What is Digg?146 Comments
- VulnoX, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8"Windows sucks balls thanks bill but put it towards fixing the real issues plaguing america and the rest of the world: spyware.
6/10 things on the download.com top ten list are anti-spyware related, most of the other items CREATE spyware. Fix your damn software.
Oh yeah, OS X owns."
Please be sarcasm. Please be sarcasm. Please be sarcasm. Please be sarcasm.
If someone actually believes spyware problems (stay out of the sleezy farm animal porn sites) is a bigger problem than TB, then they need... something... bad to happen to them. Really set them in line. - po6ot, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8Actually I heard that Bill Gates has given around $29 BILLION to charity!
Read interesting comparisons between Gates and Steve Jobs @ Ars Technica
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060126-6062.html
and Wired
http://www.wired.com/news/columns/0,70072-0.html?tw
(yes, these links are on slashdot's front page) :)
What do people think of Gates now?
After I managed to detach my self from a blind hatred of Microsoft/Windows et al. I have a new respect for Bill Gates. Perhaps he can redeem himself through philanthropy. - VulnoX, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4The people saying bad things about this donation sure are short sighted. This is just ONE donation he is making, not the only one. So yeah, maybe 600 million is not a lot compared to his total worth, but add that to everything he is donating this year... I bet it will slaughter just about anyone else out there in overall generosity.
Also a comment was made that he just throws money instead of volunteering. Thats BS, its almost impossible for any person at that level of fame to go out to another country and volunteer any real time without his life being in danger, or him being out of touch with his company.
Its not even about Microsoft products, its about what he gives. The fact that he gave the money is what is important, I doubt ANYONE is sitting there who is going to benefit from this money is thinking "I should not take any life saving treatment that comes from this because of that hole in Windows that makes some poor little teenager miss out on playing counterstrike for a night".
You people need to get your priorities in line and be happy that someone is out there that will give that amount.
Also, that tax break stuff can just stop now. I find it hard to believe that all the billions he has donated was less than what the taxes would have been. I am happier to see the money getting thrown right toward a charity than more funding for our army anyway, since thats where it would go.
Grow up. - leodavinci, on 10/12/2007, -3/+7Yes.
Bill seems to me to be a far better person than Steve Jobs as far as giving back to the world. I know Steve Jobs seems so cool and hip, but Bill is the guy that is actually using his money for something that is really rewarding, helping other people. - deimos, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Actually, if half of you would read the article in Time that someone mentioned (that has Bill Gates, Bono, and Melinda Gates as the people of the year), you'd find out quite a few interesting facts. The link is: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1142276-1,00.html
Some notes from that article:
The Bill and Melinda Gates foundation was initially endowed with 17 billion dollars of their own (the Gates') money (yeah, yeah, so it's really his, anyway...). 17 BILLION. Of their own money.
It is the largest foundation in the world -- endowed with 29 billion dollars.
Bill and Melinda Gates *personally* visit poor areas of countries and talk directly to the people they are trying to help. - nathanstarr, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3You people are dissing him are idiots. Truly morons. Maybe the OS isn't perfect and MS has a monopoly, but let's be honest. The guy is a great person.
Tow are you talking about Gates? He takes from the poor? So the roughly $29 billion he has given to charity means nothing?
You guys are unbelievable. Gates deserved the people of the year award and he keeps proving why he deserves it. Props to him. - deimos, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3@Seumas:
Those backwater third-world countries are part of what his foundation is trying to help. Is it their fault they live in a third-world country? No. Does that mean they have less of a basic human right to live a better life than anybody else? No. They have that right just as much as you or I or anybody else do. I'm assuming you're American...how about you go read the first sentence of the second paragraph of the Declaration of Independence. Do you think the "all men" it mentions only refers to those of us that don't live in *****- and vermin-infested areas? Just because a country is third-world does not mean we treat it's inhabitants as such.
Would he be able to contribute more if he invested the money? Sure. How long should he invest it? 10 years? 20 years? But how many people would die while that money's invested? Could he possibly help more people with that invested money? Sure, but then there would also probably be more people infected. Better to stop it while the numbers are lower. - ledavee, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5He was Time's Man of the Year for good reason. No matter what you think of his corporation and the way he runs it, he's proven to be one of the greatest philanthropists ever. I suppose if I had so many billions of dollars, I'd try to change the world too. What else are you going to spend it on?
- weirdone, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5600 mill of 46.5 bill is actually a pretty big deal. It's 1.2% of his total assets. Note he probably only has a few billion in liquid assets to use to donate this kind of stuff and the rest is tied up in stocks, investments...his compounds.
