The globe’s 500 richest people, as measured by the Bloomberg billionaires index,
have seen the value of the wealth increase by 23% so far this year,
taking their combined fortunes to $5.3tn. The increase is largely the
result of booming stock markets. The MSCI World Index and the US
Standard & Poor’s 500 are both up almost 20% so far this year. The
UK’s FTSE 100 is up more than 6% – and hit a new closing high of 7,620.7
points on Wednesday.Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, is the world’s richest man. His fortune has increased by $34.2bn so far this year to take his “net worth” to $99.6bn. On just one day in October Bezos’s fortune increased by $10.3bn, when Amazon posted profits much higher than analysts had expected and the company’s shares spiked.
Bezos,53, who founded Amazon in his Seattle garage in 1994, owns 16% of the retailer. He also owns all of space exploration company Blue Origin and the Washington Post newspaper, which he bought for $250m in 2013.
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A century ago companies with far less market control were broken up.
Welp, Bezos is at least is doing something useful, and did something useful to get there.
ReplyDeleteFURST??
I wonder if Bezos eats spaghetti as I am now.
ReplyDelete???????? Nobody home?
ReplyDeleteDarkest hour very good.
ReplyDeleteNobody home, went Cosmic bowling. Days are getting longer, ready for spring!
ReplyDeleteHave to admit I like Amazon, easy to deal with. Yes these guys need to be broken up. IMO
ReplyDeleteTedious drive down to San Diego. Lots of traffic.
ReplyDeleteDawg, Is everyone trying to escape from LA? What I remember about LA traffic from around 1970 was that it took a least 2hrs to get out of town by road.
ReplyDeleteThere is an amazing amount of traffic, going both ways, to and from the Gamma Quadrant on Hwy 80.
I-5 was Wall to Wall crowded. Sometimes 80mph others full stop.
ReplyDeleteGood Morning!
ReplyDelete0 degrees and dressed for sledding! No traffic jam here on the mountain!
Jimmy Dore was agreeing with Trump about the evils of Amazon...
ReplyDeleteAmazon is predatory and the shareholders approve. Were they to adopt sustainable business practices they would open themselves to competition. Insist on profitability and the issues go away.
ReplyDeleteI thought the IRS required that you be profitable 2 or 3 out of 5 years. Not sure how Amazon managed it's first 20 years
DeleteWhat does their predation consist of?
ReplyDeleteLiving off venture capital and underselling their competitors while losing money, and once their competition is out of business, raising process. Kinda what the Chinese companies did while being subsidised by their government and not being required to be profitable
DeleteSqueezing suppliers by either preventing alternative distribution channels, charging for “shelf space,” or plain old cutting them out of the channel with end run deals.
DeleteIsn't this stuff what Walmart did?
DeleteThey did it while making a profit and paying sales taxes.
DeleteI learned something that I actually wanted to di with senior dummies.
ReplyDeleteDo
ReplyDelete>>I-5 was full stop.
ReplyDeleteDoesn't it feel like an opportunity?
Let's make a movie about fixing traffic gridlock. I have the answer.
We'll call it Operation Oleander.
Keep and restore oleander growth to visually separate freeways. Stop radio/TV broadcasting of traffic conditions. Improve on-ramps. Get local news and advertising to support. Keep drivers focused on whats ahead.
I’m waiting for Waze to monetize by charging neighborhoods to detrend their shortcuts.
ReplyDeleteCalled Blackmail, in other circumstances
DeleteHappy NEW Year!! Good night.😀
DeleteYes, Walmart often does the same.
ReplyDeleteHow many years of the last 40 did Walmart claim no profit
DeleteIf So Cal increased the freeway capacity it would bring more people and clog it back up before it's done. Been there done that, twice.
ReplyDeleteAny business that rules squeezes suppliers due to the volume they can provide.
Remember Sears? Who Dat?
The only reasons new road capacity fills up is because we don’t build new capacity until you can prove you need it. The other reason is locals go ahead and approve developments because they see the new roads.
DeleteAll true, but people have to live somewhere.
DeleteHappy New Years eve. Boy I am going to hurt tomorrow, I slid down the hill a couple of times! :)
ReplyDeleteIs that the same as falling off the wagon?
DeleteHappy new Years. Who is frozen?
Delete2018! Happy New Year!
ReplyDeleteChampaign -11, feels like -21°. Son said he wanted cold.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year's y'all
ReplyDeleteDuuudes! It’s legal annnd amaaaazing!
ReplyDeleteOh look. A classic Nor’easter is form up in the Atlantic. Good times a comin’.
ReplyDeleteWell... Looks like I'll get Thursday off too...
DeleteOr maybe it's Friday... Then back to the deep freeze
DeleteI hope power doesnt fail, except possibly in DC. That's mean of me, I know.
ReplyDeleteIt'll only hurt the poor. I'm sure the Whitehouse has backup get generators
DeleteGood New Year!
ReplyDelete7F with a high of 11F up to 30F later this week. More sledding today.
Atlanta wins chill factor is 1 yeah, 1°!!!
ReplyDeleteWhen back to old posts. De .2008 and rob's Misean Institute Curiculum. Histerical. Bad times.produced better humor.
ReplyDeleteI wonder where Misean is now.
ReplyDeleteThe hub has a sneezy cold.
ReplyDeleteWait until you get to the movie titles post.
ReplyDeleteOh, make up some new ones.
DeleteGood night.😀 from one non frozen person to another .
DeleteHey, my thermostat is set for 72F. :)
ReplyDeletehttps://www.wsj.com/articles/if-we-can-put-a-man-on-the-moon-why-cant-we-put-a-man-on-the-moon-1514833480
ReplyDeleteIt will be interesting to see if NASA ever manages to get moving again.
Give them money and they will do marvelous things. In the meantime, the private types are going great.
ReplyDeleteLiz and Sm_Landlord, Here is a gig for you!!! An Old Coot Actor!!!
ReplyDeletehttps://www.vox.com/first-person/2018/1/2/16812366/senior-citizen-acting-older-adults
When we lived in Torrance and I worked at the Trojan Rubber Works, we attended a lot of little theater. The old coots were terrific actors. Left overs from the movie industry I think.
I am a coot-ess.
DeleteGood Morning!
ReplyDeleteWarming trend starts today, 41F by Saturday possible.
Mish has a nice comment on renting today.
Sending dragon capsule here to be worked on.
ReplyDeleteLiz, I am overflowing with coot-ness. Love it. I can kid, joss and complement women old and young and they all seem to enjoy it as much I do. Coooooollll!!!
ReplyDeleteRe: Previous post with a Life Mag cover.
ReplyDeleteThat is I and my sweet wife kicking up our heels. I love to throw her around doing Western Swing Dance. We also do Line Dancing. Old Coots having fun.
Today she is off to Tahoe to ski. I stay home to help the shoer do the horses feet.
The St. Pete daughter sent a photo of the grand daughter all bundled up for the cold weather. Cute as a bugs ear.
Must clean kitchen. Need !Kitchenba. Willing to pay a lot for same.
ReplyDeleteGo out to eat or hire a maid. Love the Roomba and if I end up in town with a postage stamp yard the Yard Roomba should be pretty well perfected. If not I will do artificial grass. Less work more play time!
ReplyDeleteWe do but, but clearly not often enough. The mom and pop breakfast guy loves us.
DeleteNew post.
ReplyDelete