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Warren Buffett makes good after getting word his shareholders stiffed an Omaha waitress
Jen Hayden
Daily Kos Staff
2018/06/11 · 20:44
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WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 13: Warren Buffett speaks onstage during Fortune's Most Powerful Women Summit - Day 2 at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel on October 13, 2015 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Fortune/Time Inc)
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According to the Omaha World-Herald, shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway, the third largest public company in the world with $702 billion in assets, were out for a celebratory lunch during the company’s annual meeting and they stiffed a waitress at an Omaha Mexican restaurant who was overwhelmed with the large crowd. Not cool at all! Anyway, word got back to Warren Buffet and the notoriously humble billionaire was not happy and made good on the stiffed tip.
Word reached Berkshire headquarters and the company’s chairman, who asked his staff to reach out to the restaurant and then sent the waitress a check to make up for the missing tip, along with a note of apology.
We can’t tell the source of the tale, but we’re assured that it’s true. It’s part of Warren Buffett’s effort to make sure everyone — including Omahans who serve — has a good time during Berkshire’s special week.
The notoriously frugal billionaire, who’s net worth is $85 billion, lives in the house he bought in 1958, buys hailed damaged cars for the savings and is known for clipping coupons.
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Jen Hayden
June 11 · 08:44:22 PM
Tip Jar
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Another Mr Brown
June 11 · 08:54:38 PM
Humility makes the great truly great!
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dmhlt 66 Another Mr Brown
June 12 · 12:26:24 AM
Warren Buffett to Trump:
“Have you no sense of decency, sir?”
Warren Buffett tore into Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at a campaign rally for Hillary Clinton on Monday, criticizing Trump’s war of words with the family of a Muslim American soldier who was killed in action.
… Buffett took exception to Trump’s claim that he, like the family of Army Capt. Humayun Khan, had made sacrifices. “How in the world can you stand up to a couple of parents who lost a son and talk about sacrificing because you were building a bunch of buildings?” Buffett said. “Trump and his family have sacrificed nothing; building buildings is not sacrifice.”
“I ask Donald Trump: ‘Have you no sense of decency, sir?’” Buffett said, echoing a famous quotation from the anti-communist Army-McCarthy hearings in the 1950s.
[Emphasis added]
www.marketwatch.com/…
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ArcticStones dmhlt 66
June 12 · 12:54:34 AM
Good for Warren Buffet! I remember this.
One more thing: Mr Buffett, please carry out a take-over of Sinclair Broadcast, and create a network that broadcasts real news instead of vile right-wing propaganda.
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charliehall2 ArcticStones
June 12 · 01:26:40 AM
He will if its stock price falls. He bought the obnoxious right wing newspaper the Richmond Times Dispatch a few years ago. But he never buys a company he doesn't think he can make money with.
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AppleP charliehall2
June 12 · 01:32:13 AM
I could understand that if he uses other people’s money. His job is to make them money, and he does it very well.
If he used his own money, however, he could help fight against the propaganda machine on the right and possibly make some money in the process.
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Baphomet AppleP
June 12 · 05:55:16 PM
There is o reason to expect that Mr. Buffet should should use his money to redress grievances or right wrongs that are the responsibility of the general populace. Sinclair broadcasting is a result of stupidity and selfishness on the pat of of our system. You want them to go South, stop patronizing them and their users.
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Things Come Undone charliehall2
June 12 · 05:28:05 AM
News has been declining in share for years, tv, cable are battling hulu, net flicks, Amazon,.
Sorry network tv has been putting out even worse than normal programing the last few years in an attempt to make people buy hulu, Netficks, Amazon, Cable tv.
Sinclair seems to think being the most racist in red states will win them the younger viewers advertisers want or are they trying to brainwash their younger viewers?
Regardless Warren is the only guy smart enough I’d trust to make a profit off of tv,cable, media etc but so far he has staid away because there just might not be a long term profit to be made.
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Odysseus Things Come Undone
June 12 · 02:08:05 PM
Part of that decline is the terrible product. Watch your local “news”. Count the number of facts named in the half-hour broadcast.
Broadcast TV and terrestrial radio seem *designed* to waste time rather than inform.
Get serious.
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Trail Rider Odysseus
June 12 · 02:17:02 PM
I agree. They spend fully a third of their time with “teasers”, 15% with good-natured bantering, 10% with displaying practiced sadness or concern over troubling news, 8% leading into commercials, and divide the rest into top headlines, sports, weather, and fluff pieces. And that’s after you cut out 8-10 minutes per half-hour, for commercials.
