Hi, my name is Tyler, and I'm a Recovering Rich Hater.
CHORUS: "HI, TYLER"
All of the rich do not suck the rat's ass. Granted, it is much easier to do so if you're wealthy: it tends to warp your view of reality. Marie Antoinette was delusional regarding the poor; she just felt, hey, if you've run out of bread, eat your cake until you can get to the bakery. It's easy to feel that way if you've never had a hungry day in your life. But they aren't all heartless bastards who don't tip the waiter.
The original;Andrew Carnegie:
http://www.carnegie.org/sub/about/biography.htmlsnip:
"The son of a weaver, he came with his family to the United States in 1848 and settled in Allegheny, Pennsylvania. At age thirteen, Carnegie went to work as a bobbin boy in a cotton mill. He then moved rapidly through a succession of jobs with Western Union and the Pennsylvania Railroad. In 1865, he resigned to establish his own business enterprises and eventually organized the Carnegie Steel Company, which launched the steel industry in Pittsburgh. At age sixty-five, he sold the company to J. P. Morgan for $480 million and devoted the rest of his life to his philanthropic activities and writing, including his autobiography.
"Many persons of wealth have contributed to charity, but Carnegie was perhaps the first to state publicly that the rich have a moral obligation to give away their fortunes. In 1889 he wrote The Gospel of Wealth, in which he asserted that all personal wealth beyond that required to supply the needs of one's family should be regarded as a trust fund to be administered for the benefit of the community.
"Carnegie set about disposing of his fortune through innumerable personal gifts and through the establishment of various trusts. In his thirties, Carnegie had already begun to give away some of his fast-accumulating funds. His first large gifts were made to his native town. Later he created seven philanthropic and educational organizations in the United States, including Carnegie Corporation of New York, and several more in Europe."
snip:
Chuck Feeney:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20871397/snip:
"Feeney kept his generosity secret for years, saying he did not want to "blow my own horn" or discourage others from giving to the same deserving causes.
"Only in 1997 when his founding share in DFS was sold was his generosity revealed to the world. He came to the conclusion that his story should be told to promote giving while living.
"The Atlantic Philanthropies, co-founded by Feeney, has given away $4 billion in a quarter of a century, including over $2 billion in the United States, more than $1 billion in Ireland, as well as large sums in Vietnam, Australia, South Africa, Thailand and Cuba, according to O'Clery's book.
"Now in his mid 70s, Feeney is determined his foundation should spend its remaining fortune in his lifetime and is fond of a Gaelic proverb to explain the sense of urgency. 'There are no pockets in a shroud.'"
Even FORBES magazine, bastion of that greedy little prick Steve Forbes, published an article regarding some of the rare Generous rich.
http://www.forbes.com/2006/11/29/billionaire-charitable-donations-pf-phil_cz_dp_1129billionairephilanthrophy.html But even that level of generosity is not REQUIRED.
What pisses off most on the Left that I talk to and hang around with is not that someone might be rich but that they seem to worship the old American saw "You can't be too rich," indicating that they do not accept that wealth without purpose is meaningless piling up of chips: don't mean a thing unless you get in the game and BET. Call this just plain ol' garden variety GREED.
There is another thing that is almost insufferable about most of the well to do: the "I made it, it's MINE!" philosophy. This is personified in people like Clarence Thomas who will be more than happy to tell you how he made it without any help from anyone as if that is even POSSIBLE. But that doesn't create the schism: it's the ATTITUDE that as it's "MINE," I get to keep every last penny, and you lazy bastards can just get your OWN. The corollary to this is, I've already PAID my way, so fuck off if you want to TAX me to help anyone else. These people are similar to the Health care Social Darwinists who don't support S-CHIP and are happy to see Bush veto it.
The point is, if you're doing OK and someone gives you shit about it, and if you do your bit and pay your fair share, relax. HOWEVER, if you get a twinge, then maybe you ought to re-assess how you go about your business and your charity.
Anyway, I've made a lot of progress toward recovering from my RICH HATE. I try to examine my own issues first. Thanks.
CHORUS: YOU'RE IN THE RIGHT PLACE, TYLER! KEEP COMIN' BACK!!!
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