The Bottom Two Billion

Greed is not good. I dig Gordon Gekko but I dig Bill Gates more.

Watched a segment on 60 Minutes last night about Bill Gates, whose personal fortune is estimated to be 67 billion dollars. That's BILLION baby, billion.

He is putting all his energy into eradicating major diseases in the world and making life livable for those who suffer. He retired from Microsoft five years ago.

He is focusing on what he calls the bottom two billion. Two billion people in the world who live on two dollars a day or less. People with inadequate housing, inadequate health care, inadequate plumbing, inadequate food.

That is one third of the world's population. ONE THIRD.

He is focusing on improving the odds of the millions of children under the age of five who die every year from preventable diseases; one every 20 seconds.

He is working with inventors to create new technologies to bring relief to those who suffer; he is working with the medical community, and he is doing it with an entrepreneurs spirit. Investigating opportunities, encouraging innovation.

This is a man worthy of maximum respect.

There are a lot of millionaires in this country. Hell, there are a lot of billionaires.

Imagine what the world would be like if every single one of them threw some of their wealth at serious issues, life issues, issues of human survival, health, happiness and dignity.

The world would be gentler, it would be more fair, there would be less disease, less suffering. And, consequently, more people who at least have a chance to contribute something significant to humanity.

Think of all the beauty, all the intelligence, all the uniqueness that is being lost to the preventable deaths of children under the age of five.

What an unspeakable loss, what a lessening of humanity.

But the rich are greedy. They want to protect their wealth, rather than to protect the life of another human being.

Consider the turds on Wall Street, who came close to destroying our economy and got away unpunished. And are going about doing it again.

All in the name of designer suits, premium Scotch, Cuban cigars and Italian sports cars. How is it that they can walk around and not see or not care about people struggling? How is it they can watch the news and ignore the suffering, other than to wonder how they can manipulate it into investment opportunities?

What is it about the human experience that we can be so selfish? So cold?

This is something I struggle to understand into infinity.

If you have more money than you need, it should be a logical thought process to wonder how you can use that money to help others. Why is it that the people I hear spouting off about being grateful for what you have, are those who don't have much?

Maybe because they have been sold the concept of gratefulness.

We are superficial in this country. More concerned with flaunting success, than with using it as a weapon for good.

I checked out the 60 Minutes website a little while ago, and there were negative comments in there from people criticizing Bill Gates for various reasons for what he is doing.

Are you serious?

No matter how he got there, no matter what he is doing or how he is doing it, he is trying to help humanity. He is trying to improve the lives of billions of people. He is trying to give children a chance.

This is what disturbs me on an even greater level. Along with the greed displayed by the privileged, we have a negativity buried deep within those who are not so lucky.

What is it about the human experience that we can be so selfish? So cold?