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Ninalyn Trail Rider
June 12 · 05:53:53 PM
Precisely. And a fluff piece wouldn't be so bad if it was like….the last two minutes of an hour broadcast. “Today we leave you on this note, a person in Idaho found the lost dog of a person in California who lost their beloved pet while on vacation, the two people plan to meet up this week to get Fido back where he belongs.” After some very hard news, that would be a welcome catharsis and also help to remind people good things can happen if we appeal to our own better natures. But when half the program is about which of the Kids Kardashian are banging someone new this week….WHO CARES???
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Da Rock Odysseus
June 12 · 02:51:14 PM
On air news (including cable) seems to be “reporters” reading what real reporters are putting on their respective websites and then asking “experts” what they think about what the real reporter says.
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Mustang3 Odysseus
June 12 · 05:56:21 PM
Not only to waste time, but to appeal to humanity’s worst instincts and cravings, as well.
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Mustang3 Things Come Undone
June 12 · 05:55:34 PM
<<Sorry network tv has been putting out even worse than normal programing the last few years in an attempt to make people buy hulu, Netficks, Amazon, Cable tv.»
So true. TV now truly is a vast wasteland of uniform and braindead crap, like TLC and other channels, along with the essential ratfucking of the Discovery channel and the History channel, and even PBS has gone so far downhill as to be unrecognizable. Really horrible.
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billy98102 ArcticStones
June 12 · 06:06:33 PM
most excellent idea!
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D Browne dmhlt 66
June 12 · 05:40:29 PM
I think we all know the answer to Mr. Buffet’s question.
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drios dmhlt 66
June 12 · 06:07:04 PM
Amrb Mr. Buffet !
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Vinnie Vegas Another Mr Brown
June 12 · 04:15:35 AM
Don't tell Golda Meir that!
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Mustang3 Another Mr Brown
June 12 · 05:52:32 PM
And, as a scientist, I have noticed repeatedly that the top performers in science are usually some of the nicest, most generous, and most helpful people in the world to those young scientists coming up in the world behind them. The ones that aren’t, often don’t go very far, because there is something basically wrong with them, like Rump. The damage that was done to Rump as a child must have been horrifying, and unfortunately, it fell on fertile ground in his disturbed mind.
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Jackieft Another Mr Brown
June 12 · 05:57:28 PM
It still doesn’t make me feel any better that he got a better tax break than the rest of us paupers….but at least he understands the word “empathy”..go Warren.
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ontheleftcoast
June 11 · 08:55:00 PM
Yeah, he’s not as horrible as the rest of the billionaires but I’m tired of the Buffet and Gates worship. Remember, this is the same Buffet that once tried to corner the silver market and drove the price on medicinal silver products 300-500% higher. How many people did he repay for that little gem of a move?
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Uncle Moji ontheleftcoast
June 11 · 09:17:41 PM
I’m curious about your claim that Buffet made 300%-500% on his silver. I couldn't find any neutral news source to support this claim. I did find that by no means was the price of silver at its peak during the time of Buffet’s investment at $7.28 oz — that peak was achieved when the Hunt Brothers cornered the market in 1980 at $50 oz.
Can you provide a link? I am not agreeing or disagreeing with your claim, I just can’t find proof.
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ontheleftcoast Uncle Moji
June 11 · 09:25:27 PM
It happened the year my wife had 2nd degree sunburn. The tube of silver laced antibiotic cream she had to apply went from under $10 to nearly $25 in a few months. I don’t know how much of that profit went in to Warren’s wealth but he did buy 130 million troy ounces of silver and seriously screwed with the market.
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Uncle Moji ontheleftcoast
June 11 · 09:43:15 PM
I suspect the gouging wasn’t by Buffet, but by Big Pharma who took profit advantage and raised the price of its product beyond any increase in the actual global price of silver. From $10 to $25 is a pretty serious jump.
Buffet clearly made profit (from what I can gather, the silver price increased by 70% while he held it), but not that kind of (250% increased) profit on silver that the pharmaceutical price represents. He doesn’t normally buy this kind of commodity because it costs to store and that storage cost eats into profit.
The biggest losers in Buffet’s 2001 move were silver commodity short sellers, who had banked on the price of silver dropping. They lost their shirts.
Also, sorry that your wife suffered 2nd degree burns. Silver sulfadiazene is a miracle, something I unfortunately also know, first hand. Best wishes.
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PeterHug Uncle Moji
June 11 · 11:22:05 PM
In addition, the (probably) silver sulfadiazine is usually only used at ~1 wt% in the formulation. The molecular weight of silver sulfadiazine is 357.14; the atomic weight of silver is 107.86. Therefore, the formulation is only ~0.03 wt% actual silver. If the silver component of the silver sulfadiazine went up 70%, that increased the raw material cost of the formulation about 0.21%.
The rest of the increase was either some other cost increase, or profit-taking once they realized they could blame Buffet (which I suspect is more likely).
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Human Adulthood PeterHug
June 12 · 01:35:59 AM
I had never heard of the use of silver sulfadiazine for topical burn treatment until now!
