Philanthropy as seed money
The NY Times is reporting that billionaires Eli Broad and Bill Gates are “joining forces for a $60 million foray into politics in an effort to vault education high onto the agenda of the 2008 presidential race.” What appears to be an extension of their philanthropic activities is simply seed money for the next political solution to failing government schools; a solution that will end up pounding more of my tax dollars down the rat hole that is public education.
A suggestion for Broad and Gates: Keep your money so that I can ultimately keep mine.
Comments (6)
Why is it that so many who become rich with individual initiative in the free market then use their money to actively thwart such concepts?
Published: April 25, 2007 11:44 PM
"Why is it that so many who become rich with individual initiative in the free market then use their money to actively thwart such concepts?"
Cinch.
To thwart their competition.
Honestly, it's understandable. It really is. If the means are there, why not use them?
Which is why the conduit through which lies the simplest and most direct path to the fulfillment of this end - thwarting competition, that is - needs to be reckoned with, confronted, and - ultimately - overcome.
By which, of course, I mean, the State.
Published: April 26, 2007 1:06 AM
Ouch! If the richest, most powerful folk in society aren't about to topple the State then what hope is there for a l'il Libertarian? After all, competition benefits consumers, not business owners. I'm sure existing business owners would cringe if a new player was offering more goods for less price. Then again any one is going to like competition when it works in their favour, when it doesn't it's interesting to see who will still like it.
Published: April 26, 2007 1:39 AM
So much money yet so little insight into the situation...
We should make bets at how quickly "merit based pay" evolves into "activism based pay" for labor unionists..
Published: April 26, 2007 8:16 AM
The reason rich folkds support stupid ideas is simple: Folks tend to get super rich because they focused on one or two particular talents, and typically this would not include thoughtful reflection on difficult questions such as man's fate in this world.
Gates is rich because he had a vision of an operating system that would dominate the world of computing. His papa gave him a lawyer who locked up the rest. (Ahem, it's IP day today.) As a result, Gates brings nothing new or innovative to the charity table. Like all the suckers before him (stretching back 100 or so years) he will fund a complete loser.
I would like to believe that if he applied his substantial intelligence to thinking this through, he'd be funding a 1,000 private schools initiative or funding a massive campaign to end publik skooling.
Published: April 26, 2007 4:17 PM
thank you
Published: July 19, 2007 1:45 AM