The Repub Debate

[BigRedBuster]

I am far from someone who dismisses financial success. Hey..I'm all for it.

 

However, there are some people in the world that do it in ways that I have no respect for.

Trump has gained a ton of money building a some huge project, getting a ton of press for it, once it's done he takes bankruptcy and screws the smaller contractors and he has it all fixed so he still keeps the property and smiles all the way to the bank.

 

Sure, he is very smart in how he does it. But......

 

Sorry, I'm not impressed.

[Moiraine]

 

 

 

 

Trump honestly scares me. I feel like he's the type if he gets elected he will do anything/everything he can to get revenge on anyone who slighted him or who he perceives slighted him in the least. He's a child.

He's decided now that he's not sure it's legal for Rubio to run, even though he has previously said of course it's legal. He keeps claiming he's not racist but we've now had 3 politicians who are either non white or have non white last names who he's either said can't/shouldn't be president or implied it about them.

 

Admittedly, I could be wrong here, but I don't think that Trump is the quite the loose cannon that he appears to be. He's incredibly smart. There is no arguing that point. You don't get to where he is in life by being stupid, and completely unhinged.... I think he's incredibly detailed in his approach during his campaign. The evidence is there, he's playing his supporters like a fiddle, and completely dictating the direction of this race for the Republican nomination....

 

Having said that, I'd much rather see Kasich, or Carson win the nomination....

He's not that smart. You can get to where he is by inheriting wealth, surrounding yourself with smart people, going through 4 bankruptcies, and most ironic of all; trouncing all over the common folk.

Hmmm... that's funny, for it being so easy to accomplish, you'd think that more people would achieve the financial success that he has. Fact is, it's not easy. To get to where he is, a person has to read a library of books and gain a financial literacy that most people can't even fathom. Trump knows more about money than everyone on this board combined, and that's how he's built his empire.

 

Poor people like to dismiss financial success of people like Trump, but the fact is, he got to where he is because of a lot of factors, the least of which being that he inherited lots of money. If the average person inherited the money that he did, they'd simply spend it until it's gone and leave nothing behind. Instead, he used it to build something great to pass on to his kids, all while people who don't understand how he did it and what he had to go through to do it stand on the sideline and throw stones. Ridiculous.

More people don't do it because few people get $200 million inheritances and train with their millionaire fathers from birth.

 

The absolute most important factor in becoming that rich is how much money you start out with. This is a statistical fact. People believe in meritocracy at high percentages in America but it's a fallacy. There is an extremely small chance of moving up to a higher SES bracket than the one you were born into.

 

 

Also, in 2015, 5,000 households and 45,000 people have more than $100 million. This is 2015. Trump's self proclaimed wealth in 1980 was $200 million. There were far, far less people with over $100 million 35 years ago let alone $200 million. We're talking about a very small % if the population who started with what Trump had. The odds were definitely not against him.

 

Edit: found some data. According to the U.S. Bureau of Statistics there were 400 people in 1982 with $100 million or more. So there were less than 400 people in the U.S. with as much or more $ as Trump started with. Less than 400 people had the advantage Trump had. Oh but it's just an unimportant factor. Lol. You put that in a bank in 1982 and you have a lot more money in 2015. Or as has been stated, put it on mutual funds and you have billions.

 

http://www.huppi.com/kangaroo/4Inequality.htm

[B.B. Hemingway]

 

 

 

 

Trump honestly scares me. I feel like he's the type if he gets elected he will do anything/everything he can to get revenge on anyone who slighted him or who he perceives slighted him in the least. He's a child.

He's decided now that he's not sure it's legal for Rubio to run, even though he has previously said of course it's legal. He keeps claiming he's not racist but we've now had 3 politicians who are either non white or have non white last names who he's either said can't/shouldn't be president or implied it about them.

 

Admittedly, I could be wrong here, but I don't think that Trump is the quite the loose cannon that he appears to be. He's incredibly smart. There is no arguing that point. You don't get to where he is in life by being stupid, and completely unhinged.... I think he's incredibly detailed in his approach during his campaign. The evidence is there, he's playing his supporters like a fiddle, and completely dictating the direction of this race for the Republican nomination....