This is one of the reasons KOS is so cool … always learning something here!
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PeterHug Human Adulthood
June 12 · 02:34:07 AM
Well, that’s not something I have ever formulated personally. I just went to take a look.
My current expertise and focus is more in the industrial lubricant/EOR/I&I cleaners area. In particular metalworking fluids...
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Dave the Wave PeterHug
June 12 · 12:57:26 PM
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Ceri Cat Human Adulthood
June 12 · 02:43:53 AM
I hadn’t either, and my family have been in healthcare for generations. My father was at least the 5th generation of pharmacists since the family came to Australia.
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PeterHug PeterHug
June 12 · 02:37:11 AM
Sorry, that should be 0.3 wt% silver, not 0.03 wt%!
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Mustang3 PeterHug
June 12 · 05:59:28 PM
Gee, a pharmaceutical company taking excess profits? How unusual!
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714day ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 01:03:52 AM
I am pretty convinced that the Hunt brothers nearly single-handedly monkeyed with that market.
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Paul C 714day
June 12 · 04:06:16 AM
That is my recollection as well.
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714day Paul C
June 12 · 05:45:04 PM
I appreciate the fact that we were enlightened by those sincerely trying to be helpful in pointing out that there were two separate market events. As opposed to those who rode in on a high horse of derision for those of us not completely inside the commodities loop. One of the benefits of this site for me is the education.
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Mustang3 ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 05:58:33 PM
I know personally of a greedy little fucker who ‘got in on’ that attempt to corner the silver market and lost his shirt, for which I had a few silent chuckles.
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cv lurking gf Uncle Moji
June 11 · 10:33:52 PM
I remember the Hunt brothers attempted to corner it, driving up the price in the 1980’s. I couldn’t continue learning jewelry because it was too expensive. I know it was the Hunts because I knew their step-mother (I guess that’s what she’d be called; their dad was married to two women when he died) which also set it in my brain. I don’t recall much about Mr. Buffett.
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Tom Anderson cv lurking gf
June 12 · 02:18:17 AM
I remember well the Hunt Bros. For several days, or was it weeks, my boss would come into work stating that he made more on his futures than he did from work. Those who had bought at the same time got very nervous and cashed out. We all urged him to be out as something was too good to be true.
he woke up one day to find that his paper gains were gone, and his original cash was draining too. I cannot recall that he had bought much on margin, thankfully. He had a hard time returning to the middle class having blown away a high six figure profit.
I was sensitive to silver for a while, but do not recall a my moves by Buffet.
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Mustang3 Tom Anderson
June 12 · 06:01:08 PM
Yeah, like all those homeowners who used to crow constantly about how much their homes had increased in value. Then, suddenly, they got really quiet.
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MarinaInWonderland cv lurking gf
June 12 · 09:04:42 AM
A few years ago, the price of silver quadrupled, according to my wonderful designing jeweler, Angela of Angelwear Creations, most often seen at SF cons.
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Odysseus MarinaInWonderland
June 12 · 02:11:03 PM
Yeah, there was a pretty incredible runup in the price coincident with the 2008 crash.
9.23 in October 2008, 45.54 in April 2011.
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CFAmick Odysseus
June 12 · 04:08:32 PM
I think the decrease of minerals across the board in 2011 had something to do with internal Chinese trade policies.
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Spancos Uncle Moji
June 12 · 02:52:07 AM
I think the name may have been Bunker? Not Buffett..?
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jchanse Uncle Moji
June 12 · 02:25:27 PM
it was Nelson Bunker Hunt and his brother William.
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NorthBronxDem ontheleftcoast
June 11 · 09:27:19 PM
If you are referring to “Silver Thursday” in 1980, Buffet had nothing to do with that:Silver Thursday: How Two Wealthy Traders Cornered The Market . That was the Hunt Brothers.
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ontheleftcoast NorthBronxDem
June 11 · 09:30:14 PM
Nope, he did it as well. The Hunt brothers are actually spoofed in the movie Trading Places with orange juice instead of silver. But Buffet also drove the silver market into a frenzy. And I don’t see any of us celebrating the Hunt brothers.
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ptressel ontheleftcoast
June 11 · 09:45:01 PM
It sounds like folks are asking why you think Buffet was involved. They appear to have looked for evidence and not found it. So they’d like to know what your evidence is. Are you sure this isn’t a memory error, or remembering an incorrect report from the time?
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Tesla Grade Morlock ptressel
June 11 · 09:53:44 PM
From what I recall of the Hunt bros., they were shooting for a tremendous, near total physical monopoly on Silver, and some other billionaires bought up Silver, but supposedly in ways and at times not intended to grab a quick profit along side the Hunts, so much as to blunt the Hunts attempts and keep them from destabilizing other market prices. That was their story at the time anyways.
