# Ya know, SmartAlex, you're kind of a dick **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 4, 2005, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021 "2005-09-04T07:01:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/1 "2005-09-04T07:01:30Z")
[Exhibit A](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=333184). You come in pissing and moaning about Bill Gates not giving the amount of money _you_ deem appropriate to hurricane relief. It’s noted that his foundation has donated 1.5 million to the effort, among dozens or hundreds of projects throughout the world that it endows, and you piss and moan some more. Just shut the fuck up. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/2 "2005-09-04T07:15:38Z")
I believe I read that Gates has already said the bulk of his estate, minus a nice chunk of change for his kids, is going to his foundation after he and his wife die. You can accuse Bill of a lot of things, but the man has been very generous with his money over the years and a lot of his donations are not reported widely in the press. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hook](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@The\_Hook](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hook)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/3 "2005-09-04T07:26:10Z")
You also have to remember one thing: Bill Gates needs money to make money. I don’t know what his future plans are, but if I were him, I’d reason that by making more money I’d be able to give even more to charity in the end. Sounds good to me. ---
**Author:** ![Silentgoldfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@Silentgoldfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silentgoldfish)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/4 "2005-09-04T09:17:31Z")
> [@DMark](#): > > You can accuse Bill of a lot of things, but the man has been very generous with his money over the years and a lot of his donations are not reported widely in the press. I’ve always really admired him for this. It’s great that he donates so much money and doubly so that he doesn’t fall all over himself patting his back like so many celebrities seem to. ---
**Author:** ![Nanoda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Nanoda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nanoda)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/5 "2005-09-04T09:21:59Z")
Bill Gates may be ‘worth’ a lot, but he can’t do anything with it without liquidating Microsoft (something I don’t think anyone expects him to do). I’m a pretty big Linux fan and I think Microsoft has done some really low things, but I’m with **Silentgoldfish** and **DMark** - accusing Gates of being stingy isn’t something I’ve ever thought of doing. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/6 "2005-09-04T11:39:01Z")
A Bill Gates love fest in the pit? My, times they are a changin’. ---
**Author:** ![SmartAlex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ba0ec/32.png) [@SmartAlex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAlex)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/7 "2005-09-04T13:36:55Z")
What the crap!!! Bill’s CHARITY (NOT HIM) has given 1.5 million. 1.5 million is 3 one THOUSANDTHS of ONE percent of his fortune to the victims. I rest my case. ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Badger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/848f3c/32.png) [@Dead\_Badger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Badger)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/8 "2005-09-04T13:41:14Z")
> [@SmartAlex](#): > > What the crap!!! Bill’s CHARITY (NOT HIM) has given 1.5 million. 1.5 million is 3 one THOUSANDTHS of ONE percent of his fortune to the victims. Is it really possible for anyone to be this stupid? _Think_, dear heart - where exactly do you think the Gates Foundation gets its money from? It’s not taxing, and you can use a pencil and paper if it all gets too much. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/9 "2005-09-04T13:51:02Z")
> [@SmartAlex](#): > > What the crap!!! Bill’s CHARITY (NOT HIM) has given 1.5 million. 1.5 million is 3 one THOUSANDTHS of ONE percent of his fortune to the victims. > > I rest my case. Why are you so hung up on percentages? $1.5 million is a huge chunk of change for a private citizen to donate. Who donates more, a person who makes $25K a year donating 10%, or a person who makes $2.5 million a year donating 1%? I’ll bet you’re one of those people who think the rich aren’t taxed enough, and that anyone who makes more than $1 million a year should pay 100% in taxes. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/10 "2005-09-04T14:23:34Z")
> [@SmartAlex](#): > > What the crap!!! Bill’s CHARITY (NOT HIM) has given 1.5 million. 1.5 million is 3 one THOUSANDTHS of ONE percent of his fortune to the victims. > > I rest my case. As has been already pointed out, the charity obviously gets its money FROM Bill Gates. Where did you think it came from? He’s given literally billions of dollars to charity through his foundation. That’s **billions** , not millions. The man may have done some shitty things in the business world, but he’s doing tremendous good also. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/11 "2005-09-04T14:31:38Z")
Gates would have fit in perfectly well in the robber baron era. Like Rockefeller and Carnegie, he’s become rich partly through (at best) dubious business practices. Also like them, he hasn’t hoarded the money simply to himself, but has done some serious good with it. **SmartAlex** , do you believe that Gates should pull all the money directed to other causes for hurricane relief? Do you believe that he should sell his house for hurricane relief? ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/12 "2005-09-04T15:19:57Z")