Assume you have total assets of 500k after adding up house, car, investments, etc. You'd be donating a lump sum of like 5k... - danhuard, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4giving anonymously is definitely an admirable thing to do. but let's be realistic...giving $600m away brings a lot of press and good will to bill gates and microsoft. there is nothing wrong with that...the charity's cause has benefitted millions of dollars as a consequence. seems like an even trade to me. charity is charity. as long as every donated penny goes to the charity/cause then it doesn't matter if bill gates throws himself a party, brags to the media about his philanthropy, and then gets convicted of monopolistic activities...
the issue is charity, not microsoft. the charity now has more funding for R&D, end of story. - shazeubaa, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Here's some eye-opening links that may explain what Bill is really up to:
http://100777.com/node/1331
Just google for:
"bill gates" vaccine secret
and draw your own conclusions. - personman, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I'm no Microsoft fan, but I commend Gates for his generosity.
- ragingkegger, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2So if I buy Windows ...I am indirectly giving to charity. So I must suffer to alleviate the suffering of others?
What a moral dilema. - Matt2k, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2> try $46.5 and that's billion so 600m is chump change
Well, his net worth might be 46.5 billion, but that certainly doesn't mean he has that sort of cash sitting in the bank. - Tweekster, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5IT has nothing to do with tax breaks
for those of you that think that, you have no clue how the tax system works.
second of all, is it sooo god damn difficult to comend someone that is wealthy and powerful for doing good with his fortune? its not like he has to (and his tax situation wont change at all) - ollywompus, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2@RichPowers: I don't speak for anyone else, but I am a Linux-only user, and personally hate Microsoft's business practices... I think they are a horrible company in many, many ways.
Yet personally, I really admire Bill Gates. I admire what he does with his money for charity, and I admire the things he cares about.
It IS possible to think that Windows is garbage and Microsoft is a crappy company, and yet still admire their CEO.
Hell, I think that the Republicans are retarded and back-assward, yet I REALLY respect Arlen Specter and John McCain.
The individual is not the entity, so it's perfectly fine to want to bring down one, and praise the other. - majorbabu, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2honestly, even if you just focus of the percentage of the donation when compared to his net worth, its still a super kind act. you don't see a whole lot of billionaires doing the same. plus, you're forgetting the fact that there's NO SUCH THING as having enough money when you factor in human greed.
Sure he can buy almost any object he desires, but there's other things that he might actually lose out on.... for example, losing The Richest Man in the world title (that's pretty freaking prestigious and surely comes down as an asset that he might lose). Having the ability to buy small African nations for his backyard...
point is, just because you're that rich doesn't mean you have enough money to satisfy nasty human greed. so, this donation is still a very very generous offer. - jimthetaff, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Yeah, a great guy. A great OS too, let's face it I have tried linux dozens of times, dozens of distro's on dozens of pc's & notebooks over the years and it has nothing on windows. Don't get me wrong, I would really love to love Linux and fully support the open source community, but it's always a step behind, especially wifi compatibility! Yes I understand the closed source driver issues but I'm gonna use the most compatible, easy to install OS. I don't buy the "security issues" if Linux was used as widely as Windows it would become a big target also with just as many holes, vunerabilities, viruses, trojans and worms. Sure if you want a free os that can only perform limited functions then linux is the way to go, but if you want an OS that takes advantage of the latest technology and has excellent compatibility then there is only one, windows (including those poor excuses for computers that bear the name mac)
- Reddog_x2000, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Props to Bill. He's saving a lot of lives.
- Funster, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Some of the comments on this topic seem quite sad.
Before lambasting Bill Gates, maybe it's worth refecting on 'what you have done to make the world a better place'. What was your contribution, financial or otherwise?
Steve Jobs, was an adoptee & benefited from others charity & generousity. It's disappointing that he chooses to give so little back when he will never be able to spend all his wealth but mybe this will change in the future. - Dustyb, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1He is a good person no matter what I think of Microsoft. I like the fact that when I spend money on microsoft products it will eventually help out the greater good. Versus lining Steve Jobbs pockets. I cant see a way Gates can spend all his money he's probably earning it faster than he can find a charrity to spend 600m on.
- jobeats, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2"How much cash has the man got?"
try $46.5 and that's billion so 600m is chump change
http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/invest/forbes/P111715.asp?GT1=6236 - BeefandBeer, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Just last week, I had a very bad cough, I thought I had TB passed to me from a very rude person who coughed and didn't cover his mouth. It turned out I just had allergies. TB could kill people. It can be cured, but poor people couldn't afford to buy high priced anti-biotics, they would have to be very lucky to survive a TB infection relying on the immune system alone.
