Mark Zuckerberg lost $2.1 BILLION Monday because the stock price of Facebook went down a few bucks. And it was considered no big deal. What is wrong with this picture?
What is so screwed up about the financial system of this country that a 28-year-old can lose more wealth in one day that the wealth of many COUNTRIES and nobody thinks anything about it? And why do we place so much value on something stupid like Facebook that our system makes a multibillionaire out of a 28-year-old? The Occupy movement has the right message, if not the wrong messengers.
I wish more multibillionaires would put their money into projects like this that benefit society as a whole. Instead, they mostly use their billions to accumulate even more billions. Or they do foundations that specialize in pet projects, mainly involving the arts and poor children. While these are admirable programs, they aren't really *that* beneficial to society as a whole.
In many cases, to be honest, society would be better off if they spent their billions keeping their workers employed instead of laying them off to boost stock prices.
The percentage of corporate profits being returned to employees is now at its lowest level since such a thing began being tracked in the 1950s.
Basically, we're in a greedy, robber baron business model right now. (Think back to the late 1800s, early 1900s.) That will change eventually, as it is unsustainable for the long run in a democracy. But I have no idea how long that's going to take or how low we're going to have to go first.
Yes, we can get screwed over during the recalculation. But only to the extent you buy into the mind game. Sure, Mark Z "lost" 2 billion in a day... but the geeky dork (and I say that lovingly) still wears hoodies and doesn't carry on like a big shot.
If Mark can really find that many people who want to buy his stock, then yes, he will have billions and billions. But the truth is, there is no market for it. A year from now Facebook won't be worth anymore than Yahoo.
Yes, the amounts are obscene. In fact, just recently, Apple was found to have more cash than the US Treasury!
I don't see where this particular IT entity is exploiting some third world kids *coughApple,etc* or its workers, or fucking the economic system. It's a pretty good model of a successful capitalist experiment, and a metaphor for the new kind of financial success.
And frankly, as for something like Facebook being "stupid and without value"? That's just a naive condescending statement, and pretty ironic, considering this blog is being featured on yet another social networking site (albeit focusing on sex/romance for gay men).
Welcome to the new world, where success need not necessarily be based on sweat, blood and physical exertion of old guys alone. This is a generation where ideas can bring you money, even if you are a teenager. This is the era of Gates and Zuckerberg, Jobs and Page, after Rothschild and Carnegie, Rockefeller or Gould. Equal chance for anyone to become successful, assuming you have the right ideas at the right time.
Welcome to the (slightly) leveled playing field :)
what you say is very, very true!
my employer just this last week offered buyouts to many long-standing/long-serving employees - many took them. Those who did not were fired. No thank you for your service - no nothing. Then the company "realigned for strategic reasons" the entire organization - code words for firing many, many others. Those people included the support people who for a company that is international is absolutely imperative. These people were all fired on the same day - then to protect passwords and access to software and computer systems every security program had to be reset - everywhere. For the better part of a day my boss personally had to reset each computer in his small franchise office - fortunately he knew how. But there were no support people to call - they were all gone.
Time after time since I have been retired I have read about companies greeting long serving employees at the door as they showed up for work - they were escorted to HR, informed they were fired, escorted to their office and escorted off the premises. In one case a guy locally was within weeks of a full retirement and it happened to him.
You are absolutely correct. Such is corporate life in America. Now I have seen it in my own company. I no longer believe that what work I perform or ever performed really meant anything to "the company" - rather, I have come to realize (a long time ago actually) that the "worth" of what I do is how I help each client - one at a time. THAT is the way I cope with such an uncaring landscape that seems to permeate the world of work in today's life.
everysooften
west Michigan
It is ingratiating to even contemplate that a 28 year old could have such wealth. Yet, this is capitalism!
Not much difference from how the great barons of the last century gained their wealth - with the exception that the barons plundered the resources and exploited the workers. Of course, nothing unique about that in the US... After all, that was one of the major reasons for the rise of communism - exploitation of the workers.
everysooften
west Michigan