 

Having said that, I'd much rather see Kasich, or Carson win the nomination....

He's not that smart. You can get to where he is by inheriting wealth, surrounding yourself with smart people, going through 4 bankruptcies, and most ironic of all; trouncing all over the common folk.

Hmmm... that's funny, for it being so easy to accomplish, you'd think that more people would achieve the financial success that he has. Fact is, it's not easy. To get to where he is, a person has to read a library of books and gain a financial literacy that most people can't even fathom. Trump knows more about money than everyone on this board combined, and that's how he's built his empire.

 

Poor people like to dismiss financial success of people like Trump, but the fact is, he got to where he is because of a lot of factors, the least of which being that he inherited lots of money. If the average person inherited the money that he did, they'd simply spend it until it's gone and leave nothing behind. Instead, he used it to build something great to pass on to his kids, all while people who don't understand how he did it and what he had to go through to do it stand on the sideline and throw stones. Ridiculous.

More people don't do it because few people get $200 million inheritances and train with their millionaire fathers from birth.

 

The absolute most important factor in becoming that rich is how much money you start out with. This is a statistical fact. People believe in meritocracy at high percentages in America but it's a fallacy. There is an extremely small chance of moving up to a higher SES bracket than the one you were born into.

 

 

Also, in 2015, 5,000 households and 45,000 people have more than $100 million. This is 2015. Trump's self proclaimed wealth in 1980 was $200 million. There were far, far less people with over $100 million 35 years ago let alone $200 million. We're talking about a very small % if the population who started with what Trump had. The odds were definitely not against him.

 

 

 

I don't think anybody is denying that his path to success was obviously much easier then the paths that most of us must take, but ZRod's statement that " its easy to maintain, and grow wealth" is almost comical. There are an incredible amount of variables, and moving parts when running a business. Especially the level of business that he has been involved in all of his life. Most people couldn't run that kind of operation, let alone grow their wealth the way he has. Someone posted a statistic that Trump as increased his wealth 300% since 1987, up to $4 billion... Translation being that, he's made a sh#t load of money in the last 30 years..... He had one hell of a head start, but to in any way suggest that making that kind of money was "easy", is absurd.

[Moiraine]

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trump honestly scares me. I feel like he's the type if he gets elected he will do anything/everything he can to get revenge on anyone who slighted him or who he perceives slighted him in the least. He's a child.

He's decided now that he's not sure it's legal for Rubio to run, even though he has previously said of course it's legal. He keeps claiming he's not racist but we've now had 3 politicians who are either non white or have non white last names who he's either said can't/shouldn't be president or implied it about them.

 

Admittedly, I could be wrong here, but I don't think that Trump is the quite the loose cannon that he appears to be. He's incredibly smart. There is no arguing that point. You don't get to where he is in life by being stupid, and completely unhinged.... I think he's incredibly detailed in his approach during his campaign. The evidence is there, he's playing his supporters like a fiddle, and completely dictating the direction of this race for the Republican nomination....

 

Having said that, I'd much rather see Kasich, or Carson win the nomination....

He's not that smart. You can get to where he is by inheriting wealth, surrounding yourself with smart people, going through 4 bankruptcies, and most ironic of all; trouncing all over the common folk.

Hmmm... that's funny, for it being so easy to accomplish, you'd think that more people would achieve the financial success that he has. Fact is, it's not easy. To get to where he is, a person has to read a library of books and gain a financial literacy that most people can't even fathom. Trump knows more about money than everyone on this board combined, and that's how he's built his empire.

 

Poor people like to dismiss financial success of people like Trump, but the fact is, he got to where he is because of a lot of factors, the least of which being that he inherited lots of money. If the average person inherited the money that he did, they'd simply spend it until it's gone and leave nothing behind. Instead, he used it to build something great to pass on to his kids, all while people who don't understand how he did it and what he had to go through to do it stand on the sideline and throw stones. Ridiculous.

More people don't do it because few people get $200 million inheritances and train with their millionaire fathers from birth.

