Posted on 01/05/2024 9:02:48 PM PST by zeestephen
Politicians, millionaire, billion aires - much of what you say is true.
The only problem I have with them is - they don’t steal fairly.
That is said tongue-in-cheek.
For 45 years I played the suckers’ game. For 15 years I played my game. Now I’m retired. I pay myself. I live well, thank you. The best part is the government(s) don’t get one thin dime from me.
You just need to stop and think about it.
“Americans working hard, living modestly and not spending like crazy should by all rights be rich at the end of their work life.....why aren’t they?.....”
Many are, Cherry.
Permit me to recommend two eye-opening books about American millionaires, based on actual research.
The first is “The Millionaire Next Door”, which describes the author’s research and tells the reader who the overwhelming majority of American millionaires are and who they are not.
The second book, by the same author (whose name escapes me at the moment) is “The Millionaire Mind”, reveals how those millionaires think about money and wealth; how they save, spend, plan, gift, and invest. Here’s an interesting tidbit: nearly all of the millionaires have a written budget to which they abide. Many have a YEARLY written budget, not just a monthly budget. They know where every dollar goes!
Here’s another tidbit: most millionaires do not buy brand-new, hot-rod, luxury cars. They buy reliable, low-mileage vehicles that are 2-3 years old. Why? Because new cars depreciate in value most in the first few years after they are purchased. Additionally, most major repair issues will appear within that same time-frame and will have already been fixed while the vehicle was under warranty. That’s also the reason that they seldom waste money on “extended vehicle protection” scams...er, plans.
I recommend both of these books to you, Cherry, and to any FReepers who would like to learn more about American millionaires.
In true “Millionaire Mind” fashion, get them from a library or buy them from a used-book store, lol.
And what about inflation causing “unrealized gains”?
without thinking that tax deductions is why businesses grow in America.
Yes it is but leftists oppose business for profit. They think business should work for them and the state, not for their own growth.
All assets are theirs to control and plunder at will.
Dave Ramsey has done studies of millionaires and how they got that way.
Less than 10% had significant inherited wealth.
The vast majority lived frugally (below their means), were happily married (no divorces), had both husband and wife working, owned their homes free and clear and saved at least the tax deferred 15% of their income each month for at least a couple of decades.
The five most common profession of these millionaires was:
—Accountant
—Engineer
—Corporate middle management
—Teacher
—Attorney
Common misconceptions about millionaires:
—They spend lavishly. Nope—they are savers not spenders.
—No doctors. While being a doctor can be a lucrative career many doctors are terrible at saving money and a significant percentage of them live beyond their means.
—Less inherited wealth than you might expect. Many folks who inherit wealth overspend and blow it.
Your position is that Epstein built a worldwide sex trafficking network by himself and he was able to convince the world’s billionaires, royals, industry titans, prominent actors, politicians and others on his own to visit his island that, by himself, he was able to blackmail each and every one of them without worrying about being assassinated.
How many hundreds of millions of dollars did it cost to build his two islands and the submarine and his jet airplne and his multimillion dollar ranch and his two homes in Manhattan and Paris.
I’m sorry. I don’t believe that he did it buy himself. He played the role he was hired to do and there were powers that protected him, likely the intelligence agencies he worked for. Only governments have the money that had to be spent to do what he did and you think you can blackmail people who can kill you from afar without worrying about it?
That doesn’t work for me.
As with every rule there are a few exceptions.
The exceptions do not change the rule.
In fact they get headlines because they are exceptions.
The Ramsey study is important because it shows young people what they need to do if they want to get wealthy—not Epstein wealthy—but very comfortable wealthy.
I agree with you in principle that is how millionaires are made. However, I don’t believe that a single can build his network, with all the billionaires, politicians, actors, and whomever just hiring somebody to kill him. I’m sorry that is not plausible by any means. No man is so invulnerable and sheltered that he can’t be killed unless somebody is protecting him that is bigger than all the industry titans and billionaires and royalties.
