Money 40 billionaires pledge to give away half of wealth - Page 3

|Zach| · 08-04-2010, 12:31 PM

Gates, Buffett lead campaign to persuade America's wealthiest to donate their fortunes

little over a year after Bill Gates and Warren Buffett began hatching a plan over dinner to persuade America's wealthiest people to give most of their fortunes to charity, more than three-dozen individuals and families have agreed to take part, campaign organizers announced Wednesday.

In addition to Buffett and Gates — America's two wealthiest individuals, with a combined net worth of $90 billion, according to Forbes — 38 other billionaires have signed The Giving Pledge. They include New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, entertainment executive Barry Diller, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, energy tycoon T. Boone Pickens, media mogul Ted Turner, David Rockefeller, film director George Lucas and investor Ronald Perelman.

"We're off to a terrific start," Buffett, co-founder and chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, said in a conference call also attended by Bloomberg and San Francisco hedge-fund manager Tom Steyer and his wife Kat Taylor, founder of OneCalifornia Bank.

Buffett said he and Gates, the Microsoft co-founder, and Gates' wife Melinda made calls to fellow billionaires on the Forbes 400 list of wealthiest Americans — in many cases, people they had never met — to try to persuade them to join the giving pledge.

"We contacted between 70 and 80 people to get the 40. A few were unavailable. We don’t give up on them. Every saint has a past, every sinner has a future. We’ll keep on working," Buffett said.

Bloomberg, who made the bulk of his estimated $17.5 billion fortune from financial news and information services company Bloomberg L.P., said it didn't make sense to leave everything to his children and have them go through life as members of "the lucky sperm club."

"You don’t want to leave them so much money that it ruins their lives," Bloomberg said. "You want kids who can look back and say, 'Yeah my family helped me but I did something on my own.'
"
Added Steyer: "We need to support each other. I look at this as replanting your garden so that future generations will have a full bounty of crops."
The United States has roughly 400 billionaires — about 40 percent of the world's total — with a combined net worth of $1.2 trillion, according to Forbes. If they all took the pledge, that would amount to at least $600 billion for charity.

The 40 names that have pledged to date have a combined net worth surpassing $230 billion, according to Forbes. Several of them have said they plan to give away much more than 50 percent of their wealth. Buffett has promised to donate more than 99 percent of his wealth.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38556042/ns/us_news-giving/

Thig Lyfe · 08-04-2010, 02:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blaise

Good for them. I have to laugh a little though when I read these comments every so often from one of these guys saying they don't believe in leaving everything to their kids. I'm guessing the kids will be cashing a gigantic check someday from these guys. "I didn't leave my kids a billion, just 25 million. Now they'll have to go work for themselves."

I was shocked when I saw Buffett was pledging 99% of his wealth until I realized that that 1% is probably ten times more money than I'll ever make in my life.

**Bugeater** · 08-04-2010, 02:07 PM

Whatever. Most of these pricks are probably the same people who have run our economy into the ****ing ground. I'd rather see them all make a suicide pact.

**ChiTown** · 08-04-2010, 02:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bugeater

Whatever. Most of these pricks are probably the same people who have run our economy into the ****ing ground. I'd rather see them all make a suicide pact.

Arrowhead Nation · 08-04-2010, 02:33 PM

If they gave that 600 Billion to every American, it would be about 2000/person.

vailpass · 08-04-2010, 02:35 PM

You watch, IF this happens it will be in such a way that the donators make a profit on it.
How do you think they got to be billionaires in the first place?

Hydrae · 08-04-2010, 02:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vailpass

You watch, IF this happens it will be in such a way that the donators make a profit on it.
How do you think they got to be billionaires in the first place?

By not spending much

vailpass · 08-04-2010, 02:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hydrae

By not spending much

Close.
By not spending much that doesn't net them a healthy ROI.

**Rausch** · 08-04-2010, 02:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arrowhead Nation

If they gave that 600 Billion to every American, it would be about 2000/person.

That would help a $3it ton of people...

jjjayb · 08-04-2010, 03:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frazod

I think we should divide the homeless in half, and feed one half to another. That would solve all kinds of problems.

BigCatDaddy · 08-04-2010, 03:41 PM

Was Donger's name on that list?

**BigRichard** · 08-04-2010, 03:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigCatDaddy

Was Donger's name on that list?

I didn't see Donger but there was definitely a Dane.

Adept Havelock · 08-04-2010, 04:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frazod

I think we should divide the homeless in half, and feed one half to another. That would solve all kinds of problems.