 

The absolute most important factor in becoming that rich is how much money you start out with. This is a statistical fact. People believe in meritocracy at high percentages in America but it's a fallacy. There is an extremely small chance of moving up to a higher SES bracket than the one you were born into.

 

 

Also, in 2015, 5,000 households and 45,000 people have more than $100 million. This is 2015. Trump's self proclaimed wealth in 1980 was $200 million. There were far, far less people with over $100 million 35 years ago let alone $200 million. We're talking about a very small % if the population who started with what Trump had. The odds were definitely not against him.

 

I don't think anybody is denying that his path to success was obviously much easier then the paths that most of us must take, but ZRod's statement that " its easy to maintain, and grow wealth" is almost comical. There are an incredible amount of variables, and moving parts when running a business. Especially the level of business that he has been involved in all of his life. Most people couldn't run that kind of operation, let alone grow their wealth the way he has. Someone posted a statistic that Trump as increased his wealth 300% since 1987, up to $4 billion... Translation being that, he's made a sh#t load of money in the last 30 years..... He had one hell of a head start, but to in any way suggest that making that kind of money was "easy", is absurd.

Why don't you read the post I'm replying to, then? Or reply to ZRod?

 

"he got to where he is because of a lot of factors, the least of which being that he inherited lots of money. "

 

The above quote is a load of crap and is basically denying what you said no one is denying.

 

And it absolutely is arguable that it's easy. 400 people in the US had the amount of $ he had in 1980. Those 400 people were the ones with the best potential to become billionaires. It was basically a given for any of them who had a lot of ambition or just put their $ in mutual funds.

[BigRedBuster]

 

 

 

 

Trump honestly scares me. I feel like he's the type if he gets elected he will do anything/everything he can to get revenge on anyone who slighted him or who he perceives slighted him in the least. He's a child.

He's decided now that he's not sure it's legal for Rubio to run, even though he has previously said of course it's legal. He keeps claiming he's not racist but we've now had 3 politicians who are either non white or have non white last names who he's either said can't/shouldn't be president or implied it about them.

 

Admittedly, I could be wrong here, but I don't think that Trump is the quite the loose cannon that he appears to be. He's incredibly smart. There is no arguing that point. You don't get to where he is in life by being stupid, and completely unhinged.... I think he's incredibly detailed in his approach during his campaign. The evidence is there, he's playing his supporters like a fiddle, and completely dictating the direction of this race for the Republican nomination....

 

Having said that, I'd much rather see Kasich, or Carson win the nomination....

He's not that smart. You can get to where he is by inheriting wealth, surrounding yourself with smart people, going through 4 bankruptcies, and most ironic of all; trouncing all over the common folk.

Hmmm... that's funny, for it being so easy to accomplish, you'd think that more people would achieve the financial success that he has. Fact is, it's not easy. To get to where he is, a person has to read a library of books and gain a financial literacy that most people can't even fathom. Trump knows more about money than everyone on this board combined, and that's how he's built his empire.

 

Poor people like to dismiss financial success of people like Trump, but the fact is, he got to where he is because of a lot of factors, the least of which being that he inherited lots of money. If the average person inherited the money that he did, they'd simply spend it until it's gone and leave nothing behind. Instead, he used it to build something great to pass on to his kids, all while people who don't understand how he did it and what he had to go through to do it stand on the sideline and throw stones. Ridiculous.

More people don't do it because few people get $200 million inheritances and train with their millionaire fathers from birth.

 

The absolute most important factor in becoming that rich is how much money you start out with. This is a statistical fact. People believe in meritocracy at high percentages in America but it's a fallacy. There is an extremely small chance of moving up to a higher SES bracket than the one you were born into.

 

 

Also, in 2015, 5,000 households and 45,000 people have more than $100 million. This is 2015. Trump's self proclaimed wealth in 1980 was $200 million. There were far, far less people with over $100 million 35 years ago let alone $200 million. We're talking about a very small % if the population who started with what Trump had. The odds were definitely not against him.