> [@SmartAlex](#): > > I rest my case. Rest your fucking keyboard too. And rest your brain for a while, since trying to think more than one thought at a time is clearly causing it to overheat. Dumbass. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/13 "2005-09-04T15:23:26Z")
Isn’t it wonderful how people who have given no indication of giving anything at all are so eager to demand huge donations by others? :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Fionn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Fionn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fionn)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/14 "2005-09-04T15:49:47Z")
> [@SmartAlex](#): > > What the crap!!! Bill’s CHARITY (NOT HIM) has given 1.5 million. 1.5 million is 3 one THOUSANDTHS of ONE percent of his fortune to the victims. > > I rest my case. Unless you’re Bill Gates’ personal accountant, how are you sure he hasn’t personally donated money? ---
**Author:** ![PastAllReason](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f07891/32.png) [@PastAllReason](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastAllReason)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/15 "2005-09-04T16:02:31Z")
> [@ivylass](#): > > Why are you so hung up on percentages? $1.5 million is a huge chunk of change for a private citizen to donate. Who donates more, a person who makes $25K a year donating 10%, or a person who makes $2.5 million a year donating 1%? > > I’ll bet you’re one of those people who think the rich aren’t taxed enough, and that anyone who makes more than $1 million a year should pay 100% in taxes. :rolleyes: From the linked thread, SmartAlex is hung up on percentages based on an obligation to tithe as a Christian. And he/she seems to have based the requirement for Bill Gates to give 10% of his wealth (not income) based on Gates being a Christian. Personally, I don’t have a clue whether Bill Gates believes in a Christian God, the Invisible Pink Unicorn, or sipping pina coladas and getting caught in the rain. Even if Christian, my understanding is that tithing is related to income, not wealth. I wonder whether in SmartAlex’s world there is a need or responsbility to give to charity if one is not a Christian. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/16 "2005-09-04T16:21:22Z")
And on top of all that, there is absolutely zero Biblical basis for a Christian tithe anyway. **DumbAlex** needs to read his Bible a little more carefully. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/17 "2005-09-04T16:30:26Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > And on top of all that, there is absolutely zero Biblical basis for a Christian tithe anyway. Not only that but: > [@The Bible](#): > > 2 Corithnians 9:7 (NIV) - Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/18 "2005-09-04T17:06:07Z")
From [Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Gates) > [@](#): > > With his wife, Gates founded the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, a charitable organization. The foundation’s grants have provided funds for underrepresented minority college scholarships, AIDS prevention, diseases that strike mainly in the third world, and other causes. The Foundation currently provides 90% of the world budget for the attempted eradication of poliomyelitis (polio), the World Health Organization having ‘moved on’ to other diseases. In June 1999, Gates and his wife donated US$5 billion to their foundation. They have donated more than US$100 million to help children suffering from AIDS. On January 26, 2005, it was announced that the Foundation had made a further contribution of US$750 million to the international Vaccine Fund to help fight diseases such as diphtheria, whooping cough, measles, poliomyelitis and yellow fever. As of 2005, the foundation has an endowment of approximately US$28 billion. So they’ve made a minimum of 5.95 billion dollars in donations to the Foundation; given its total endowment of $28 billion, it seems likely that they’ve donated considerably more, probably considerably more than 10% of their income. I can’t say for sure, obviously, but $28 billion isn’t chump change. Let’s excoriate the bad guys for the bad they do; but let’s also give them credit for the good they do. Gates, for all his flaws, is doing unimaginable good in the world. Daniel ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/19 "2005-09-04T17:28:22Z")
I believe that his contributions for vaccinations are a very cost-efficient way to save lives. A few dollars in vaccines can save a life. And despite the high benefit to cost ratio of vaccination programs, it’s not something that’s gotten a lot of money or attention from governments and NGOs. Katrina relief, on the other hand, has gotten a lot of money and attention. ---
**Author:** ![mischievous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mischievous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mischievous)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021/20 "2005-09-04T19:42:53Z")
The Gates foundation is also one of the major sources of funding to fight malaria worldwide. Not only do they give to established groups, but they provide seed money to new groups with good ideas, which the new groups can then use to attract other funding. The worldwide number of people killed, incapacitated, or simply made miserable for the rest of their lives by malaria dwarfs the hurricane damage, and it disproportionately affects children. Gates is hardly stingy, and he’s giving to people and causes in dire need, who get considerably less help than the (admittedly catstrophic) situation in New Orleans. mischievous [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ya-know-smartalex-youre-kind-of-a-dick/320021.md?page=2)