“The first action to be taken is to pull ourselves together. If we are all going to be destroyed by an atomic bomb, let that bomb when it comes find us doing sensible and human things praying, working, teaching, reading, listening to music, bathing the children, playing tennis, chatting to our friends over a pint and a game of darts—not huddled together like frightened sheep and thinking about bombs. They may break our bodies (a microbe can do that) but they need not dominate our minds.”
—C.S. Lewis, “On Living in an Atomic Age,” 1948
Always worth having this Kurt Vonnegut letter around where you can read it.
When you become extremely rich, you become isolated. You will be surrounded by people, but they will not be equals or peers who will talk frankly and honestly with you. They will only be there because of the money and if the money vanishes, so will they. You will be, essentially, alone with your staff and the constant buzz of people attempting to get something from you. You will trust no-one, feel no loyalty, and avoid facing what you have lost. On paper billionaires are rich, but in practice they are some of the poorest people alive.
Looking at my inbox
mutant-what-not
