Elysium

[Seeker]

If you saw the film "Elysium" where well-off citizens lived in luxury in an orbiting space station and the remainder of the population lived in squalor in the ruins of the Earth.

This might be how it started...

https://phys.org/news/2021-10-bezos-...e-station.html

(I hope I'm joking )

Elon Musk's networth increased by $150 billion during the pandemic.
Jeff Bezos' net worth is about $210 billion.

I find it hard to think in these numbers so I looked at how many years it would take me to reach Bezos' number assuming my last US salary (in 2009). It would take me 2.8 million years.

[DJ123]

i wouldn't say net worth is an accurate way of wealth measurement. If everyone sold all their stocks they would be worth very little.

[Sir Trev]

Most of my net worth is the current value of my house. Its just paper value as its nothing I can realistically realise and spend unless I want to be homeless. Probably true of lots of people. And of course a crash in property prices like we had in 1989 would make me far "poorer" than I technically am now.

[Seeker]

The point of the thread was tongue in cheek pointing out that Bezos might be building Elysium.
However...

... Bezos apparently holds about $9.5 billion in cash so that would only have taken me 127,000 years to reach that. Belatedly, I'd better start saving...

[Bibio]

i anyone wants spend their money to build stuff in space then let them i say.

Rant mode:
i personally dont get all the rich people bashing. in this country they pay more into society than most average people will in a lifetime. you dont hear about council tax bands being higher on their houses but use less facility's e.g. less rubbish in their bins and private schooling if they have kids, the list goes on and on.

also the other end of the scale where people say "scroungers" coz they dont have a job. well they only really cost the taxpayer about 20p in the pound so that 20% of what the gov tell people it costs due to getting most of the revenue back in duty/vat on goods oohh and 5% on domestic fuel.

its the opposite for working people in which they only really spend 20p in every pound (depending on goods) by the time the gov have had their share.

the budget for our military on the other hand costs us 100% (excluding wages) same goes for NHS. i know which one i would rather cut the budget on.....

[Seeker]

On the one hand you have the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (using his own and Warren Buffet's money) that is trying to eliminate malaria and find a cure for HIV, on the other you have people building rockets for tourism which few will be able to afford.

Yes they can do whatever they like with their money but any that's left is often sequestered away in tax havens. Tax money that is needed and since the people making the laws are fequently wealthy, the tax loopholes never get closed. My MP said it was a difficult issue (so they don't bother trying).

One other point is that a civilisation that has as much wealth inequality as the US (and the UK) currently have, has usually collapsed.
https://mavenroundtable.io/theintell...-civilizations

https://www.kansascity.com/news/busi...lizations.html

30 UK millionaires asked for a wealth tax because they said they could afford it and that paying for the recovery shouldn't fall on the poor and the young (ie NI increase). I doubt that it will happen but at least there is still a glimmer of ethical behaviour around (let's hope the Conservatives catch it).

[garynortheast]

Originally Posted by Seeker

.........but at least there is still a glimmer of ethical behaviour around (let's hope the Conservatives catch it).

I won't be holding my breath waiting for that to happen.

[DJ123]

Originally Posted by Seeker

On the one hand you have the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (using his own and Warren Buffet's money) that is trying to eliminate malaria and find a cure for HIV, on the other you have people building rockets for tourism which few will be able to afford.

Yes they can do whatever they like with their money but any that's left is often sequestered away in tax havens. Tax money that is needed and since the people making the laws are fequently wealthy, the tax loopholes never get closed. My MP said it was a difficult issue (so they don't bother trying).

One other point is that a civilisation that has as much wealth inequality as the US (and the UK) currently have, has usually collapsed.
https://mavenroundtable.io/theintell...-civilizations

https://www.kansascity.com/news/busi...lizations.html

30 UK millionaires asked for a wealth tax because they said they could afford it and that paying for the recovery shouldn't fall on the poor and the young (ie NI increase). I doubt that it will happen but at least there is still a glimmer of ethical behaviour around (let's hope the Conservatives catch it).

Highly unlikely to happen, and i doubt any of them are Donors to the party!