what is the definition of wealthy?
 

i've been wondering with all the talk about unfair benefits to the "wealthy" - who is wealthy? is it someone who makes $75K, $100K, $150K, $200K... what income level makes you say "that person is wealthy, he's not like us?"

All relative, no?

My personal opinion and expereince tells me that it's far more about who you are who you know than how much you have. 7 figures in the bank is nice but with the right contacts in the right places by being born into the right family and it's 8 or 9 in no time at all.

my personal definition is that if you can maintain your current lifestyle without working for 5 years without touching the principal in your investments - then you are wealthy.

For the purposes of unfair benefits (such as in the book I mentioned), it is on the order of a million dollars.

It's definite if the person would be capable of living comfortably off of interest on their investments.

People with lower incomes than that, say the figures you mention, are wealthy as well, but are more upper middle class in my estimation. At the lower end of that range, it would depend on conditions such as family size and location.

that's the point, jag. it all depends on where you are sitting. i had a distant cousin refer to me as wealthy. i almost sprayed my guinness on him in laughter. to him, i'm wealthy. to me, one of my mentor's is wealthy, but he doesn't consider himself to be so. in his words, "i'm comfortable" he looks to others that he considers wealthy. i'm curious though because some people refer to "wealthy people" as if they had the plague, never realizing that wealth is all relative... (sort of like a fiance in kentucky.)

that's the point, it can't be definite. i've got some clients that live off their gains, without touching principle but have WELL under a million dollars. under your definition, yes. under mine - maybe. it isn't important how much you make, it is how much you spend (or want to spend)

I live in a city where it is not uncommon to a $30,000 pricetag on a watch in the window and to see 3 luxury cars parked on one road, cash strapped means you can't afford to have a new yacht built for the summer season in Italy. Personally i think when you start getting above 5-6m - the point where you can live well above average purely on interest and still grow the principal above inflation without having to make a return above 5%.

Then there's the 100m+ category which is when you start playing games with the big boys, property, directorships and all the other fun stuff.

To me wealthy means being able to drive around and know you can buy anything you see. It means you could stop working right now and live better than most people for the entire rest of your life including international travel, new clothing, owning several homes, etc. It means you never work for money; money always works for you.

Really wealthy means you can no longer spend all of the money you have. Bill Gates is unable to spend himself penniless during his lifetime.

I think earning 1 million dollars per year is above average, but not wealthy.

i understand that jag - there is no question about the wealth status of those individuals. i wasn't really even going that large scale. this is in my mind because i was speaking with someone who stated in no uncertain terms that anyone who makes more than $200k in a year is "wealthy" and should pay 50% in taxes so that the "little guy" doesn't. personally, i think that is bullshit. both guys work equally as hard for what they have, why should the one who makes more have to give up a higher percentage of pay. that is the definition of unfair. it smells of wealth redistribution to me.

I don't know about that. I think I could blow 60Billion fairly easily if I put my mind to it. Hell you could drop the whole lot into the US national debt as a goodwill effort and it'd barely be a blip.

Hi - radar! LOL you must have radar in your ass! i just commented in another thread where we are talking about taxes that i hope you don't drop into it. whenever we talk taxes, i'm afraid you'll burst a blood vessel.

a la Brewster's Millions ?

The middle class carries the tax burden, the rich don't pay tax (you should know), the poor can't pay enough. Until people hit that number where it's worthwhile to invest in some serious tax minimisation machinery they get screwed and thus the government keeps running, it's part of the circle of life.

I can discuss taxes rationally just as I can discuss armed robbery rationally. They are the same thing. And I thought this thread was about wealth, not about taxes. Personally I think if a person makes a billion dollars a second, nobody else is entitled to a penny including the government. I think the same thing is true if that person makes minimum wage.

And for the record I'm not against all taxes, I'm only against any taxes based on income like state or federal income tax, social security tax, payroll tax, etc.

here we go.......

radar it was a joke, based more on timing that anything else. this thread is about wealth, but jag and i have drifted a bit - we're both bouncing between two threads.

Indeed. It's 1:30am here and I'm waiting for a render to finish so this is the most interesting way of passing time.

uh-huh. a render?

3d work, maya to be exact.
Ok, a render and too much coffee.

I sort of miss 3d work. I should play more with POVRay...

But I enjoy playing with other peoples 3d work (computer games) too much.

I've sworn off games, too addictive, the only game I play now is Transport Tycoon and that's only when i'm goofing off browsing already. I find 3d frustrating as hell but some things it's the only way.

Sworn off games? But... But... DOOM 3 is gold!

i think when people say it's all relative, what they mean is:

middle class = me
poor = less $$ than me
rich = more $$ than me

-sm

Yes and no, there are extremes that will always be 'rich' or 'poor' but that median mark moves a heck of a lot and I think it isn't always as clear cut as that.

One that allows a person to buy pizza or other delicious fat food on a whim, without working it into their budget.

