Infinite:It is relatively subtle, but I assume you are implying that your sycophant posturing makes it clear that you have been more financially successful than anyone who would dare to question such nonsense. Don't bet on it.

Jesus Christ you are on a high horse... I guess that makes two of us!

Infinite, I do see your points as being valueable, but I think you've read one too many Thomas Friedman articles on the wonders of cinnabons. I guess you have a positive outlook on "globalization", you seem to have a romantic vision of efficiency, profit and order for all... Whereas I see globalization simply as labor arbitrage and squeezing the last few bucks out of an industrial system that is bound to collapse (in any form, whether run by global capitalism or so called "marxist socialism".)

First off, sure, you have to be smart to be a billionaire (at least a self made one, if you look at the Forbe 400 list you will find that although many are self made, there are quite a few that inherited.) On the other hand, becoming filthy rich is way less a function of "smarts", than it is of hard work, taking advantage of every opportunity and, of course, greed. I would put way more stress on greed than "smarts"... In fact, I would bet that you could be a total fucktard and still become a billionaire simply by pure greed (of course, I'm not saying a greedy mentally deficient individual could achieve such a feat--there is obviously a nominal base of intelligence to make money). My point is simply that I think you're wrong to stress "smarts", since there are millions upon millions of people that are way more smart then the vast majority of billionaires. In fact, billionaires usually employ people that are far moer intelligent than them.

You misunderstood BrianT. Perhaps you need to get down from the saddle and actually discuss things as opposed to stating your opinions as facts from high atop hi-ho silver. My understanding of what BrianT was saying is that we are all on the same boat. We are all homo sapiens, we are all related and we all live on "spaceship earth". Our space ship may be easy to get around right now, and may have enough resources for everyone to plow around in military vechicles in urban environments, but eventually this free for all will end. Just because people have been crying wolf since whale oil, doesn't mean that resources are infinite and that prognosticators will forever be wrong.  In case you didn't notice, this blog's focus is energy depletion and our "future".

BrianT's point was that once TSHTF billionaires and the unemployed will both have problems, albeit different ones. For instance, billionaires will be concerned with having even tighter security, contingents of body guards and militarized homes then they already do... They will be afraid of the masses of enraged Americans who were told by Reagan in the 80s that it was Morning in America... When people find out it is actually Dusk in America, the public will want to eat the upper class alive.

Perhaps you disagree with my perspective on this, since you obviously seem joyfully optimistic about our future (despite massive, never before experienced challenges for our species on the very near horizon...) To go down the list briefly with no depth:

1. spiraling wars in the middle east (already in progress)

2. global oil production depletion (no one knows--not a good thing)

3. global warming (again, no one knows--not a good thing)

4. unprecendent debt levels (growing rapidly monthly)

5. overpopulation (approaching 7 billion--more people have been alive in the last 200 years than cumultively in all of human history)

6. mass extinction

7. ecological degradation (rainforests all around the world be burned and chopped down, coral reefs dying, etc.)

I could go on but you get the jist of it.

While you seem to enjoy doing the "hey look how stupid feckless unemployed 20 somethings are compared to our brilliant billionaires!" I would rather side with BrianT and simply agree that we are products of only two things... Our environments and genetic dispositions. (Not to mention millions of years of natural selection.)

"potential of a billionaire"?????

So I assume you are saying that essentially there is a billionaire gene? Or there must be a rearing technique to enhance the "billionaire potential"?

Those are rhetorical questions, because obviously both have to be true. In order to get a billionaire you need A) the disposition to become one B) the environmental know how to function in the world to impress people, network, makes deals, etc with all the other BS required. Plus, the obvious desire to do so...

Again, I'm just writing this to make it known to all that I agree with BrianT, and think your arrogance is now apparent to anyone to see.

BrianT tries to say we're all in this together and you go out and write that he must not be a billionaire and that billionaires are smart? Wow.

hrmm...

why the hell does a billionaire need a cellphone ?

The difference between a billionaire and someone who is only modestly successful has a lot to do with luck.  Your average billionaire is not a super genius who could find himself lost in the wilds of Africa and build an airplane out of leaves in order to fly himself to civilization and start an industrial empire.  I wouldn't go so far as to say billionaires get where they do based only on luck, but it's a lot more luck than skill.  They are lucky to be in the right place, at the right time, with the right idea.  Others who are equally qualified just don't end up in the right place at the right time to get the big break.