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ptressel Tesla Grade Morlock
June 12 · 06:07:13 AM
;-) It sounds like we need an addendum to Charles MacKay’s Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds. Need something that covers monopolies and attempts to corner the market. Like Pharma Bro and Pharma Sis, the Hunts, etc.
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ontheleftcoast ptressel
June 11 · 10:26:46 PM
The two events are nearly 20 years apart. Buffet claims he made very little from the attempt but several others, notably Bill Gates, made substantial amounts.
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ptressel ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 06:01:23 AM
From the earlier wording, it sounded like you were saying that this was the same event, and that Buffet was intending to corner the market. Others have answered here that at one point Buffet took a small position in silver, but then backed out, and was not involved in speculation or the price runup.
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arnie6 ptressel
June 12 · 01:56:59 AM
Yes Berkshire Hathaway did invest in silver. The price increase though was due to speculators who eventually got burned.
www.berkshirehathaway.com/…
and from the USGS.
minerals.usgs.gov/...
“ The price of silver began 1998 at $5.90 per ounce. On
February 3, a U.S.-based investment company announced that itSILVER—1998 69.3
had, over the previous 6 months, quietly purchased 4,034,127
kg of silver. The purchases had begun on July 25, 1997, when
silver closed at $4.32 per ounce. Prices soared the week after
the announcement, breaking the $7 per ounce barrier and
reaching $7.81 per ounce at the London fixing on February 6,
the highest price since July 1988 (Platt’s Metals Week, 1998b).
The price increase was short lived; by mid-March it had fallen
below $6.00 per ounce. In early April, silver traded between
$6.00 per ounce and $6.50 per ounce. In early May, the
investment firm that triggered the price spike by purchasing
more than 4 million kilograms of silver indicated that further
purchases were unlikely. Market prices responded by falling to
$5.80 per ounce by the close of trade on May 12, down $0.40
from the previous week and the lowest the market had been
since January. Speculators entered the market and the decline
in price accelerated, with the price plunging to $5.08 by the
first of June. The balance of the quarter was spent in a narrow
range just above $5.00 per ounce (Engineering & Mining
Journal, 1999). Owing to a weakening worldwide economy,
particularly in Asia, the price of silver in July and August
remained at around $5.00 to $5.80 per ounce. The Asian
economic crisis not only reduced the level of industrial demand
in Asia, but with the slowed growth of the global economy,
industrial demand for silver worldwide fell during the third
quarter of 1998. Silver prices did not increase in the fourth
quarter as Russia and other Commonwealth of Independent
States countries were forced to increase exports, thereby adding
to the silver supply. The price dropped below $5.00 per ounce
in October, trading between $4.74 and $5.14 per ounce. At
yearend, the price was $4.99 per ounce, a decline of about 16%.”
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ptressel arnie6
June 12 · 06:01:53 AM
Thanks for the info!
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sp2 ptressel
June 12 · 03:56:07 AM
He has no idea what he’s talking about. Buffett took a position in silver bullion for a few years, yes. It wasn’t big enough to affect the market in any significant way (and it certainly wasn’t intended to), and it was *tiny* by Berkshire’s standards.
He changed his mind about the underlying case after a couple of years, and sold off the position well before the craziness that hit the market about ten years ago.
The diarist is severely mixed up.
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ptressel sp2
June 12 · 05:55:42 AM
(“Commenter” rather than “diarist”.)
Thanks for the clarification!
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jiffypop ontheleftcoast
June 11 · 09:51:13 PM
Still waiting for link
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ontheleftcoast jiffypop
June 11 · 10:25:22 PM
Good lord… really?
climateerinvest.blogspot.com/…
www.bullionvault.com/…
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dwhooveriii ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 12:13:43 AM
That’s a bogus site it’s a blog with no credentials
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ontheleftcoast dwhooveriii
June 12 · 12:17:22 AM
It doesn’t matter, I could show you Buffet’s portfolio and nobody would care. The fact is Buffet (or Berkshire Hathaway) bought 130 million troy ounces of silver and it upset the silver market. That’s reality. But go ahead and worship the Wizard of Omaha. And bust a few unions and ship some more jobs overseas. It’s apparently what we’re all about. :P
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Gilmore ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 12:26:48 AM
“ It doesn’t matter, I could show you Buffet’s portfolio and nobody would care. The fact is Buffet (or Berkshire Hathaway) bought. . . “
So you can show us the portfolio, but you don’t know if it the portfolio of an individual or public traded company.
Please. Just. Stop.
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False equivalency Gilmore
June 12 · 06:01:43 AM
Not taking sides here. But makes no difference if it is Buffet or ApHathaway
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shrike ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 01:40:54 AM
Why would Buffett, who despises gold as an investment, buy silver?
