this post was submitted on 27 Nov 2024
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Summary

Warren Buffett gave $1.1 billion in Berkshire Hathaway stock to family foundations and detailed plans for distributing his $147 billion fortune after his death.

His three children will oversee giving the remainder within 10 years, with designated successors in case they predecease him.

Buffett, 94, reaffirmed his belief in avoiding dynastic wealth, favoring philanthropy instead.

Over the years, he has donated $55 billion to the Gates Foundation but plans to shift focus to his family’s foundations.

Buffett continues leading Berkshire Hathaway while preparing Greg Abel as his successor.

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 5 days ago (2 children)

Everyone hates billionaires for hoarding their money, but then it's also a problem when they're giving it away to charity.

Billionaires suck and shouldn't exist, but they do. I know this is going to get downvoted to hell because it seems a majority of the users here can't stand anything remotely positive being said about billionaires. But guys - it's an isolated good thing when billionaires give away large sums of their money to charitable causes. Doesn't mean that they shouldnt pay more in taxes, or that they're wonderful people, or that they accumulated their wealth in moral ways. All of these things can be true at the same time.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 5 days ago (1 children)

The question for me is what charities and how they are chosen. What demographics are the charities intending to assist, and who are they potentially intending to exclude? Even through charity, billionaires can push agendas and affect who receives privileges and who doesn't.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 days ago

Governments are also often guilty of favoring funding towards their favorite causes. Not defending billionaires here, but pouring money into mediatic causes, while ignoring or underfunding less visible causes is definitely a thing.

[–] Gradually_Adjusting 1 points 5 days ago

The trouble is that billionaires who remain sympathetic to Carnegie's "gospel of wealth" are vanishing, while narcissists who see themselves as American oligarchs are proliferating. It isn't hard to see how dynasties could be more politically powerful on a long timescale.

Many would call this a natural progression, and for my part I don't envy whoever ends up on the other side of that debate - money being the root of all evil.

[–] pigup 5 points 5 days ago

He should give it to Bernie

[–] LovingHippieCat 9 points 6 days ago

Dude could randomly give 147,000 people 1 million dollars but he's more likely to just give it to charities that his buds or family will benefit from.

[–] nanami 134 points 1 week ago (3 children)

I once met a wealth manager for a billionaire whose entire job was to donate money as effectively as possible, focusing on infrastructure and education projects in Central and South America. She explained that the challenges are often unexpected.

For example, most smaller local organizations struggle to absorb large sums of money efficiently. Take, for instance, a group that builds homes for those in need. A sudden donation of millions of dollars can be too difficult to manage efficiently. So they try to be mindful of local needs, build trust, and build long-term partnerships.

So, why not just support many small communities? Well, a billion dollars could fund a thousand 1 million$ projects. That’s why this billionaire hired multiple wealth managers just to handle donations. That chat changed my perspective on how difficult it can be to give away large amounts of money.

Still, I’d rather them pay fair taxes.

[–] Crackhappy 62 points 1 week ago (2 children)

I was about to say, they should just pay taxes, after all this is what government is for.

[–] finitebanjo 9 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Yeah, I was very disappointed in Bill Gates for being pro-philanthropy but against higher taxation. That said, Gates and Buffet don't get the final say. The American people just elected an anti-tax fraudulent billionaire.

[–] DeadWorldWalking 9 points 1 week ago (1 children)

But if they donate enough then we will never force them to give up all their excess wealth.

And they like having excess wealth, a lot, like most rich people have hoarding mental disorders.

None of them really want to better society, they just want us to not rip all their skin off and redistribute their wealth so our economies benefit everyone again.

[–] finitebanjo 5 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Nah, I don't like that. That's bad. Everybody should have to pay a share to fund public available necessities and uplift people as equals. It's not optional, it being optional demonstrably does not work, and even if it did we shouldn't rely on faith and goodwill.

[–] Crackhappy 3 points 6 days ago

Billionaires should be illegal.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 week ago

It reminds me of this thing I read where countries would give all these donated designer clothes to some country, only for it to collapse their economy because making clothes was one of the only jobs available there.

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[–] [email protected] 71 points 1 week ago (27 children)

"Dragon gives away hoard after death. That will fix all the lives he ruined, right?"

