The Gates Foundation. Yeah, that place where Bill Gates is spending all his time and money nowadays. What is it all about? Well, the Wikipedia article covers a whole lot about it. I have to say… I’m actually not all that impressed by what they are doing. Yeah, they are doing some things. But the thing about Bill Gates pulling out of his professional software career entirely? That doesn’t seem to have really been a good choice. Yeah, I’ve heard others say things would be better off if he kept going, and at this point in time, I have to agree myself. Nevertheless, when people get up to his age, many of them retire around that point.
But, now this is the most surprising thing of all. The Gates Foundation is not meant to last forever. Actually, many of the agreements tie the lifespan of the foundation to the lifespan of the founders and the major donors. When they die, so does the Gates Foundation die. Why am I so shocked at this? It’s shocking because for quite while, I thought the Gates Foundation was not merely a way for Bill Gates to donate ot charitable causes, but also a means to protect his assets. Yeah, I mean sure, put most of your asset value and net worth in the Gates Foundation, and it is protected there because your foundation’s causes are getting in good with the liberals who will let their guard down and not tax you so heavily, right? Yeah, indeed, that is correct. But if you suddenly banish your asset value from the foundation after your death, those assets are not being protected by anyone anymore. They just run the very high risk of become gone, forever, likely having been spent in an imprudent manner to empty them away as quickly as possible.
20200214/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gates_foundation