Keeping Money Moving for All Our Sakes

I don’t like to say I hate anyone. Hate is an awful word. But if I had to apply it to a group, I’d put it on billionaires.

Not all billionaires are created equal. Some, like Taylor Swift, have reached the big B on paper only. And their generosity is well documented. Others in the multi-B category have lots of liquid assets they don’t return to the rest of the world. They are my enemies.

When It’s Junk, We Call Them Hoarders

They are hoarding money. To keep the economy moving for everyone, money needs to circulate. But not in the way that Amazon’s Jeff Bezos ($234-B) did for his multi-million dollar Italian wedding. That may have injected some funds into the local economy but it didn’t create any lasting change. Let’s not even discuss how disgusting it is to flaunt that wealth because it’s another topic altogether.

Money was never meant to sit in someone’s portfolio when it’s enough to last them a hundred lifetimes. I believe there is something mentally wrong with someone who accumulates so much and just keeps it. All the while, knowing there are others who have nothing.

Buzzfeed recently posted an article about what a billion dollars can do in the economy. Some of it is ridiculous and some of it’s helpful. Here are some of their examples:

Bezos’ wedding spending is estimated at $50 million. With $1 billion, you could hold such a wedding every week for five months.

You could buy 13,351 of the new Porsche 718 Boxsters with your $1 billion.

Average rent in the US is $1,635 per month. $1 billion dollars would cover your rent for the next 50,968 years.

“$1 billion could also buy every single person in Japan, Germany, France, Sweden, Palestine, Ghana, Spain, Poland, Australia, South Africa, and Brazil a burrito from Taco Bell. And you’d still have another 5.3 million burritos left over! Not too shabby, considering you started with over 671 million burritos.” Yahoo

The Rich Get Richer

I refuse to get inside the mind of someone who thinks people in poverty are to blame for their situation. We all didn’t have the same upbringing, family lives, opportunities, knowledge passed on, support, health – I could go on. If we all began from a level playing field, maybe I’d understand. But life isn’t like that and some people get left behind through no fault of their own. I believe it’s my privilege and duty to help those less fortunate.

This is why billionaires who sit on their money offend me to my core.

The first time it struck me, Paul McCartney was married to Heather Mills and they did a public service announcement. Paul “Billionaire” McCartney looked me in the eye from my television and told me to give to a charity. I understand that he has great influence and cares about many causes. So, he should open his effing chequebook.

According to the latest data, 34% of Americans live payday to payday. In Canada, H & R Block’s survey found more than half of Canadians are having trouble making ends meet. People aren’t saving as much as they used to. Grocery prices are up. EVERYTHING is up. But a “big beautiful bill” to our south just passed with massive tax cuts for the rich.

It’s all upside down.

Currency is Energy

Back in the day, in another marriage, in a different time, I was broke. How broke was I? Why, thank you for asking. I couldn’t afford a Tim’s on my way to work where the office coffee was closer to motor oil. I remember a colleague complaining he had less than $100 after expenses and I thought he was doing fine. In the moment, poverty felt like forever. I didn’t ask for assistance or rely on the government but it still made an indelible mark on me.

Something someone told me changed my mind about money. They described it as energy. You have to keep it moving. So, despite my circumstances, I started to be more generous. I tipped better. We hired a vocalist for a jingle we created and paid her a proper rate. We circulated more of what little we had and things did start to improve. It was a mindset, a shift in how we thought of ourselves. We deserved more and somehow we found it.

It’s amazing that your most grounded, science-based and least “woo-woo” pal here would tell a story like that! But it’s true. Money is meant to move. And that’s what upsets me so much about those who keep so much to themselves. My Dad used to say, “invest in real estate. They’re not making any more of it!” Money is like that too. There’s just a finite amount and if billionaires stockpile it, then it’s not available to anyone else. Not even to a better billionaire.

Life According to Lisa

Your religion, your ethnicity, your skin colour, your culture – none of that matters to me. We are all connected by scientific facts. We share almost 99% of our DNA. That’s part of what makes racists so incredibly stupid. We are all on this spinning blue ball together for a finite amount of time. Why, if you have amassed so much of the planet’s wealth, would you not want to share it? What greater joy could there be than lifting someone else out of poverty? People literally starve to death while billionaires shop for bigger yachts. Enjoy your money, sure. But do you really need that much?

No, Jeff, Elon, Mark, and others, you don’t.

The Good Ones

Bill Gates and Warren Buffett founded The Giving Pledge. To date, almost $600 billion has been earmarked for philanthropic causes by 236 people in 28 countries. Bill Gates, and ex-wife Melinda, funded improved mosquito nets for African countries and have made great strides in controlling malaria. This is how you spend more money than you’ll ever need.

MacKenzie Scott is my heroine. Not only has Bezos’ ex-wife signed the Giving Pledge, she already donated billions to charitable causes with no strings attached. She’s doing what I dream about when Dream Lisa comes into a giant sum of money. Making other peoples’ lives better. And Dream Lisa didn’t have to be married to Bezos for 25 years to do it!

Billionaires shouldn’t be quiet about philanthropy. They ought to give their money away loudly and often. We’re here for such a short time. Do they want to be known as a greedy pig who couldn’t care less about others? Or as a leader in helping those less fortunate? Elon Musk said MacKenzie Scott’s donations were “dangerous.” Yeah, dangerous to billionaires who look even worse in the shadow of her wonderful example.