Nice, every idea comes around again. Jonathan Swift would be so pleased.

http://art-bin.com/art/omodest.html

**Donger** · 08-04-2010, 04:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by |Zach|

"We contacted between 70 and 80 people to get the 40. A few were unavailable. We don’t give up on them."

**Donger** · 08-04-2010, 04:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigCatDaddy

Was Donger's name on that list?

Not yet. But, I think back to grade school when the teacher did the "What do you want to be when you grow up?" question. Most answers were "brewmeister!" and such. Mine was "robber baron."

Hog's Gone Fishin · 08-04-2010, 04:38 PM

This is great news because it just so happens I started a charity last week for people with (cams) compulsive animal masturbating syndrome. I have the land already to start the farm but I'm in need of several different species of animals. By the way if any body knows where I can get a Rhino please send me a PM. Thanks.

08-04-2010, 12:31 PM
\|Zach\| For The Glory Of The City Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Kansas City Casino cash: $2996768	40 billionaires pledge to give away half of wealth Gates, Buffett lead campaign to persuade America's wealthiest to donate their fortunes little over a year after Bill Gates and Warren Buffett began hatching a plan over dinner to persuade America's wealthiest people to give most of their fortunes to charity, more than three-dozen individuals and families have agreed to take part, campaign organizers announced Wednesday. In addition to Buffett and Gates — America's two wealthiest individuals, with a combined net worth of $90 billion, according to Forbes — 38 other billionaires have signed The Giving Pledge. They include New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, entertainment executive Barry Diller, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, energy tycoon T. Boone Pickens, media mogul Ted Turner, David Rockefeller, film director George Lucas and investor Ronald Perelman. "We're off to a terrific start," Buffett, co-founder and chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, said in a conference call also attended by Bloomberg and San Francisco hedge-fund manager Tom Steyer and his wife Kat Taylor, founder of OneCalifornia Bank. Buffett said he and Gates, the Microsoft co-founder, and Gates' wife Melinda made calls to fellow billionaires on the Forbes 400 list of wealthiest Americans — in many cases, people they had never met — to try to persuade them to join the giving pledge. "We contacted between 70 and 80 people to get the 40. A few were unavailable. We don’t give up on them. Every saint has a past, every sinner has a future. We’ll keep on working," Buffett said. Bloomberg, who made the bulk of his estimated $17.5 billion fortune from financial news and information services company Bloomberg L.P., said it didn't make sense to leave everything to his children and have them go through life as members of "the lucky sperm club." "You don’t want to leave them so much money that it ruins their lives," Bloomberg said. "You want kids who can look back and say, 'Yeah my family helped me but I did something on my own.' " Added Steyer: "We need to support each other. I look at this as replanting your garden so that future generations will have a full bounty of crops." The United States has roughly 400 billionaires — about 40 percent of the world's total — with a combined net worth of $1.2 trillion, according to Forbes. If they all took the pledge, that would amount to at least $600 billion for charity. The 40 names that have pledged to date have a combined net worth surpassing $230 billion, according to Forbes. Several of them have said they plan to give away much more than 50 percent of their wealth. Buffett has promised to donate more than 99 percent of his wealth. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38556042/ns/us_news-giving/
Posts: 54,754

08-04-2010, 02:07 PM	#32
Bugeater The Maintenance Guy Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Renovated Bugeater Estate Casino cash: $3992680	Whatever. Most of these pricks are probably the same people who have run our economy into the ****ing ground. I'd rather see them all make a suicide pact.
Posts: 70,546

08-04-2010, 02:33 PM	#34
Arrowhead Nation Starter Join Date: Mar 2005 Casino cash: $10004900	If they gave that 600 Billion to every American, it would be about 2000/person.
Posts: 51

08-04-2010, 02:35 PM	#35
vailpass Psycho Bag Of Squanch Join Date: Sep 2001 Casino cash: $9594244	You watch, IF this happens it will be in such a way that the donators make a profit on it. How do you think they got to be billionaires in the first place?
Posts: 69,591

08-04-2010, 03:41 PM	#40
BigCatDaddy The Beast Inside Your Head Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Parts Unknown Casino cash: $-1850878	Was Donger's name on that list?
Posts: 26,277

08-04-2010, 04:38 PM	#45
Hog's Gone Fishin Fish are scared of me Join Date: Nov 2001 Casino cash: $-1559523	This is great news because it just so happens I started a charity last week for people with (cams) compulsive animal masturbating syndrome. I have the land already to start the farm but I'm in need of several different species of animals. By the way if any body knows where I can get a Rhino please send me a PM. Thanks.
Posts: 40,649