1. "Gold gets dug out of the ground in Africa, or someplace. Then we melt it down, dig another hole, bury it again and pay people to stand around guarding it. It has no utility. Anyone watching from Mars would be scratching their head."
2. "The problem with commodities is that you are betting on what someone else would pay for them in six months. The commodity itself isn't going to do anything for you….it is an entirely different game to buy a lump of something and hope that somebody else pays you more for that lump two years from now than it is to buy something that you expect to produce income for you over time."
Read more: http://www.minyanville.com/trading-and-investing/commodities/articles/Warren-Buffett-brka-gold-investing-investing/10/3/2012/id/44617#ixzz5IAfCOVPM
Your link says Solomon Bros did the silver trade. Buffett merely sat on the board.
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dwhooveriii ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 05:53:08 PM
Berkshire Hathaway owns BNSF railroad which has one of the strongest unions in the country, he’s not trying to break them
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belinda ridgewood dwhooveriii
June 12 · 05:40:38 AM
Hello, from Daily Kos! As a courtesy to you as a new user, we would like to share our site guidelines with you, explained in the "Rules of the Road." This resource also describes our unique community moderation system, established to encourage spirited but civil conversation.
If you have other questions about how to participate you can learn more at the Knowledge Base and the Site Resource Diaries. Diaries tagged Open Thread are also great places to ask any questions.
~~ from the DK Partners & Mentors Team
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dwhooveriii belinda ridgewood
June 12 · 05:46:36 PM
Was there something wrong with my reply
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wesmorgan1 jiffypop
June 12 · 01:49:13 AM
Here are some details on Buffett’s foray into silver.
content.time.com/…
So it was last week in the silver market, where prices spiked to a nine-year high after Warren Buffett, the Oracle of Omaha, disclosed that he had taken a major shine to the metal and bought up 129.7 million oz. of the stuff. That amounts to 37% of the world's aboveground stock of raw silver, according to the CPM group, a commodities and precious-metals consulting firm.
Buffett made his gleaming presence felt. The price for an ounce of silver to be delivered in March hit $7.28, up 16% in the two days after Buffett's disclosure and up nearly 70% since he started buying the precious metal six months ago. Despite the surge, veteran--and thus oft-pummeled--silver traders will note that a price just north of $7 is nothing next to silver's peak in 1980, when it hit $50 amid an infamous attempt by the brothers Herbert and Nelson Hunt to corner the market.
Here’s a writer who accuses Buffett of cornering the silver market.
I think folks miss this, simply because the rise in price was tiny compared to that seen 20 years earlier, when the Hunt brothers made their attempt. As you can see in this Wikipedia chart of silver prices, prices stayed well below $10/ounce during Buffett’s activity of the late 1990s and early 2000s. Compared to the Hunt brothers’ peak of around $50/ounce (or even today’s spot price of just under $17/ounce), a “corner” that kept prices under $10/ounce doesn’t really register in one’s memory without a personal ‘hook’.
Nonetheless, both the Hunt brothers and Buffett controlled roughly one-third of the world’s available silver in their time.
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shrike wesmorgan1
June 12 · 01:57:45 AM
Here is a Chicago Tribune link:
articles.chicagotribune.com/…
So he used 2% of BH’s capital to buy silver — probably as a hedge.
I see why this got so little attention aside from the Dollar is Doomed! metal lovers.
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grumpynerd ontheleftcoast
June 11 · 10:28:53 PM
The Hunt brothers attempted to corner the commodity markets on silver — at one point they owned about 1/3 of the silver in the world. While Berkshire Hathaway (not Buffet personally) at one point in the late 90s held a staggering 126 million ounces of silver, that was only about 6% of the world’s total supply. That acquisition no doubt drove up the supply of silver, but it was far from a monopoly; he sold it at about a 50% profit after holding it for around five years.
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Spancos ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 02:52:56 AM
Ahh yes, Hunt Bros.
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okaawhatever ontheleftcoast
June 11 · 09:43:00 PM
Well he’s pledged all his money to charity, so there’s that.
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glenna mason okaawhatever
June 12 · 12:52:46 AM
I agree. Be is giving away his money. A person can grow and change. It may be true that it is harder for a rich man to get into the kingdom of Heaven than a camel to get through the eye of a needle, but some do. They are kind and generous with their money. I believe Buffet is there now, as are the Gates and the Clintons and I suppose the Kennedys. Of course Jimmy Carter has always been a rich man doing good for others.
The Clinton Foundation has literally saved millions of lives in Africa. The Carters and their foundation and their personal involvement have actually almost eliminated a disease that was killing millions around the world and have shown up to build houses themselves. Being rich is no crime; it is what one does with wealth that determines one’s worth.
I will always love Warren Buffet now that he has asked Trump “Have you no shame?”
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glenna mason glenna mason
June 12 · 12:53:36 AM
Sorry — I meant “He is giving away his money.”