 

Edit: found some data. According to the U.S. Bureau of Statistics there were 400 people in 1982 with $100 million or more. So there were less than 400 people in the U.S. with as much or more $ as Trump started with. Less than 400 people had the advantage Trump had. Oh but it's just an unimportant factor. Lol. You put that in a bank in 1982 and you have a lot more money in 2015. Or as has been stated, put it on mutual funds and you have billions.

 

http://www.huppi.com/kangaroo/4Inequality.htm

 

I think one needs to separate any of us moving up the income bracket we were born into and reaching the billions of dollars that Trump has.

 

Yes, it is almost statistically non existent that any of us are going to reach the wealth Trump has. However, it is NOT impossible or even extremely difficult if people put that as a goal in life to get an education and start a career. One main reason why people don't move up in income brackets from their parents is because their parents don't instill that desire in the kids. The kids grow up with a certain way of life and they aren't motivated to move on.

 

I know many many MANY people who have grown up with not much but have gone to college or started a business and improved their lot in life from where their parents are. And, I know kids who are doing it right now. Just one example of many is a girl I know who grew up in a single parent home with her father as a farm hand not making much money. She graduated form HS and went to college to get a nursing degree. She is now graduated and is starting a pretty nice nursing career.

 

There are things that could make it easier such as more affordable college (no, I'm not for free college for everyone). But, it's not as affordable as when I was in college and the student debt is a burden.

 

This myth some people have that America is just set up in a manner that only benefits people who are rich and the only way you are going to be successful is if you are rich just needs to stop. It's class warfare at the finest and it doesn't do anyone any good other than the people who gain power by convincing others they can't do anything.

[B.B. Hemingway]

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trump honestly scares me. I feel like he's the type if he gets elected he will do anything/everything he can to get revenge on anyone who slighted him or who he perceives slighted him in the least. He's a child.

He's decided now that he's not sure it's legal for Rubio to run, even though he has previously said of course it's legal. He keeps claiming he's not racist but we've now had 3 politicians who are either non white or have non white last names who he's either said can't/shouldn't be president or implied it about them.

 

Admittedly, I could be wrong here, but I don't think that Trump is the quite the loose cannon that he appears to be. He's incredibly smart. There is no arguing that point. You don't get to where he is in life by being stupid, and completely unhinged.... I think he's incredibly detailed in his approach during his campaign. The evidence is there, he's playing his supporters like a fiddle, and completely dictating the direction of this race for the Republican nomination....

 

Having said that, I'd much rather see Kasich, or Carson win the nomination....

He's not that smart. You can get to where he is by inheriting wealth, surrounding yourself with smart people, going through 4 bankruptcies, and most ironic of all; trouncing all over the common folk.

Hmmm... that's funny, for it being so easy to accomplish, you'd think that more people would achieve the financial success that he has. Fact is, it's not easy. To get to where he is, a person has to read a library of books and gain a financial literacy that most people can't even fathom. Trump knows more about money than everyone on this board combined, and that's how he's built his empire.

 

Poor people like to dismiss financial success of people like Trump, but the fact is, he got to where he is because of a lot of factors, the least of which being that he inherited lots of money. If the average person inherited the money that he did, they'd simply spend it until it's gone and leave nothing behind. Instead, he used it to build something great to pass on to his kids, all while people who don't understand how he did it and what he had to go through to do it stand on the sideline and throw stones. Ridiculous.

More people don't do it because few people get $200 million inheritances and train with their millionaire fathers from birth.

 

The absolute most important factor in becoming that rich is how much money you start out with. This is a statistical fact. People believe in meritocracy at high percentages in America but it's a fallacy. There is an extremely small chance of moving up to a higher SES bracket than the one you were born into.

 

 

Also, in 2015, 5,000 households and 45,000 people have more than $100 million. This is 2015. Trump's self proclaimed wealth in 1980 was $200 million. There were far, far less people with over $100 million 35 years ago let alone $200 million. We're talking about a very small % if the population who started with what Trump had. The odds were definitely not against him.

