The Average American Billionare
Jacob Harris
America, the land of capitalism, freedom, and everything that is good and extravagant, has its fair share of wealthy citizens. So what's it like being a billionaire in America? Well, let's take a closer look.
That's right, I said billionare
Out of the top thirty wealthiest men to ever live in America, none made bellow 30 billion dollars. The average was around 60 billion, and the single most wealthy American there ever, John D. Rockefeller, almost beat the 200 mark. That's a metric boat-load of cash.
So what does it take to be a multi-billionare?
Well unfortunately one of the major requirements is living in the late 19th to early 20th centuries. Only two of the thirty wealthiest men in America made it to the 21st century(Bill Gates and Warren E. Buffet). This is mostly due to the kind of business that makes one rich: Heavy industry. Whether it be the steel business (a la Andrew Carnegie), or Rockefeller himself (oil refinement), heavy industry was the most lucrative way to make ones fortune, and the so called "Gilded Age" (around 1880 to 1920), was the best time for such businesses. Industry was on the rise and government regulation of businesses was still in its mewling infancy. You could go the J.P. Morgan route and make your fortune from financing and playing around with the stock market, but either way it's going to take some hard work, shady deals, selfishness, and moral ambiguity.
"Selfishness? But mister, my mommy says that sharing is carring and that I should always be nice to other people."
Well then, little Billy, your mother is a godless communist who hates freedom and capitalism. It takes a lot of ethical wrongdoings to get to the top. Before he started his whole thing with the railroads, Commodore Vanderbilt made lots of money through illegal runs across rivers with steamboats to undercut his competition. J.P. Morgan established control over most of the steel business after buying out Carnegie and sold stocks of his company at inflated prices. You don't get to be a billionaire if you're a nice person.
"Mister, all of those wealthy people are boys, and I'm a girl."
Well, Billy, that's unfortunate for you.