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glenna mason glenna mason
June 12 · 12:55:25 AM
And I meant to praise him for taking on the orange buffoon. My quote was inaccurate, but you get the gist.
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AppleP glenna mason
June 12 · 01:36:03 AM
It is not having money that causes the problems of getting into heaven, it is the LOVE of money. When money is more important than people that is what gets you in trouble. (in my reading of the Bible)
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MarinaInWonderland AppleP
June 12 · 09:10:12 AM
You are correct.
Reading it in earlier translations/versions than that of James I & VI gives a more accurate meaning.
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TheNobster ontheleftcoast
June 11 · 10:17:29 PM
I think you’ll find it was the Hunt Brothers, William and Lamar, who cornered the silver market and artificially spiked the prices. — by like a huge amount. They were nailed for it by the Feds, but in the meantime certain medicines, film prices skyrocketed. Indeed anything and everything that had a silver component. But is wasn’t Buffett.
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ontheleftcoast TheNobster
June 11 · 10:28:36 PM
No, Buffet did it the late 90’s, almost 20 years after the Hunt brothers. Why is this so hard for people to accept? It freaking happened. For real.
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wesmorgan1 ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 01:55:24 AM
Understood — but you know this community. *grin*
I mean, I found solid references inside of 5 minutes by simply Googling “Buffett silver market”; I posted them in this comment.
Sometimes — especially when talking about someone held in high regard by some folks — we have to be teachers to each other, which means presenting solid sources.
I’ll be honest — I didn’t remember this distinctly (I was busy with 4 kids under the age of 5 at the time *chuckle*), so I went looking for sources.
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jmbrwnl ontheleftcoast
June 11 · 11:37:25 PM
That was Bunky Hunt, not Buffet.
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jmbrwnl ontheleftcoast
June 11 · 11:38:49 PM
That was the Hunt brothers.
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G2geek ontheleftcoast
June 11 · 11:48:04 PM
None the less, he’s been basically a goodguy for at least since some time in the GWB era.
Are we so miserly ourselves, that we can’t accept someone because they did something bad in the 1980s? Sheesh, I’d hate to be a rehabilitated robber with you on my parole board.
And Bill Gates has been funding public health measures worldwide that Big Pharma and the Big Charities won’t touch. Last I checked, they were on the verge of eradicating a truly nasty worm infection thing that only affects poor countries.
Come on folks, be willing to forgive long-ago trespasses and give credit where credit is due.
If we’re looking for badguys in tech universe, start with Zuck, Sergey & Larry, and Kalanick. And take a hard line against folks around here who use the scab-cabs Uber and Lyft, and scab-motel Airhead B&B. Otherwise, if today it’s “OK” to patronize scab outfits, what’s next, crossing picket lines?
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ontheleftcoast G2geek
June 12 · 12:05:11 AM
He did that in ‘97, not ‘80. Don’t confuse him with the Hunt brothers. And what did Buffet do to earn all that wealth? Did he cure some horrible disease? Write marvelous novels or beautiful love songs? Win the big game for his team? Did he do ANYTHING productive? No, he took piles of money and made more piles of money. And did it all while Wall Street made trillions from policies and practices that destroyed Main Street. Oh, and let’s not forget he busts unions. In California, Ohio, and against railway workers. So he’s going to give his money away after he dies. Yeah, I guess. But consider where he got it from and WHO he got it from before you slap a medal on him.
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Black Olive ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 05:21:30 AM
And fuck Alfred Nobel, too, I suppose. Rich men should burn in hell forever, no matter if they change.
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MarinaInWonderland G2geek
June 12 · 09:32:28 AM
Yeah, there is another worm (name disappeared into the depths of amnesia) which is really gross, and the people who were infected suffered mightily.
This is the disease, and the worm which the Carter Foundation is seeking to eradicate. www.cartercenter.org/...
From Wikipedia:
Dracunculiasis, also called Guinea-worm disease (GWD), is an infection by the Guinea worm. A person becomes infected when they drink water that contains water fleas infected with guinea worm larvae. Initially there are no symptoms. About one year later, the female worm forms a painful blister in the skin, usually on a lower limb. Other symptoms at this time may include vomiting and dizziness. The worm then emerges from the skin over the course of a few weeks. During this time, it may be difficult to walk or work. It is very uncommon for the disease to cause death.
This affects the poor who have no access to clean water. This is only one of the reasons why I do what I can to increase the availability of clean water.
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MarinaInWonderland G2geek
June 12 · 09:35:15 AM
Larry is a scumbag for too many reasons. He too suffers from entitlement disease and affluenza. No woman in her right mind wants to be anywhere near him.
Kalanick is one of a dozen reasons why I will not use Uber.
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scottsvine ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 12:30:30 AM
Hunt brothers, not Buffet.