That's my definition now. With a little luck that will change in a few months.

Wealth is power.

Not on a linear scale though and it's a farly poor way to get it.

Just to expand:

Wealth is consumption is corporations is capitalism is the West is the most powerful.


But I would define a 'rich' person as someone for whom money is not an object - they can buy whatever they want. In literal terms, this depends on the society they live in. In this country, I reckon around £750,000 a year.

750?
I could spend that in an afternoon.

Money is no object is equally relative. I know a guy that is worth around 80m, he wants to be worth around 500m so he can buy a 10m yacht without really thinking about it.

What, personally? Are you married?

It is important that money remains relative for its very survival. A meritocracy cannot function if you can see the top of the ladder, you just have to keep climbing.

750?
How much would a London penthouse be? Throw in an Aston Martin DB9, a couple of tailor made suits, some nice cellar additions, maybe a beneteau.

You are correct though. It's been well proven the increased happiness from buying stuff is entirely temporary and that people at almost every level have the same level of happiness.

Wealthy is having the US Coast Guard take care of your private security needs...

Wealthy is having private security who can take out the US coast guard.

Lots of variables.

I live in Arlington, VA, a suburb of Washington D.C. I just looked up the demographics for my county. I make almost exactly the same as the median income for a male in this county. That makes it sound like I'm right smack dab in the middle. Only thing is, I'm married with two children. My wife stays at home to raise the kids. That's rare. So as a household, we make about 20% less than the median household in this county. As a family, we make about 30% less than the median family for the county. So depending on what you use as a measurement, I am smack dab in the middle of middle class, or I am at the bottom end of middle class.

If you compare me to the country as a whole, I do a bit better, but the cost of living is higher here.

What's wealthy? It's all really just semantics. I personally think that even if you have to work for your money, you can still be wealthy. Doctors and lawyers are generally wealthy, in my opinion, and they need to work. You can't put a figure on it, because it depends on what your expenses are. A family of four needs more money to survive than a single person. If I had to put a figure on it, I would say that if you make over 150,000 per year, you are wealthy. A large family should be able to live well on that just about anywhere in the US.

Penthouse - £2m
DB9 - £150,000
Suits - £5,000
Boat - £500,000
Knowledge that more stuff brings happiness - Priceless

There is nothing that money can't buy. Forget high-risk investments like Love. You've got a Mastercard.

Spending enough to change the lives of an entire region of a 3rd world country to look like a complete and utter wanker, Priceless.

Wanking while presiding over the entire western social paradigm - too fucking expensive.

People like that hire other people to wank them.

Oh stop milking it.

(sorry)

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

33 CFR Part 165

[CGD-13-04-033]
RIN 1625-AA87


Security Zone Regulations; Elliot Bay and Lake Washington, WA

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Temporary final rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Coast Guard is establishing temporary security zones
around the M/V ARGOSY VIRGINIA 5, M/V ARGOSY CELEBRATIONS AND P/C
OLYMPUS while underway, anchored, or moored on Lake Washington,
Washington. In addition, the Coast Guard is establishing temporary
security zones around Pier 70 and Amgen located on Elliott Bay and the
National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Sandpoint
Facility and Gates Residence located on Lake Washington. Entry into
these zones is prohibited unless authorized by the Captain of the Port,
Puget Sound or his designated representatives. The Coast Guard is
establishing these temporary security zones around these waterways and
these vessels to provide safety and security during the National
Governors Association (NGA) Conference. The Captain of the Port, Puget
Sound, Washington is taking this action to safeguard the dignitaries,
official parties, VIP's and other participants (``attendees'')
attending the NGA Conference from terrorism, sabotage, or other
subversive acts. Entry into these zones is prohibited unless authorized
by the Captain of the Port.

DATES: This rule is effective from 11 a.m on July 17, through 2 a.m. on
July 19 2004, unless sooner cancelled by the Captain of the Port.

Get a room, you two. :)

With jag's £750K, all three of us could get a room, in the Ritz, with champagne, and wanking assistants. For a week. ;)

sorry for lowering the tone :rolleyes:

It's already down in the cellar (cue groaning and salvo of rotting fruit).

Sorry, I only love Jag for his mind. Of course if he wanted to put Pete and myself up at a nice place in Luzerne... we could cover the wanking part. :D

Well if bush gets re-elected I promised to accept political refugees.

Does that mean he's a designated national treasure?

Or was this just a bennie from the anti-trust settlement?

It's just that lots of admins want to kill him on a regular basis.

Maybe I can bring it up again?

(Sorry again)

Griff you don't know what you've just signed yourself up to.

Maybe more appropriate in the sexual injuries thread?

Being bitten by a militant socialist Polynesian prostitute while getting a blow job - priceless.

Oh yeah, like that's difficult.

Why should all CG recruits be over six feet tall?

So they can wade back to shore in case of an emergency...