How Much is One Billion Dollars?

[Mickey Richaud]

Never was a fan.



Now, <span style="color: #009900"> <span style="font-size: 26pt"> BRUSSEL SPROUTS </span> </span> ...

 

[Guest]

<span style="font-weight: bold">
Food for Thought</span>

Some Wall Street types (and others) make over a billion dollars a year &#150; each year. How much is a billion dollars? How can you visualize an amount of money so high? Here is one way to think about it: The median household income in the US is around $29,000, meaning half of us make less and half make more.

<span style="font-weight: bold">So, if you make $29,000 a year, and don&#146;t spend a single penny of it, it will take you 34,482 years to save a billion dollars. . . .</span>

And what exactly do they produce for that much money? Besides headaches for the rest of us.

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I don't view other people's success - as long as it is legal - as a problem for me. If someone legally makes a boatload of money (legally), they can buy a boat - or a yacht - which keeps the yacht maker in business and their employees employed. I know, I'm a sick twisted freak.

Yep, if my boss wasn't loaded I wouldn't have a job. I work on the rec side of the business.

 

[DrEntropy]

I'd not deny barter has a place in any economy BUT(!) an agreed upon medium of exchange is too convenient to totally eschew. It's a tool. Like a screwdriver. It would be more desirable to have something of substance (say, gold, for instance :wink: ) behind it instead of some government promise, but that wasn't up to me.

It took the internet and a year for that paperclip experiment to result in a house. Wonder how long it'd take to turn five pounds of soda can pull-tabs into a Ferrari F-40?

Madoff is a scam artist, a crook. Has neither morals nor ethics. It's not the fault of money, rather the fault of unfettered greed coupled with opportunism. Gullible people are in every economic stratum, as are the crooks. <span style="font-style: italic">Caveat emptor</span> is a universal truth. Pro'lly why it remains significant in its original Latin.

As for the high salaried execs, the renumeration is as a result of the contract between them and their employers. Legitimate agreement. No theft, no injustice committed. Much unlike the Bell, California public officials' debacle.

ISTR it was Heinlein's Lazarus Long: "Put all your eggs in one basket. Then WATCH THAT basket."

 

[swift6]

I don't view other people's success - as long as it is legal

I agree, but would add, "I don't view other people's success - as long as it is legal AND ethical" Too often, we hear of employees being laid off while management lines up for their bonus checks, sadly a common occurrence today!!!

Ahh, the old ethics argument. Ethics are nothing more than a set of rules to which you adhere, and vary by culture. The Wall Street "culture" has a different set of "ethics" than you which is why you believe they behave un-ethically. If your talking about the basic distinction of "right" vs "wrong" your really speaking about morals.

Morals and ethics are related, but not the same thing. Those bonus checks are tied to profit, laying off employees creates more profit. Therefore they get a bonus both legally and ethically according to the ethics of the culture. I agree that it doesn't add up morally, but they have not necesarrily violated their ethics in doing it.

 

[Guest]

I don't view other people's success - as long as it is legal

I agree, but would add, "I don't view other people's success - as long as it is legal AND ethical" Too often, we hear of employees being laid off while management lines up for their bonus checks, sadly a common occurrence today!!!

Those bonus checks are tied to profit, laying off employees creates more profit. Therefore they get a bonus both legally and ethically according to the ethics of the culture. .

Which leads to folks carring torches and pitchforks.

 

[Basil]

an agreed upon medium of exchange is too convenient to totally eschew. It's a tool. Like a screwdriver.

Personally, I prefer walnuts to eschews.

 

[Basil]

I don't view other people's success - as long as it is legal

I agree, but would add, "I don't view other people's success - as long as it is legal AND ethical" Too often, we hear of employees being laid off while management lines up for their bonus checks, sadly a common occurrence today!!!

Ahh, the old ethics argument. Ethics are nothing more than a set of rules to which you adhere, and vary by culture. The Wall Street "culture" has a different set of "ethics" than you which is why you believe they behave un-ethically. If your talking about the basic distinction of "right" vs "wrong" your really speaking about morals.

Morals and ethics are related, but not the same thing. Those bonus checks are tied to profit, laying off employees creates more profit. Therefore they get a bonus both legally and ethically according to the ethics of the culture. I agree that it doesn't add up morally, but they have not necesarrily violated their ethics in doing it.

Yes, but on the other hand....you have different fingers.

 

[anthony7777]

silentunicorn, no joke, i can start my trade with a house, in these times i could only hope to be able to exchange it for a single paperclip of any color.

 

[Basil]

silentunicorn, no joke, i can start my trade with a house, in these times i could only hope to be able to exchange it for a single paperclip of any color.

I'll bid two paper clips and a post-it note!

 

[rlwhitetr3b]

I'll bid two paper clips and a post-it note!

I'll have to see a picture and get it inspected, but if everything checks out I think I can raise it another post-t note.

 

[DrEntropy]

In 'Connecticut'???? naaahh. Bid LOWER, Rich!!!

 

[swift6]

Yes, but on the other hand....you have different fingers.

Exactly...

 

[anthony7777]

doc, cheeeechh!, your no help!, for a minute there i thuoght i could dump it..