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Originally Posted by martinguerre
So much to say...but i think it's best to leave most of it be. Why do you think this is true? Are multimillionares really that common? Is the problem really just desire...and not that there are systemic problems in the distrobution of resources in america? You take the outliers, and seek to prove that they are the rule.
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In California, they're not unusual, due to land/housing values. I may not have made myself clear in that I consider a millionaire someone who has a net worth of $1,000,000. I don't mean they necessarily have it in cash.
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I have the opportunity....i was born in to a family that has money, i was given a good education as a kid, and that put me in top 25 liberal arts college. I will graduate near the top of my class, in part because i have been able to be a full time student and only work as a preceptor when it met my educational goals. I have applied to Yale for my M.Div, and if i so desired, i suspect i could continue on to Academia with no problems. I might not have multiple millions (depends on the book deal i guess), but i would certainly be in the priviledged classes.
Privledged. Not because it was fair, or because i was entitled to any of it. I'm part of the lucky sperm club, and i damn well know it.
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So what? I know plenty of wealthy people who started out poor or middle class. Some enlisted in the service, and accumulated rental property over a career. Others started small businesses. Others sold real estate. One started an auto repair shop. Another was an electrician who worked in Saudi back when pay was high, taxes were low, and few were getting killed. A higher education is by no means required to accumulate wealth, but determination almost always is.
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happiness is an entirely different story. One of those people did nothing but work. His family barely knew him, and he hardly ever smiled. I don't consider that a price worth paying.
Note that the ways I pointed out are honest (at least I think they were). For other people, committing drug crimes is not too great a price to pay for wealth.
I guess I'll phrase it another way: You show me someone who isn't a millionaire by 50 or so, and given enough of their history, I'll point out the areas where they made a choice that interfered with wealth accumulation. Or point out someone from the same station in life who became wealthy.
I'm not by any means saying that the person's personal choices were
wrong, but that they impeded wealth accumulation. On the other hand, they may have brought the person happiness.
That applies to rich and poor alike.