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ontheleftcoast scottsvine
June 12 · 12:37:52 AM
It’s hilarious to have the same, incorrect, comment posted in this thread multiple times. Check you calendar, it’s not 1996. Buffet pulled his little stunt nearly 20 years after the Hunt brothers. Yeesh..
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Gilmore ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 12:43:32 AM
One table of people stiff a waitress. One.
Do you have any idea how many people are in Omaha that weekend for the shareholders meeting ? Try close to 40,000.
You whining insufferable liberal ingrates.
Besmirch a man with these two flagships of investor knowledge? climateerinvest.blogspot.com/… bullionvault.com/…
You mention rail workers and link to a story about 900 workers in Chicago that doesn’t include a union name or Local number. Did ya know he haas good relations with BNSF ? They have 48,00 employees.
kiss off mate
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ontheleftcoast Gilmore
June 12 · 12:50:06 AM
You know how many people have lost their jobs because of Wall Street’s relentless quest for profits? Sorry, but I can’t worship that. If you think that makes me a liberal ingrate I welcome your feeble attempt at a slur. But you can keep the kiss, I don’t want to think about where your lips have been.
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Gilmore ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 01:00:51 AM
What does Wall Street’s relentless quest for profits have do do with Warren Buffet. You lack of facts is astounding. He didn’t buy silver, he didn’t screw a mythical railroad worker.
P.S. The kiss wasn’t coming from me.
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ontheleftcoast Gilmore
June 12 · 01:15:06 AM
I get why people fall all over Buffet. But maybe you really need to step back a bit. For example, he’s giving away all of his money. That’s awesome but.. he’s giving it to Bill and Melinda Gates because he trusts Bill to spend it all. Why is that a problem.. well, there’s this thing Bill is hellbent on.. charter schools. He’s right there with Betsy DeVos working hard to destroy our public schools.
www.commondreams.org/…
www.washingtonpost.com/…
www.huffingtonpost.com/…
So, keep hurling the insults and missing the bigger picture. It’s nice what Buffet did for that waitress. I hope she doesn’t have kids that will go to public schools though.
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scottsvine ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 12:57:30 AM
Dear Yeesh, the Hunt brothers broke laws and pushed Ag up to around $50. Buffet did not break laws, disclosed his Ag investments publicly, bought around $6 over nine years and sold at an average of $7.50. Before you start slamming other posters, get your facts straight. www.silvermonthly.com/...
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ebrann scottsvine
June 12 · 02:51:24 AM
That’s hardly attempting to corner the market, as the Hunt Bros. did. Buffett got ahead of the market and made money. The Hunt’s lost a bundle.
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scottsvine ebrann
June 12 · 03:29:35 AM
Correct — thank you!
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PatriciaVa ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 04:55:48 AM
Warren Buffet buys Heinz. And increases the ebitda margin at Heinz by 45%. In 18 months!!!!! In an industry whose top-line is growing at 1 to 2%.
How did he do so?
(i) Closing plants. (ii) Laying off workers. (iii) Cutting pay.
Not even Mitt Romney’s Bain ever achieved such operating improvement in a portfolio company in such a short period.
You want to argue that Warren Buffet represents the common man? Fine. But don’t ever argue that he’s any different from the likes of Romney.
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JaketheRake ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 02:50:39 PM
While I like a number of things about Buffett, his hands aren’t entirely clean. His mobile home business has been preying on the poor for years. You can google it and get the details. I knew someone personally involved in these sketchy sales that have contributed a lot to his fortune.
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PapaJohn ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 06:11:04 PM
You are mistaken by saying Warren Buffett was responsible for the silver cornering. Try the Hunt Brothers.
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Gertie Green
June 11 · 09:11:11 PM
What a bunch of a$$holes!
shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway, the third largest public company in the world with $702 billion in assets, were out for a celebratory lunch during the company’s annual meeting and they stiffed a waitress at an Omaha Mexican restaurant who was overwhelmed with the large crowd
Not cool, indeed… As a former server in the food service industry, I’m glad to hear that Buffet made good on this. But, I hope the fact that Buffet had to get involved has at least shamed some of these people.
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ontheleftcoast Gertie Green
June 11 · 09:20:33 PM
They have no shame; I suspect you already knew that. The same assholes that stiffed that waitress will demand companies cut costs to drive up profitability and increase “shareholder value”. So that means more offshoring of jobs or converting them to automation. I wonder how many of Buffet’s billions have been made because jobs were shipped to China or Malaysia?
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Gilmore ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 12:44:53 AM
I wonder how many of Buffet’s billions have been made because jobs were shipped to China or Malaysia?
Wonder. Don’t give us facts
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MS103127 ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 01:08:17 AM
I can see that you’re on a crusade here, and you make some good points. However, everyone — from the richest to the poorest — and their actions should be judged fairly on a balanced scale.
