Exxon Mobile Execs care not about prices

That's capitalism: The more money you have, the less it's worth. The guy on the next level up from us always seems extravagant in his spending. A socialist will say that society should bar anyone from being that rich. But if you believe in the capitalist system, you can hardly fault the super-rich from squandering the money that has so little value to them.

 

Not all well-to-do people are as inconsiderate as this. No hard & fast rule there ... but having a driver / company / service shuttle you around is advantagous. It means if there's an accident & the wealthy person's vehicle is at fault, the victim can't reach in to the fat cat's deap pockets ... you have to go after the limo company. So it ends up being practical.

 

So? I would be surprised if you could find a large corporation that doesn't have any execs riding around in limos. Riding in limos is what rich people do. If it's his money he can spend it however he wants. If it is the corporation's money then it is added to his compensation. Personal use of a company automobile is reportable income.

 

I guess now wouldn't be a very good time to mention that when I'm out of town on business I'll frequently get a town car or limo to shuttle me around. In the case of going to dinner or out for drinks with colleagues I'll typically have the limo wait... and in the summertime that means the limo driver is more than likely sitting their idling his engine with the A/C on for up to 4 hours. :yield:

 

hey, i don't like exxon either...

but that fellow with the camera was harassing the exec. i mean, thats a stupid question to ask someone obviously with a lot of money. and he's in a limo? oooooh what a bad guy!

i'm going to go ahead and say that video was pointless.

 

When I was carpooling, my coworker was a guy (he's still a friend) that used to work at Microsoft... in fact, he traveled the world for Microsoft, setting up the shows and conventions.

He told me that, while all the top brass would use limos, Bill Gates never would. He'd rent himself a midsize or smaller car (Ford Taurus or Escort - type) and drive himself around.

Oh, and BG also took my friend out to breakfast when he found him busy setting up things before a convention. "Hey, have you eaten? well, come on then." Not everyone with "too much money" is a total jerk.

 

Are you referring to the person in the video as a "total jerk"? Now is he a total jerk because he has money? Or was he a total jerk because he didn't respond to being harassed by some asshat with a video camera in his face?

 

I think that what a lot of folks are overlooking is that he rented the limos to "take him to the Masters." I presume that refers to the Masters golf tournament. He had probably flown in, and needed a ride the 9 miles. And lots of people (rich or poor) want to make an impression on others. So he rents a limo. He doesn't care about the cost, because he's rich. But he does not want to be seen arriving in a Ford Taurus.

Conspicuous consumption.

My sister, BTW, who is nowhere near the wealth of the guy in the video, will rent a limo rather than a taxi, because she loves the luxury of it, and because at nearly 100 lbs overweight most regular taxis are not very comfortable. And no, she does not care the slightest about gas prices or the environmental consequences of poor FE.

And as long as we all drive stinkers, we're really the same as my sister and the limo-riding exec. It's just a matter of degree. The only people here who have any right to point fingers are the bicyclists and the pedestrians.

On the other hand, the oil exec probably belongs in jail for his share of the accumulated crimes of his industry. :whoo:

As for Gates, his personal life is exemplary. He gives away mountains of money and lives far more simply than anyone else in his income region. Too bad he made his money by selling such crappy software. :behindsofa:

 

I have to agree with you on this one. I met him when we were working as a beta site for OS/2. He seemed like a nice guy, and very down to earth. Microsoft is a great marketing company, but I don't think much of their software. That's not to say that everything they make is bad, but a lot of their focus is on dancing baloney instead of real features and solid software.

Tom

 

Speaking of the Masters... did anyone see the ExxonMobil ad that was endorsed by Lefty?

Man, was I ever disappointed, being a huge Mickelson fan all these years. For the first time I was not sad to see Phil falter in a tournament.

 

Crappy Software wasn't Gates' mortal sin. Microsoft Legal made a living by running better products out of business. Even when Gates lost multimillion dollar law suits for this behavior, what would they do? Offer & Compromise ... to give tons of FREE Windoze based PC's to Schools, in lieu of those millions. Why? Because that way he could push Apple out of the Schools. That teeny example is just a snowflake on the tip of his iceberg.

 

^ yep.

gates is the ultimate hustler, much respect even though i am a mac-guy for life now.