What do you think?

[ironmaiden]

I had a coworker who had this theory that if you divvied up all the money in the world, 5 years later the people who used to be rich would be rich again, the people who were poor would be poor again. Of course there would be a few exceptions.

On Oprah, they did a story about a Showtime producer who gave a homeless man $100,000. They did psyche and drug testing on him first, gave him some financial and psychological counselling and set him off to do whatever he wanted. He blew it all and then some. He spent money on an expensive truck, bought stuff for others. He got an apartment and spent money furnishing it. He never got a job although he was offered some. Now he's homeless again. He's bitter at the world, cause the people who surrounded him when he had money simply disappeared when it ran out. He said it seemed like so much money, that he felt it would never run out.

[Persimmon Lace]

I totally agree with that. I watched that and Oprah was stunned that he got nothing from the experiment except that the world treated him bad and he was purely innocent in all of it. He was offered counselling but he didn't do either the financial or the psychological counselling. That really caught my attention. I didn't really feel sorry for him much, there's a whole documentary on this and I would like to see the rest of the story, as they say, because they should one of his family members saying, they wished he would get a job and save his money. I wonder when it is showing.

[nuisance26]

~Interesting theory. It assumes people who are currently rich possess the knowledge that resulted in riches. Anyone who's seen the Hiltons knows that this assumption isn't true across the board. It also assumes that poor people are poor solely because of their poor choices and ignorance. Anyone who's read the Book of Job know this is also not true. The root of the theory is that knowledge is power. Rich people that have earned their wealth know this. Handing wealth to uneducated people will not, in many cases, motivate them them to seek the knowledge they need to make their stable condition permanent. We see this often in the news as yet another lottery winner ends up in bankruptcy. Can't wait to read other people's opinion on this.~

[tlenad]

Honestly, I think there would be the same number of rich and poor people. Chances are those people that do not know how to build wealth and have no self control would wind up being poor while those who did would be rich.

I have the feeling a lot of trust fund babies would have their eyes opened to what the world is like for the poor.

[Persimmon Lace]

The theory wouldn't apply to Paris Hilton as she has done nothing to create wealth, but it would probably apply to the relative that created the wealth as he/they did the work. The economic welfare that some rich parents bestow upon their children can indeed be a limiting thing.

[Emerald_Mommy]

Interesting theory! I agree that a lot of the "trust fund" babies would probably not still be rich but you never know...

[FrugalMomof3]

I believe in that theory BUT it can be a theory that's changed, especially for those who would be most greatful for that amount of money and know how to manage it wisely.

In most instances if I received that money now it would pay off my mortgage, then in turn the money I was paying towards mortgage would be saved, in turn making me wiser to saving/investing and budgeting.

[cas519]

This theory mentions a redistribution of cash but says nothing about redistributing knowledge. Even if you take their money away, the rich have attended better schools and would still have the upper hand at once again obtaining their wealth.
Also, being a 'trust fund baby' does not guarantee wealth. No matter how much the trust fund is for, if it's not managed properly it would be no different than someone winning the lottery. I know these kids don't manage their own money, but neither does anyone who's ever invested in a mutual fund. IMHO

[Persimmon Lace]

Education doesn't always play apart in wealth building. Knowledge is only useful if you use it. Some of the wealthiest people here in my town didn't finish college and have built some huge wealth and now employ alot of people. Drive, determination and the ability to push through adversity have made a lot of people wealthy, the belief that it's better to save your money and build your business instead of buying the biggest house you can afford creates wealth. Sometimes it's dumb luck. But mostly in this society, not the general world, just here, I believe people can't/won't/don't build real wealth is because they have mortgaged their future in a lot of cases or made decisions without thinking of implications. The only real failure in life is not learning from your mistakes, those who continue to do the same thing and getting the same result will remain poor. Just like the man on Oprah who didn't learn that he was part and parcel the problem could be given another 100,000 and be in the same boat again.

[lottaLove]

I think the way you have lived your life up until this point plays a big role in whether you would be successful in such an experiment. Some people have that "go get it" personality that will let nothing stop them. They could lose 10 million dollars, be poor for a year, and then be richer than before. It is a combination of smarts, creativity and perseverance.
If you are the type of person who feels the world owes you something, you might not be so successful. You might see material items, and get the "I deserve this" kind of attitude. Instead of paying off debts or managing the money in an investment account, you might squander it all on these material things. I think that the man on the Oprah show felt that because he was homeless before, living without all of these material things, he deserved them.
So from that aspect, I agree with the idea that we would have the same number of poor people and rich people as before, however I don't think the exact same people would fall into the same categories.

[McD]

I think that some people would learn and I think that some people would be in for a rude awakening. There are some people who have no desire to change their life or their position. They will always remain in the position they are in, until they WANT to change.

However, I do think that Paris Hilton is a smart woman. She plays dumb. I mean, sure she was born wealthy, but look at what she's done to market herself. Instead of letting the naughty home video get her down or send her into hiding, she profitted from it. She is shrewd enough to sell her name to cologne etc and on her television show. She is able to market her name and make money off of selling her name. To me, that's smart.

[autumnlynn]

I also saw that Oprah. I was really shocked at how that man used his money. It would have been a great opportunity for him to turn his life around, but he just blew the money.

I had heard the theory about the rich and poor before. I think a lot of people need to have a change in their behavior in order to come out a winner.

[Telephus44]

I tend to agree with the idea that in 5 years basically the same people would be rich and the same people would be poor. Of course there would be exceptions. But I think for the most part it comes down to whether you know how to attract and build wealth, or not. And I think that the people that are currently rich for the most part are better at attracting and building wealth than the people who are currently poor are.

[Scattymum]

I think a lot of people need to have a change in their behavior in order to come out a winner.

Totally agree, If it had been me 5 years ago I probably would have blown it.

If it had been me today I would make a go of it!

but yes, I think that the same people would be rich again, with exceptions of course

[Nada.Leona]

It depends on what your beliefs are regarding money. I always said if I won any great amount of money, I'd buy myself some property, pay off my ex-husband's education (which of course is not gonna happen now! ) and go to bed.

If you gave Sam Walton or Bill Gates that money, they'd probably do exactly what he's done with his money -- put it to good use and make more money off of it.

If you gave Paris Hilton or Ivanka Trump that money, they'd probably do exactly what they've done with their money -- blow it on whatever their hearts desire at that percise moment. Daddy will always give me more.

It all depends on what you've been taught over the years. If your family has taught you the value of frugality, chances are you'd squirrel away the money until you found a way to make it work for you. If you, on the other hand, were taught that money is constantly available to do with as you please, you would not worry about tossing $1000 on this and $250 on that, and maybe $575 for this, etc.