 

I don't think anybody is denying that his path to success was obviously much easier then the paths that most of us must take, but ZRod's statement that " its easy to maintain, and grow wealth" is almost comical. There are an incredible amount of variables, and moving parts when running a business. Especially the level of business that he has been involved in all of his life. Most people couldn't run that kind of operation, let alone grow their wealth the way he has. Someone posted a statistic that Trump as increased his wealth 300% since 1987, up to $4 billion... Translation being that, he's made a sh#t load of money in the last 30 years..... He had one hell of a head start, but to in any way suggest that making that kind of money was "easy", is absurd.

Why don't you read the post I'm replying to, then? Or reply to ZRod?

 

"he got to where he is because of a lot of factors, the least of which being that he inherited lots of money. "

 

The above quote is a load of crap and is basically denying what you said no one is denying.

 

And it absolutely is arguable that it's easy. 400 people in the US had the amount of $ he had in 1980. Those 400 people were the ones with the best potential to become billionaires. It was basically a given for any of them who had a lot of ambition or just put their $ in mutual funds.

 

 

Yeah, I missed that part of his post.....

 

We're just going to disagree on how easy it is to turn $200 million into $4 billion. Most definitely not a "given", and certainly would require more than ambition. Out of curiosity, have you ever ran a business? There are a number of things that can go wrong, and certainly things that will go wrong. That's with any business. Now, obviously the larger the business the greater the potential reward, but also greater risk. Not just any moron can turn profit, let alone increase their wealth the way Trump has (see professional athletes, and Hollywood). To his credit, he did what he was suppose to do. He took advantage of the position he was in, and made it better.

[teachercd]

Trump had a board game made back in the early 90's...lets rip that apart now...I thought it seemed a lot like monopoly

[B.B. Hemingway]

 

 

 

 

 

Trump honestly scares me. I feel like he's the type if he gets elected he will do anything/everything he can to get revenge on anyone who slighted him or who he perceives slighted him in the least. He's a child.

He's decided now that he's not sure it's legal for Rubio to run, even though he has previously said of course it's legal. He keeps claiming he's not racist but we've now had 3 politicians who are either non white or have non white last names who he's either said can't/shouldn't be president or implied it about them.

 

Admittedly, I could be wrong here, but I don't think that Trump is the quite the loose cannon that he appears to be. He's incredibly smart. There is no arguing that point. You don't get to where he is in life by being stupid, and completely unhinged.... I think he's incredibly detailed in his approach during his campaign. The evidence is there, he's playing his supporters like a fiddle, and completely dictating the direction of this race for the Republican nomination....

 

Having said that, I'd much rather see Kasich, or Carson win the nomination....

He's not that smart. You can get to where he is by inheriting wealth, surrounding yourself with smart people, going through 4 bankruptcies, and most ironic of all; trouncing all over the common folk.

Hmmm... that's funny, for it being so easy to accomplish, you'd think that more people would achieve the financial success that he has. Fact is, it's not easy. To get to where he is, a person has to read a library of books and gain a financial literacy that most people can't even fathom. Trump knows more about money than everyone on this board combined, and that's how he's built his empire.

 

Poor people like to dismiss financial success of people like Trump, but the fact is, he got to where he is because of a lot of factors, the least of which being that he inherited lots of money. If the average person inherited the money that he did, they'd simply spend it until it's gone and leave nothing behind. Instead, he used it to build something great to pass on to his kids, all while people who don't understand how he did it and what he had to go through to do it stand on the sideline and throw stones. Ridiculous.

More people don't do it because few people get $200 million inheritances and train with their millionaire fathers from birth.

 

The absolute most important factor in becoming that rich is how much money you start out with. This is a statistical fact. People believe in meritocracy at high percentages in America but it's a fallacy. There is an extremely small chance of moving up to a higher SES bracket than the one you were born into.

 

 

Also, in 2015, 5,000 households and 45,000 people have more than $100 million. This is 2015. Trump's self proclaimed wealth in 1980 was $200 million. There were far, far less people with over $100 million 35 years ago let alone $200 million. We're talking about a very small % if the population who started with what Trump had. The odds were definitely not against him.

