Posted on 11/21/2004 7:17:56 PM PST by The Loan Arranger
Warren Buffett is famous for two things. First, for amassing the second-biggest fortune in the U.S. as one of the most talented investors the world has ever known. Second, for an aversion to spending a dime of that $41 billion on anything but the strictly necessary. That includes declining to provide his kids with fortunes of their own, collecting yachts or racehorses, or giving large chunks of his wealth to worthy causes. Thus it may strike some as the supreme paradox that the man who is one of America's greatest misers in life will probably become one of its greatest philanthropists in death. That reality came into focus in July, when Susie, Buffett's wife and philanthropic muse, died of a stroke at 72. Now, the bulk of Susie's Berkshire Hathaway stake -- $2.5 billion -- is pouring into the foundation that she and Warren shared, a tiny Omaha operation that supports reproductive choice and nuclear weapons reduction but that has mostly operated under layers of secrecy. What is known is that Susie's gift vaults Warren to No. 3 on BusinessWeek's third annual ranking of the Top 50 U.S. philanthropists, up from No. 26 last year. (For the purposes of the BW ranking, married couples are generally treated as a single entity.)
(Excerpt) Read more at story.news.yahoo.com ...
Thanks to McCain-Feingold, probably none.
This is one of the reasons why bequests to foundations should be prohibited. All it does is allow the dead to lay their heavy hand on the living.
Better that their fortunes should be divided up among their 500 closest living relatives.
Just because one is rich apparently doesn't make them smart. This is one of the dumbest things one has done with their money. They could have given $$ to educate the POOR children in our country by sending to private schools... anything but these choices.
Dumb and stupid rich!!!!
Nuke the gay baby whales, now!
Bill Gates is going to do the same thing
When are these money-bag elites going to learn that the street sweeper and ditch digger and a hand-full of vets have as much, if not more political power in this country than all the money in the Cayman's can buy?
I don't see this "bequest" as dumb so much as dangerous and outright evil. How many children will be murdered with this money she left? Talk about having no fear of God, to have your last act in life be a donation of 2 billion dollars for abortion.
No doubt if abortion is outlawed in the U.S., as I hope, the money can be spent killing third-world babies and helping the Chinese round up their women for forced abortions and organ transplants.
With that much money, they can kill off tens of millions of Africans and Asians and make more room for the country clubbers. Some charity.
Not exactly - I believe they will get $10,000,000 each. That should be a decent inheritance.
Warren Buffet has gotten a lot of mileage over the years out of the assertion that he's not leaving much of a fortune to his kids, but I've never seen specifics. Obviously it's his business and not mine. Still, since it's been much in the press, I've always wondered if "not much" in the Buffet family context means a pittance from dad of $5 or $10 or $100 million -- you know, just a little walking around money while the bulk of the fortune goes to charity? Or do Buffet's kids really get nothing beyond their educations?
Oh well, rich folks can do as they please. I just wish one of them would discover my pet charity, which is preserving Civil War battlefields. My memo to lurking billionaires (or their staffs): The acreage and dollar amounts involved are easily within range of some of these fortunes; one benefactor could get the job done. Preservation is mostly a matter of buying dirt; one need not support a vast parasitical empire of foundation functionaries, and you can walk away any time you want without stranding an army of dependent clients. The benefits are broader than just history; it's open space/green space/wildlife habitat/multipurpose recreational opportunities/limits to sprawl in rapidly urbanizing areas. It's closed-ended; the number of sites is finite and you can actually see your way to the finish. As compared to some of the ratholes several of these folks are pouring money into, it's a pretty attractive proposition.
Ted Turner, you listening? The UN is one of the most corrupt cesspools into which to flush money imaginable, but I know you're a Civil War buff ....
Does John Kerry know that Warren is now available?
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