- Tweekster, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3I would like to know how you expect to give 600Million anonymously.
that organization will want to thank you, they will find out who gave it.
it wont be a secret for very long..
and why does anonyminity make it any more righteous? why cant someone give away a lot and get respect in the end? i swear some of you people have your priorities messed up you cant even say. "wow thats really great, im sure the charity will appreciate that etc"
you have to bitch about it instead
by the way, how much did you donate last year, and what percentage of your income was that....
oh wait, billG has you beat on both counts. - ezkiel, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1""'The campaign, backed by more than 400 organisations' lol it should be organizations...misspell..."
You're an idiot."
I always type 'your an idiot' to piss them off more. check defunker for the tshirt. damn grammer/spell check nazis. Should call em the F7 crew. - Reddog_x2000, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Re: Hotsauce
"What is the justification in your mind for spending the $30 million on a house?"
Why does he need to justify spending HIS money any way he wants?
Quick lesson in economics:
Lets say that there are six billion people in the world and the worlds total wealth is 6 billion dollars. Somehow, everyone has $1. Someone comes along and single-handedly, honestly, triples the worlds wealth. (Yes, I know, unrealistic) There are still 6 billion people but now the worlds total wealth is 18 billion. What is the proper distribution of wealth? Lots of lazy people will say that everyone should now have $3. But, they're wrong. The proper distribution of wealth is as follows: The guy who single handedly added 12 billion to the worlds wealth should now have $12,000,000,001. Everyone else has $1.
Some will complain that not fair. They don't have an argument. As I said, the guy did it single-handedly. No one else contributed anything. So, they get nothing. They've still got their $1. He didn't take anything from them. Some people will complain "But, I need more. I've got (insert problem)." Yeah, well, you get paid based on what you produce, not based on your need.
Yes, I know this is oversimplified. But, the principle is correct. Watch. You will soon see economies that tend to stress individual responsibility and respect property rights will tend to prosper. Those that tend to dole out lots of entitlement checks to non-productive people will flounder. - mrKhoa, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1600million is NOT "chump change" not matter how many billions of dollars you may have.
- redrebel, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Lots of people think Bill Gates and Microsoft are greedy and want to squeeze as much money as possible from people. I'm not really a user of Microsoft products and I prefer free software but..seriously, the people and corporations who actually buy Microsoft products - who are they? People in the west who can actually afford it (others just pirate or use alternatives), I say MORE POWER TO YOU MR GATES. I'm glad he's reaking in gross amounts of money and helping out like this, I dunno 'bout you but regardless of where you stand on Microsoft's software this is just really good.
Kinda feels like Robin Hood in a really global scale..or something.. - VulnoX, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1It does not have to be about anti-mac or pro-windows guys. This is about the people. Ford donates millions to different causes, and if you were to walk up to Bill Ford and say thank you, it does not mean you support Ford, or hate GM, or whatever, its just you thanking someone for making a difference.
Concentrate on that, and lets try and leave the bashing out of it. - stevelucky, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"organisations" is NOT a misspell. that's how they spell it in England and since the report was from the BBC...
i really like apple. i think they've made some great products. microsoft has made some great products. who's better? that's another argument for another day. steve jobs is the 194th richest man in the world, but i don't read the reports of him donating any of his hard-earned money to the needy. i don't know about any of you, but i would feel obligated to help the world out if i was blessed with that kind of prosperity. the amount of money that bill gates has given to schools, charities, etc... is mind boggling. i think he has gone above and beyond what most of us would do. any of you who doubt his motivations can stick it. let's give the man credit where credit is due, and right now bill gates deserves a boat load. - RiddickRom, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2A few stats from the Bill Gates foundation.
Number of employees: 250
Endowment: $28.8 billion
Total grant commitments since inception: $9,259,952,552
Geographic reach: The foundation supports grantees in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and we support work in more than 100 countries. About 60 percent of our grants go toward global efforts; the rest is dedicated to improving lives in the United States.
28 billion dollars given away. Anyone, absolutely anyone that cannot marvel at the amazing good that has done in the world and concentrates on some petty BS about windows vs OS X seriously needs to get their priorities in order. It is nothing short of sickening to read some of these comments. - RichPowers, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1By giving this much money to the cause, Gates has single-handedly changed the world more than most of us combined will do in a lifetime...and he's not even done yet.
By then again, most of your guy’s ideas of changing the world involve spending countless hours on your Linux rig, toying with Open Source software, and then posting about how you ***** over “M$” on the Slashdot boards. - Linuxrocks, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2You people are dissing him are idiots. Truly morons. Maybe the OS isn't perfect and MS has a monopoly, but let's be honest. The guy is a great person.
