Name: Tess
Home: St. Louis
An Impressive Gift
I was happy to read that Warren Buffett, the billionaire investor, plans to give away most of his fortune over the next several years. He will be donating it to the Gates Foundation, which focuses on improving world health and U.S. education.
In an interview with Fortune magazine, Buffett explained why he isn't leaving the bulk of his money to his children:
In an interview with Fortune magazine, Buffett explained why he isn't leaving the bulk of his money to his children:
Certainly neither [my wife] nor I ever thought we should pass huge amounts of money along to our children. Our kids are great. But I would argue that when your kids have all the advantages anyway, in terms of how they grow up and the opportunities they have for education, including what they learn at home - I would say it's neither right nor rational to be flooding them with money.
In effect, they've had a gigantic headstart in a society that aspires to be a meritocracy. Dynastic mega-wealth would further tilt the playing field that we ought to be trying instead to level.
I find it interesting that Buffett acknowledges the intangible benefits some children receive, both in school and at home. Unless unforeseen events drastically change our circumstances, we won't be leaving Ben great monentary wealth, but I like to think that we can still give him an important legacy of learning and love.posted by Tess | 7:21 AM
3 Comments:
Among the extremely rich, Warren Buffett is perhaps one of the best. He speaks out a lot for leveling the playing field and preventing the unequal accumulation of wealth from generation to generation. I do especially admire his (almost Gospel) intention to give away all of his wealth.
At the same time, I am still uneasy about philanthropy as a way of making the world a better place. (To be sure, it is better than nothing, and Buffett, Gates, et al. are at least doing something to alleviate the sinful burden of their excess wealth...) The main concern I have with philanthropy is that it does not address the power inequality that lies at the heart of so many of the world's problems. It also creates a vast bureaucracy of grant seeking and administration, maintains the authority of the Foundation over the decisions of the ordinary and/or disadvantaged people it is supposed to benefit, and subverts democratic decision-making. Far better, in my view, to push for changes that give power to the powerless, such as shifting the tax burden more to the wealthy (Buffett does deserve credit for opposing the insane repeal of the estate tax promoted by the Republicans) and giving strong protections for labor rights, universal health care coverage, etc. that will give working people more voice and increase their financial security. In a way, political and economic inequality lie at the heart of all the worthy problems that the Gates Foundation addresses, and we will arguably never deal with these issues adequately until we deal with the root causes.
In the meantime, if Buffett wants to dispose of his fortune in this way, then I suppose it is at least better than the majority of ultra-rich who simply bask in luxury and spend it on themselves (or regressive conservative political causes). What I'm glad that Buffett (like Gates, Sr. once, when I saw him interviewed by Bill Moyers) seems to realize, unlike many rich, is that he has benefited enormously from society and the existing system to accumulate his wealth. No one can possibly work hard enough to "earn" billions of dollars through their own exertions alone. (Can anyone seriously try to say that billionaires work a million times harder than the working poor of America, toiling away for a minimum wage paycheck every day?) Okay sorry for the prolonged rant, but the ills of wealth are so central to our society's problems--and to many religious teachings, such as Christianity--that I couldn't resist typing out some of my mixed feelings about this topic.
Funny you should mention all that! This post had an ending that I decided to cut, but I saved it in case you posted. Here it is:
The only nagging doubt I have about the whole donation is the consolidation of money--and therefore power--in the hands of a few people. Buffett says he believes in returning his fortune to society, but in doing so he is funnelling it through the hands of very powerful people. My friend Christian Left once argued that in a democratic society, redistribution of wealth should be decided by the people, not by powerful philanthropists. At a press conference, Buffett was asked by an Italian journalist why he didn't just donate the money to the American government, and he explained that he thought the Gates Foundation would be more efficient. That's probably true, since the foundation only targets a few specific issues.
Practically speaking, the money is Buffett's to use however he pleases, and I think his choice will benefit countless people around the world. I've been impressed by the work of the Gates Foundation, and I hope this gift will help improve people's lives around the world.
That's actually a cool statement coming from the uber wealthy. I just wish I had $100 to give Elena right now...or $10,000 to put in a savings/college account.
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