 

Edit: found some data. According to the U.S. Bureau of Statistics there were 400 people in 1982 with $100 million or more. So there were less than 400 people in the U.S. with as much or more $ as Trump started with. Less than 400 people had the advantage Trump had. Oh but it's just an unimportant factor. Lol. You put that in a bank in 1982 and you have a lot more money in 2015. Or as has been stated, put it on mutual funds and you have billions.

 

http://www.huppi.com/kangaroo/4Inequality.htm

 

I think one needs to separate any of us moving up the income bracket we were born into and reaching the billions of dollars that Trump has.

 

Yes, it is almost statistically non existent that any of us are going to reach the wealth Trump has. However, it is NOT impossible or even extremely difficult if people put that as a goal in life to get an education and start a career. One main reason why people don't move up in income brackets from their parents is because their parents don't instill that desire in the kids. The kids grow up with a certain way of life and they aren't motivated to move on.

 

I know many many MANY people who have grown up with not much but have gone to college or started a business and improved their lot in life from where their parents are. And, I know kids who are doing it right now. Just one example of many is a girl I know who grew up in a single parent home with her father as a farm hand not making much money. She graduated form HS and went to college to get a nursing degree. She is now graduated and is starting a pretty nice nursing career.

 

There are things that could make it easier such as more affordable college (no, I'm not for free college for everyone). But, it's not as affordable as when I was in college and the student debt is a burden.

 

This myth some people have that America is just set up in a manner that only benefits people who are rich and the only way you are going to be successful is if you are rich just needs to stop. It's class warfare at the finest and it doesn't do anyone any good other than the people who gain power by convincing others they can't do anything.

 

 

Absolutely. I'm of the mind that success is there for anybody in this country, if you want it bad enough. I grew up in a double-wide mobile home sitting on my Grandpa's farm. My wife, and I had our first child in high school. We were in a tough spot starting out, but I worked graveyard shift at a local manufacturing plant and put us both through college without government aid, or help from anybody really, outside of our parents babysitting some. Now we both run successful small businesses, and have carved out a comfortable life for our family.... Success is for everyone, most people just don't really want it.

[Moiraine]

I think a lot of you are missing my point. My grandpa's parents were both dead by the time he was 5. He had to beg the red cross for shoes when he was 16 and they wouldn't give him any. He died a millionaire. He was from a different era and is anecdotal evidence. All previous people are talking of moving from one end of an income bracket to another end of it. Trump didn't have to move income brackets.

 

Also, all of those examples show is that quite a few people can do what he did and it wasn't that amazing.

[B.B. Hemingway]

I think a lot of you are missing my point. My grandpa's parents were both dead by the time he was 5. He had to beg the red cross for shoes when he was 16 and they wouldn't give him any. He died a millionaire. He was from a different era. All previous people are talking of moving from one end of an income bracket to another end of it. Trump didn't have to move income brackets.

 

Also, all of those examples show is that quite a few people can do what he did and it wasn't that amazing.

 

What did your grandfather do for a living, if you don't mind sharing?

[BigRedBuster]

I think a lot of you are missing my point. My grandpa's parents were both dead by the time he was 5. He had to beg the red cross for shoes when he was 16 and they wouldn't give him any. He died a millionaire. He was from a different era and is anecdotal evidence. All previous people are talking of moving from one end of an income bracket to another end of it. Trump didn't have to move income brackets.

 

Also, all of those examples show is that quite a few people can do what he did and it wasn't that amazing.

I apologize if I am not getting your point. I understand that can be frustrating sometimes on a message board.

 

But, you first said:

 

The absolute most important factor in becoming that rich is how much money you start out with. This is a statistical fact. People believe in meritocracy at high percentages in America but it's a fallacy. There is an extremely small chance of moving up to a higher SES bracket than the one you were born into.

 

 

 

Then you said:

 

I think a lot of you are missing my point. My grandpa's parents were both dead by the time he was 5. He had to beg the red cross for shoes when he was 16 and they wouldn't give him any. He died a millionaire. He was from a different era and is anecdotal evidence. All previous people are talking of moving from one end of an income bracket to another end of it. Trump didn't have to move income brackets.