Tow are you talking about Gates? He takes from the poor? So the roughly $29 billion he has given to charity means nothing?
You guys are unbelievable. Gates deserved the people of the year award and he keeps proving why he deserves it. Props to him.
I agree, the problem is Apple fans are a bunch of rich hip people. So they like to insult people who give away money instead of buying the new iPod every year. Even if Bill Gates is extrememly rich, he is extrememly generous. He gives away much larger percentiles of his fortune than almost anyone else. - Salmonax, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Go Bill.
It's great to see an executive/CEO type who doesn't settle for the usual corporate bravado of "changing the world" through products and services and goes beyond to things that really matter. - mathie, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Don't like MS that much but have huge respect for Mr. Bill Gates
- Malik112099, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2fanboys and haters aside, Bill Gatyes DOES give a LOT of his money to charity...i dont think its for tax breaks either...something tells me Bill Gates isnt worried about paying taxes......good man, good cause....
- topgigmedia, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1$ is $ when it is donated... I think most of us are missing the point that this is $600,000,000 that now can be used towards a cure/tratments that wasn't there yesterday. No one *obligated* to donate their $. Hence the term, "donation". Arguing % of total net worth v. what is donated is not scalable anyway. If Bill gave all of his $ away then there would be an end to the giving... if he keeps a good chunk of his fortune and it is alowed to mature, he can keep giving endlessly.
- purdo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0it wasn't an enquiry merely a rhetorical question... May i suggest you shouldn't be on digg for not knowing that!
- deimos, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0@curtisthompson
Actually, Bill Gates apparently was planning on waiting til he retired from Microsoft to do anything, just so he wouldn't have two big things to concentrate on and worry about. Whether that's the honest truth or not, I don't know, and you don't either. I tend to believe people are normally pretty decent human beings though if given the chance, so I'll accept that that was what he was going to do. Anyway, read up a little on http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1142276-1,00.html
After getting hundreds of solicitations a day, his dad was actually the one who essentially said "You know what, I'll handle the majority of it, you just gimme money." So that's what he did.
What are you doing to help out?
What are ANY of you bashers doing to help out? - ElectricGrandpa, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0
"try $46.5 and that's billion so 600m is chump change"
Even for Bill gates, time == money. He still spends time to make that money. - lezombi, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0bill has donated alot of money to universities and organizations, which makes me respect him. i wish steve jobs was doing the same.
- sauvaget, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0excellent job gates! i wish i could do the same.
pity i'm broke. - Rice, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I'm going to make it my job to answer questions in diggs for now on...
How much cash has the man got?
I'll answer this one with a question... Why are you even asking? If you don't know, you shouldn't be on digg. - GTAcrimelord, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Despite all the "bad" attention he gets, you really have to hand it to the king of Microsoft. Sure he makes a lot of money, but he definitely has been taking on an ambitious effort to donate to global charities/organizations for the benefit of mankind. After all, he could just horde the money like some other mega-corporation big wigs.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0HottSauce - What comes to mind for me is, you invest in sending 500 kids to college, maybe 50 students do anything worthwhile and even those few turn out to be Greedy Execs or CEOs who screw over thousands of their workers. Your money did far more harm than the simple choice of spending it on yourself. This whole arguement is riddled with if's and but's however it's still pretty valid.
In this case I have no clue of the risks involved, but just consider that Bill isn't putting all his money in one spot, which is a very wise decision IMO. - KoZo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0BILL gives money, u dont.. so STFU..
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Good job bill! Instead of wasting your money like most other holleywood stars do, give it to charity! (Although he probably does waste his money AND give to charity. He's just that rich)
+digg
Another reason I like microsoft. - brhad56, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Here's the title i want to see.
Gates donates $600 Million to Linux - Zodzilla, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I just don't understand why people still don't give credit to the man for being donating $900 million dollars to a good cause. I mean, regardless of whether or not he should have given anonymously, or whether OS X is a superior operating system to Windows, or if he's just doing to just to get a tax break, the guy just contributed $900 million dollars to help fight one of the worst infectious diseases in our modern world. That's $900 million dollars out of his hand and into the rest of the world. I'm not saying that I admire or like the guy, but people should be a little more appreciative of that gesture, just as people should be appreciative of their next door neighbor for pitching in $50 bucks to the Red Cross or other charities.
- kahsheung, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Ask the ppl receiving TB treatment whether BillG's a good person. Put yourself in the shoes of those poor sick people. What would the situation be for you if it wasn't for his donations.
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