I’m going back to Bernie Sanders. I think his joining of the Democratic Party so that he can make a run at President was disingenuous, and complaining about their failure to back him helped elect the single worst human to ever be in charge of the country.
I’ll give Buffett a pass on his accumulation of wealth as he does not seem to be callously gimme gimme gimme like others in his position, and advocates for lower income Americans to have more for themselves.
I think we are reaching a ceiling here where the entertainers will likely start falling. At the end of the day, it’s hard for me to rate someone who “only” created great art ahead of those who made substantial material improvements in the lives of large numbers of people.
Having said that, I agree that philanthropy also has its limits as a qualifier for greatness. To channel Chris Rock, if you’re a multi-billionaire, giving away tons of money to good causes is just what you’re SUPPOSED to do. Even if you’re part of a group where grossly unethical behavior is common, doing the minimum required to be a decent person only gets you so much credit (see also: Mitt Romney).
But I don’t think there’s any point in voting for Warren Buffett while Mackenzie Scott is still on the table; she’d be a close second choice for me today. Buffett is a legitimate genius at investing; it may not be the most spiritually exalted field of human endeavor, but at least he’s a genius at it. He is also, as noted above, arguably “the greatest philanthropist the country has ever seen”. Scott married into her wealth, and is, despite her commendable generosity, not the greatest philanthropist the country has ever seen.
“Entertainers” like William Shakespeare, Miguel de Cervantes, Homer, Virgil, Charles Dickens, Mary Shelley, JRR Tolkien, Dante and others like them are arguably the greatest humans of their eras.
Spielberg
“Et tu…”
It helps that I don’t like his movies.
Ego te absolvo
Scott
Spielberg
I nominated Buffet because unlike most other billionaires I can name, he doesn’t do hostile takeovers or leveraged buyouts. He invests in businesses long-term for growth, rather than churn a quick profit and dump the stock. In other words, that’s what a capitalist is supposed to do. On top of that, he’s given away most of the money he’s made over the years instead of building a Xanadu with gold toilets. If we don’t think someone doing what they’re “supposed” to do is a big deal, why can we name so few people who live up to that standard?
For this round I’ll vote off Stephen King.
Enters @Kent_Clark into his enemies list
Like I said, it helps that I don’t think he’s that great an artist. I liked Jaws, but I find his work schlocky. Now when they come for Dolly, I’ll be upset.
That’s why I absolved you, stylistic differences I understand, money over art is a bit harder (yes, philanthropy I get it, but I’m not sure he didn’t cause more poverty winning his money than he alleviated by giving a way a part of it)
I thought you were just being magnanimous.
My vote for GLA is Dolly, she’s given away millions of books, done a ton of other charity work, has quietly supported music programs in schools in black communities, helped fund the initial COVID vaccine research and wrote Jolene and I Will Always Love You in the same week. And she came from abject poverty.
Still going Bill “Blue screen of death” Gates.
Stephen King
Dylan. The only voice that grates on my more (at least that comes to mind) is Gilbert Gottfried. Then again, there was a time that I hated Janis Joplin’s voice, too, but I came around on Janis. Maybe one day I’ll come around on ol’ Bob. Until then, tho, he gets my vote. At least for this round.
Time for Spielberg to end up on the cutting room floor.
-“BB”-
Our votes this round:
José Andrés: Humanitarian, chef - 2 votes
Warren Buffett: Level-headed billionaire - 1 vote
Bob Dylan: Poet of generation - 1 vote
Bill Gates: Futurist, philanthropist, billionaire - 1 vote
Stephen King: Great American writer - 2 votes
Bernie Sanders: Democratic Socialist leader - 1 vote
MacKenzie Scott: Philanthropist, prize-winning novelist - 2 votes
Steven Spielberg: Director, writer, entertainer - 4 votes
Bruce Springsteen: Singer, songwriter, activist - 1 vote
Steven Spielberg misses out on another Oscar for this round, and is gone.
Our remaining nominees:
José Andrés: Humanitarian, chef
Joe Biden: President, uniter, overcomer
Warren Buffett: Level-headed billionaire
Bob Dylan: Poet of generation
Anthony Fauci: Physician, immunologist, scientist
Bill Gates: Futurist, philanthropist, billionaire
Jesse Jackson: Civil rights leader
Mark Kelly: Senator, astronaut, aviator
Stephen King: Great American writer
Barack Obama: President, statesman, lawyer
Dolly Parton: Artist, humanitarian
Bernie Sanders: Democratic Socialist leader
MacKenzie Scott: Philanthropist, prize-winning novelist
Bruce Springsteen: Singer, songwriter, activist
Elizabeth Warren: Fighting political foes
Eliminated
Voting for our next round will end at noon EST on Mon. July 21.
José Andrés yet again.
Jose Andres