You can believe what you want, but that doesn’t work for me at all.
Not to mention that the law authorities would have been interested in him.
I don’t “believe” anything.
I shared statistical facts with you.
You may be confusing millionaires with billionaires.
You may be correct in describing billionaires.
If I knew about any similar studies of billionaires I would share them.
If their wealth, income, etc., is the result of doing nothing illegal, then good for them and stay out of their business. Let them spend it so others can have income. Freedom. Capitalism. America.
I understand what you are saying about wealthbuilding and you are correct that those steps will build wealth.
But Epstein would have had to have hundreds of millions of dollars of F*** around money in his pocket before he could even get started on the scheme to hold the world in black mail and he would have so cleaver that no country leader would dare launch an accidental missile to wipe his island off the globe.
That doesn’t make sense, even if was the most genius kind of guy at wealth building.
From what I can see of the billionaire class, most of them were chosen for their willingness to serve powers greater than they. For their souls, they were allowed access to ungodly worldly wealth.
Whether it be Faccebook, Amazon, Microsoft, all the big tech, all of these enterprises had megadollars right from the start, as ideas. That lends credibility to that they were planned because all of them are also useful in shutting people out of society if they don’t comply with the coming world order.
All the billionaires are anti-human, had access to billions of dollars for their companies, they are in control of companies that can shut every one of us out of society. Very few of the billionaires could have made their level of wealth on their own talents.
The question is are the billionaires you described “typical” or are they exceptions.
I do have one ridiculously wealthy relative I talk about from time to time—they may be a billionaire—I don’t have access to their numbers.
In their case they inherited crazy wealth from both of their families.
Interestingly they follow the “millionaire” rules.
They have been married for many decades and have a couple of adult children at this point. They still earn more than they spend—and the man refuses to fully retire even though both he and his wife are more than eighty years old at this point.
They live comfortably but certainly not extravagantly—and you would not know they were super wealthy if you met them.
As for politics—they don’t discuss it—but like most successful people in business they pay bribes aka political contributions to both political parties in their local community.
I would not want to change places with them—because their profile is still higher than I would find acceptable—they do give large donations to charities in their own names—a mistake in my opinion. It has led to media interviews about their giving—I am way too paranoid to ever feel comfortable doing that.
“Unrealized gains”. Imagin the possibilities!
I think ultra-rich (or anyone, for that matter) should be ultra-taxed on any money made on investments in China.
I think I’ll start a Foundation with with my meager IRA.
That’s how HRC skirts the rules.
Remind me, does Billionaire Trump have a “foundation”?
Equal Outcome Economics?
May your chains rest easy on you...
“America’s wealthiest families can leverage that on-paper value increase to secure favorable loans with low-interest rates in lieu of using taxable income to finance their lifestyle.”
You can do that too using a HELOC or similar. But if you have limited assets (collateral) and a lower credit rating than the wealthier you won’t get a lower interest rate on that loan offered by the banks.
That’s how HRC skirts the rules.
Remind me, does Billionaire Trump have a “foundation”?
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IDK about the trumps? prolly so. he also has a legit J.O.B. and a legit binez.
remember, sen no name & the bern both have foundations
remember, no name foundation director, david kramer helped seed the russian dossier around DC
remember the bern has to have a place to hold his 3 McMansions
does hussein & big mike have a foundation?
does san fran nan & pauli have a foundation?
did di fi chi spy have a foundation?
gold bar bob don’t need a stinkin foundation.
does quid pro joe have a foundation? or just use dummy off shore corps?
does JFnKerry’s wife have a foundation?
seems like a foundation is at the top of the “must have list” for a crooked pol?
is setting up a foundation 101 part of congressional orientation & on boarding?
Now you are smelling what I am cooking!
Wait....he has a foundation, too.
Lahaina
With Orca
[furiously searching the newest Epstein files....]
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