Today's blog entry is about a man from the finance industry, well known by the world and whom I truly admire - Warren Buffett, the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. He is an investor, a business magnate and a philanthropist. 'Several billionaires are philanthropists, what's the big deal?', you may ask. He could the only billionaire in this world who has pledged 99% of his 50 billion dollars wealth for philanthropic causes. His benevolence is not only extended to those in need of basic necessities but he also strives for equality for the general populace.
Buffett has pointed out to the congress to raise the taxes for the rich Americans. Some years back, he noticed that he was paying only 19% of his income for taxes while his employees were paying 33% of theirs' despite earning much less money. He then proposed a 'Buffett Tax' to 'ensure that no millionaire would pay less in taxes than a middle-class family'. Hearing this, Obama has gotten down to work out a deficit reduction plan, which includes a measure to increase the minimum tax rate for taxpayers in the highest income group. We only have Mr Buffett to thank for taking this initiative to raise awareness to the public of what the federal government has known for years: America's tax system is not progressive (higher tax rates for those with higher income) as thought.
In August 2011, when Bank of America was struggling with a budget deficit, Buffett contributed $5 billion to help. In 2008 when Goldman Sachs and General Electric were in a similar situation, he made huge investments in them which helped to firms get back up on their feet. While it is true that Buffett made these deals at a return which paid him back well (naturally, being a businessman), Buffett has to be thanked for immediate relief from imminent bankruptcy of Goldman Sachs and General Electric and for a boost to the overall market.
Despite his immense wealth and power (3rd richest man in the world as of 2011), Buffett till today is living in a 5-bedroom house which he purchased for $31,500 in 1957. What I truly admire about Buffett is that money has not corrupted him. He seeks to earn money, being a businessman and investor, but not to squander it wastefully as many rich do.We have seen so often in the news about corruption of the common people by the rich and powerful, but seeing people like Buffett who divert their wealth towards those in need gain my admiration and respect. Buffett-"The way I see it is that my money represents an enormous number of claim checks on society. It's like I have these little pieces of paper that I can turn into consumption. If I wanted to, I could hire 10,000 people to do nothing but paint my picture every day for the rest of my life. And the GDP would go up. But the utility of the product would be zilch, and I would be keeping those 10,000 people from doing AIDS research, or teaching, or nursing. I don't do that though. I don't use very many of those claim checks. There's nothing material I want very much. And I'm going to give virtually all of those claim checks to charity when my wife and I die."
Buffett has pointed out to the congress to raise the taxes for the rich Americans. Some years back, he noticed that he was paying only 19% of his income for taxes while his employees were paying 33% of theirs' despite earning much less money. He then proposed a 'Buffett Tax' to 'ensure that no millionaire would pay less in taxes than a middle-class family'. Hearing this, Obama has gotten down to work out a deficit reduction plan, which includes a measure to increase the minimum tax rate for taxpayers in the highest income group. We only have Mr Buffett to thank for taking this initiative to raise awareness to the public of what the federal government has known for years: America's tax system is not progressive (higher tax rates for those with higher income) as thought.
In August 2011, when Bank of America was struggling with a budget deficit, Buffett contributed $5 billion to help. In 2008 when Goldman Sachs and General Electric were in a similar situation, he made huge investments in them which helped to firms get back up on their feet. While it is true that Buffett made these deals at a return which paid him back well (naturally, being a businessman), Buffett has to be thanked for immediate relief from imminent bankruptcy of Goldman Sachs and General Electric and for a boost to the overall market.
Despite his immense wealth and power (3rd richest man in the world as of 2011), Buffett till today is living in a 5-bedroom house which he purchased for $31,500 in 1957. What I truly admire about Buffett is that money has not corrupted him. He seeks to earn money, being a businessman and investor, but not to squander it wastefully as many rich do.We have seen so often in the news about corruption of the common people by the rich and powerful, but seeing people like Buffett who divert their wealth towards those in need gain my admiration and respect. Buffett-"The way I see it is that my money represents an enormous number of claim checks on society. It's like I have these little pieces of paper that I can turn into consumption. If I wanted to, I could hire 10,000 people to do nothing but paint my picture every day for the rest of my life. And the GDP would go up. But the utility of the product would be zilch, and I would be keeping those 10,000 people from doing AIDS research, or teaching, or nursing. I don't do that though. I don't use very many of those claim checks. There's nothing material I want very much. And I'm going to give virtually all of those claim checks to charity when my wife and I die."
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