Hurricane Relief: Paging Bill Gates
Finally, something about the hurricane ...
I had an interesting conversation with my colleague (lets call him Joe) about donations that have been made to hurricane relief efforts.
He was upset about the amount of press that P.Diddy was getting for his $1 Million contribution. Joe was upset at the smug statement that Mr. Diddy made while announcing his contribution - Essentially stating that he had done his part and it was now time for the rest of America to donate what they could.
Joe believed very strongly that his own contribution of $100 was greater than Diddy's contribution of $1,000,000 because it represented a much higher portion of his own disposable income.
Joe said that he had one car with 106,000 miles on it, his wife had one car and he had to take care of his two young daughters and that he had next to no disposable income. On the other hand, P.Diddy had a much higher disposable income and he didnt really need his three homes, 150-foot yacht and several other accoutrements.
He also went on to ask where Bill Gates' contribution was and thought that he should donate atleast $1 Billion considering that his net worth was close to $66 Billion. (The Gates Foundation has contributed $2.25 Million)
Firstly, I applaud his contribution to the relief efforts. I think its admirable that he has chosen to give up something in order to help the helpless victims.
However, I believe his argument against P.Diddy and Bill Gates is specious. And here are my reasons:
1. This is not a Socialistic country where people live in equal wealth (or poverty). Demanding that the rich give up more money simply because they are richer goes against the very fibre of capitalism. If P.Diddy would have to contribute 50 Million dollars and Bill Gates had to contribute a Billion dollars everytime there was a natural disaster, they would'nt have worked hard to create Bad Boy Records and Microsoft. They might have just kicked back and relaxed.
2. Arguing that P.Diddy doesnt need his yacht and Bill Gates doesnt need the most advanced house in the world is besides the point. Disparity in wealth exists everywhere. Taking this logic one step further, is there any reason why people in the western world should spend $4 on a cup of coffee when a huge portion of the world subsists on less than $1 a day ? Would Joe agree to live in an unair-conditioned mud house, with no electricity and send the savings to Congo ?
3. Bill Gates and P.Diddy (As examples) have made huge contributions to the US Economy, through job creation, wealth creation and tax payments (Probably not as much income taxes as sales, wealth and estate taxes). They contribute to the US Government's coffers everyday. The 51 Billion dollars that Congress approved - That didnt just come out of thin air !
4. P.Diddy and Bill Gates are talented and deserve the money they make. Ok, P.Diddy cant sing, but he sure can manage a record label.
5. If people were so concerned about purely doing good for hurricane victims, why claim tax deductions on their contributions - Let the Government use that money as well.
6. Why look only at entertainers and billionaires ? There are countless millionaires at Fortune 1000 companies with huge incomes and stock options - What portion of them have even made a contribution ?
I had an interesting conversation with my colleague (lets call him Joe) about donations that have been made to hurricane relief efforts.
He was upset about the amount of press that P.Diddy was getting for his $1 Million contribution. Joe was upset at the smug statement that Mr. Diddy made while announcing his contribution - Essentially stating that he had done his part and it was now time for the rest of America to donate what they could.
Joe believed very strongly that his own contribution of $100 was greater than Diddy's contribution of $1,000,000 because it represented a much higher portion of his own disposable income.
Joe said that he had one car with 106,000 miles on it, his wife had one car and he had to take care of his two young daughters and that he had next to no disposable income. On the other hand, P.Diddy had a much higher disposable income and he didnt really need his three homes, 150-foot yacht and several other accoutrements.
He also went on to ask where Bill Gates' contribution was and thought that he should donate atleast $1 Billion considering that his net worth was close to $66 Billion. (The Gates Foundation has contributed $2.25 Million)
Firstly, I applaud his contribution to the relief efforts. I think its admirable that he has chosen to give up something in order to help the helpless victims.
However, I believe his argument against P.Diddy and Bill Gates is specious. And here are my reasons:
1. This is not a Socialistic country where people live in equal wealth (or poverty). Demanding that the rich give up more money simply because they are richer goes against the very fibre of capitalism. If P.Diddy would have to contribute 50 Million dollars and Bill Gates had to contribute a Billion dollars everytime there was a natural disaster, they would'nt have worked hard to create Bad Boy Records and Microsoft. They might have just kicked back and relaxed.
2. Arguing that P.Diddy doesnt need his yacht and Bill Gates doesnt need the most advanced house in the world is besides the point. Disparity in wealth exists everywhere. Taking this logic one step further, is there any reason why people in the western world should spend $4 on a cup of coffee when a huge portion of the world subsists on less than $1 a day ? Would Joe agree to live in an unair-conditioned mud house, with no electricity and send the savings to Congo ?
3. Bill Gates and P.Diddy (As examples) have made huge contributions to the US Economy, through job creation, wealth creation and tax payments (Probably not as much income taxes as sales, wealth and estate taxes). They contribute to the US Government's coffers everyday. The 51 Billion dollars that Congress approved - That didnt just come out of thin air !
4. P.Diddy and Bill Gates are talented and deserve the money they make. Ok, P.Diddy cant sing, but he sure can manage a record label.
5. If people were so concerned about purely doing good for hurricane victims, why claim tax deductions on their contributions - Let the Government use that money as well.
6. Why look only at entertainers and billionaires ? There are countless millionaires at Fortune 1000 companies with huge incomes and stock options - What portion of them have even made a contribution ?
Comments
Also, your colleague's argument could be interpreted both ways. The people affected by the hurricane were very poor to start with...so they don't need that much relief. I think we should just do our part rather than compare ourselves with others.
Nice post.