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[–] PoopSpiderman 58 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Fuck Warren Buffett. He’s just another scumbag who has soaked up wealth by taking full advantage of neoliberal economics. There are no good billionaires.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago (1 children)

People are so stupid, they look at that figure and go "147 billion. Huh"

That cunt is a fucking greedy evil bastard and is literally causing children to starve to death because people can't afford food. This evil shit has $18 for every man, woman and child on earth. Think about that.

I'm not some sort of reactionary but I'm astonished how people don't realise just how much suffering these evil fuckwits are causing.

Burn the cunt on a stake

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[–] brlemworld 37 points 1 week ago (4 children)

Why wait? There is functionally no difference between $1b and $147b. He would get to see the fruits of his efforts if he spends it now.

[–] LifeInMultipleChoice 21 points 1 week ago (3 children)

Because if it takes 10 years to donate that much and the market stays at its 10 year average growth they stand to have something like 190b dollars left when they are done donating that 149b.

[–] DeadWorldWalking 5 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

With that logic he should give it to Jeff Bezos so he can keep growing it after he's gone.

As long as the promise is on the horizon and they don't ever pay up then poor idiots will keep making excuses for them to not dump their ill gotten gains back into the system they stole it from!

[–] LifeInMultipleChoice 2 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (1 children)

It's the same promise gates has made for decades. I am going to donate all of it. And he has donated billions, but taxes are low enough on the rich, and loop holes are big enough that even while they give away money, they still make shit tons more.

Example, Gates left Microsoft in 2008 and just runs his charity, where he has given away billions, like almost 6 billion in 2022 alone. His net worth was 58 billion in 2008, it is now around 107 billion.

He has almost doubled his net worth, while donating more money than anyone can ever spend, annually.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)

You're completely neglecting the fact that he still has Microsoft stock.. plus, he's certainly holding stock in other companies. It's disingenuous to say that his increase in net worth between 2008 and 2024 is solely due to the money he's donated.

For what it's worth, I'm not pro Bill Gates or billionaires - I just feel like it's important to speak factually when trying to address an issue.

[–] LifeInMultipleChoice 2 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

No it's the stocks and investments that make the money. Just as I was saying above. The 150b they are in charge of giving away over 10 years stands to make money back for them.

75b 10% interest over 10 years - 194b. The 10 year average of the stock market was actually 11% growth annually though.. so a little over 200b is what they may make donating his 150b.

That's why it's a 10 year span to give it away is what I was getting at. They could hold it and make a shit ton more, but in reality this way they look like good people for giving it "all" away, get tax breaks and make money

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Sorry, I misunderstood your previous comment. Thanks for the clarification. I agree that these charitable donations from billionaires are basically just positive PR stunts because there's essentially no tangible cost to them.

[–] LifeInMultipleChoice 2 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

Yarp. Talked elsewhere about it somewhere the other day.

If Musk does nothing but leave his money right now invested. His 380b would be over 1T in that same 10 year time period.

Given his age, he's got about 35 years of life left, that would be around 14.6T if it grows at the same 11% annual rate.

So when he dies his money would be making about 4 billion dollars a day. (It would break out entire economy)

Just for giggles, that's over $46,000 a second

[–] randon31415 4 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I feel like you are inventing the concept of an endowment from first principles.

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[–] aeronmelon 29 points 1 week ago

He’s entered the Rockefeller stage of his life. Build a bunch of community shelters or rebuild America’s railroad network or something useful, Warren.

[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 week ago (2 children)

There comes a certain point where wealth ceases to be a blessing, and managing it becomes a full time occupation. I can respect this decision.

All the more reason to level the playing field, eh?

[–] [email protected] 20 points 1 week ago

I would respect it more if I wasn't so jaded, perhaps. But there's been just too many charity foundations involved in scandals of one type or another.

So, yes, let's level the playing field! I'm with you there...

[–] disguy_ovahea 4 points 1 week ago

He signed the giving pledge with Bill Gates shortly after its creation.

https://givingpledge.org/

[–] whaleross 10 points 1 week ago (2 children)

No shit. What else would he do with it? Cling on to his fortunes while descending into the particular pits of the underworld?

[–] FlyingSquid 9 points 1 week ago

That is Elon's plan.

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[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Buffett gives money to Bill Gates to avoid dynastic wealth. Hmm

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 week ago (6 children)

Not Bill Gates, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. "The primary stated goals of the foundation are to enhance healthcare and reduce extreme poverty across the world, and to expand educational opportunities and access to information technology in the U.S.".

[–] T00l_shed 5 points 1 week ago

Write everyone in the US cheque for ~$400

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