Also, all of those examples show is that quite a few people can do what he did and it wasn't that amazing.

 

 

Pardon me if I'm confused because it sure seems like you contradicted yourself.

[HuskerShark]

 

 

 

 

Trump honestly scares me. I feel like he's the type if he gets elected he will do anything/everything he can to get revenge on anyone who slighted him or who he perceives slighted him in the least. He's a child.

He's decided now that he's not sure it's legal for Rubio to run, even though he has previously said of course it's legal. He keeps claiming he's not racist but we've now had 3 politicians who are either non white or have non white last names who he's either said can't/shouldn't be president or implied it about them.

 

Admittedly, I could be wrong here, but I don't think that Trump is the quite the loose cannon that he appears to be. He's incredibly smart. There is no arguing that point. You don't get to where he is in life by being stupid, and completely unhinged.... I think he's incredibly detailed in his approach during his campaign. The evidence is there, he's playing his supporters like a fiddle, and completely dictating the direction of this race for the Republican nomination....

 

Having said that, I'd much rather see Kasich, or Carson win the nomination....

He's not that smart. You can get to where he is by inheriting wealth, surrounding yourself with smart people, going through 4 bankruptcies, and most ironic of all; trouncing all over the common folk.

Hmmm... that's funny, for it being so easy to accomplish, you'd think that more people would achieve the financial success that he has. Fact is, it's not easy. To get to where he is, a person has to read a library of books and gain a financial literacy that most people can't even fathom. Trump knows more about money than everyone on this board combined, and that's how he's built his empire.

 

Poor people like to dismiss financial success of people like Trump, but the fact is, he got to where he is because of a lot of factors, the least of which being that he inherited lots of money. If the average person inherited the money that he did, they'd simply spend it until it's gone and leave nothing behind. Instead, he used it to build something great to pass on to his kids, all while people who don't understand how he did it and what he had to go through to do it stand on the sideline and throw stones. Ridiculous.

The absolute most important factor in becoming that rich is how much money you start out with. This is a statistical fact.

 

Absolutely asinine. Most wealthy people would find a way to gain a lot of money back if all of it were taken away from them. It's downright lazy to dismiss how people gain financial success as "luck" or "happenstance".

 

You (sort of) got it right when you said that most people don't have rich parents to learn from, because being mentored and taught the right ways to think about money is the #1 reason why people are able to gain financial success. Earning a crap-ton of money is a mindset more than anything else. Poor people think about money a certain way that dooms them to be poor. The person who coined the phrase "Money doesn't buy happiness" was obviously broke. While it can't buy happiness, money and happiness are not mutually exclusive either. However, if you consider that the divorce rate in America is around (or over) 50%, and the leading cause of divorce is money related issues, then obviously being broke isn't the answer.

 

The reason it's easier for wealthy people to acquire more wealth isn't because of their money. It's because of the mindset they're taught. If you read Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki, you will begin to understand that.

 

Like B.B. Hemingway said, success is out there for anyone who really wants it.

[BigRedBuster]

I happen to believe that money and happiness are fairly mutually exclusive. There are a lot of people with a decent amount of money who still get divorced due to money issues. There are miserable people who are both rich and poor. There are extremely happy people in both classes also.

[knapplc]

If you read Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki, you will begin to understand that.

This book has been debunked by:

 

The Wall Street Journal

 

The Motley Fool

 

Forbes

 

Smart Money

 

Etc, etc, etc.

 

 

 

That's... embarrassing.

[zoogs]

America didn't always have a system where consolidating wealth was such a dominant force, and vaulting up the socioeconomic ladder for those not already there or well-positioned. It's hardly indisputable that this is the way it is today, right? And the GOP's plan is further deference and tax cuts to enable even greater consolidation.

 

Their promise is that this will unleash a torrent of economic growth that will be to everybody's benefit. It's a nice argument; increase the size of the pie and trickle down and so on. It's also a fantasy to all but the most credulous.

 

Growth is important, to be sure. But the world's wealthiest nation has far more of an economic injustice problem than it does a growth problem. And the idea that ignoring this will result in growth is far closer to discredited than demonstrable.