basic human rights and liberties? Or what? YTM.

You, and the government have all the details about me wrong...with the exception of item 2 on your list above.

thomas.wong1986 says

Billy Gates had nothing..

Bill Gates parents were millionaires, back in a time when millionaire meant something more than it does today.

He was going to Harvard and being groomed to become a lawyer when he dropped out of college to get into tech.

Here's a "Get out of Jail Free" card. Enjoy.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/heroin-dealer-allegedly-posts-bail-with-his-ebt-card/

leoj707 says

Bill Gates parents were millionaires, back in a time when millionaire meant something more than it does today.
He was going to Harvard and being groomed to become a lawyer when he dropped out of college to get into tech

and found himself in middle of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
This isnt Beverly Hills or Palm Beach is it now!

If his parents did give him some seed money, surely he could of done better than New Mexico. His nearest competitor was living in Carmel, Ca.

Rich people hate each other too.

.com bust is intentionally caused by the rich Republicans.

What difference if Bill Gates or Mark Zukerberg had wealthy parents? They and they alone caused their own success.

We are all self made men, but only the successful ones admit it.

We create our own destiny by the choices we make.

I'd like to add one more factor to the list: read self-help books.

Honest Abe says

I'd like to add one more factor to the list: read self-help books.

Why didn't anyone think of that before? I mean there are probably millions of college grads and former realtors who could be BILLIONAIRES if only they read the right book.