This reminds me of when the non-profit that I used to work for had their annual charitable gala. When I came home and told my dad about the huge sums of money that were donated, he immediately scoffed with a “well THEY can just write it off on their tax returns as a business expense” comeback. I reminded him that while that was most likely true, the money that was donated was actually going to be used for realistic and tangible philanthropic reasons and important community outreach. He thought about it and understood where I was coming from, and not how I could attest that not everyone that attended that gala was donating for negative attention or ulterior motives. Some just did it because it was the right thing to do…..
As for Mr. Buffet and Mr. and Mrs. Gates, and hell, Bruce Wayne for that matter…..are they perfect? No….no one is. But if they do 100 good deeds, and 1 bad deed, and all you can talk about and think about and shout from every roof top is the 1 bad deed and how they are 100% evil, etc., then I hope you aren’t judged the same way with your life.
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wesmorgan1 ontheleftcoast
June 12 · 02:13:08 AM
I don’t see all that many “jobs lost” from Berkshire Hathaway.
Looking down Wikipedia’s list of BH subsidiaries, one can certainly find firms that have shipped jobs outside the US (e.g. Fruit of the Loom and other clothing/apparel firms), but a quick glance suggests that various BH holdings provide many US jobs.
I don’t think you can paint him as a job killer.
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False equivalency wesmorgan1
June 12 · 06:10:44 AM
Buffet likes to buy companies in the cheap. Companies selling at low price to earnings ratio. That can happen when price goes down or earnings go up or both.
One way for earnjgs to gomup,is cut costs. Buffet as the ultimate value investor will explore all means to cut costs including laying off people.
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splashy Gertie Green
June 12 · 02:02:21 PM
That crowd should have reserved the place beforehand so they could make sure to have enough staff to handle the crowd. Just dropping in like it sounds like they did is incredibly bad. Talk about not having a clue how it works in restaurants!
That poor waitress! I used to do food service, and that sounds like a huge nightmare!
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aur ganuz
June 11 · 09:16:40 PM
The definition of character
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ynohtnA
June 11 · 09:25:09 PM
...notoriously frugal...
Translation. I have a lot of money and can afford the highest quality American made goods but I don’t buy them because I’m cheap and don’t really give a s**t.
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Glenn Magus Harvey ynohtnA
June 11 · 09:32:13 PM
[Tangent]
That gets into a rather interesting question about how we should(n’t) spend our money.
It’s obvious that there’s a microeconomic benefit to saving money, spending less for the same goods/services, and so on. But are there “greater goods” that can be “purchased” by spending more money? Clearly, some people feel this way, by patronizing locally-owned businesses, buying organic/no-hormones/free-range/etc. foods, and so on. And furthermore, scrimping-and-saving is not the way to get an economy going — rather, it’s the way to slow down an economy.
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ozsea1 Glenn Magus Harvey
June 11 · 11:52:21 PM
Scrimping-and-saving is the natural defense when
1) oligarchs take over your country and
2) one dollar = one vote (Citizens United — “corporations are people, my friend”)
Start screwing me over and I’ll lock whatever meager funds I have the fuck down.
Full stop.
Grrrrrr...
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ynohtnA ozsea1
June 12 · 02:01:34 AM
And then the economy crashes. An equalizing effect. The poor aren't much poorer if at all but the middle class sure are. Even the upper middle class, the multi-multi-millionaires will hurt, but the actual rich, the multi-hundred millionaires, not so much. One reason why it's so easy not to care when you're rich
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blue aardvark ynohtnA
June 11 · 09:47:32 PM
Translation: lives in the same house he bought in 1958 because it is adequate for his needs.
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Toro Blanco blue aardvark
June 11 · 10:18:28 PM
If only every billionaire was so sensible.
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Concinnity Toro Blanco
June 11 · 10:47:32 PM
How can they be sensible?
Mostly they support the GOP.
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6412093 blue aardvark
June 12 · 12:06:07 AM
He could afford to move out of the lead Superfund site known as downtown Omaha, hundreds of thousands of poorer folks couldn’t afford Buffet’s neighborhood,
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blue aardvark 6412093
June 12 · 12:18:47 AM
I am not certain that says anything about Buffett. In 1958, I doubt the lead problem was recognized; and I don’t think Warren put the lead in Omaha.
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ynohtnA blue aardvark
June 12 · 02:09:56 AM
More bread is put on more tables through decadence than through charity. Furthermore, it's taxed and despite 45's followers cheers taxation is a good thing.
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gardnerhill ynohtnA
June 12 · 03:04:52 AM
Of course, if Buffet lived a more lavish lifestyle you’d be whining even louder about spoiled rich people blowing their money on useless crap while people starve.
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ynohtnA gardnerhill
June 12 · 04:01:04 AM
Thank you for telling me what I would do.
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Dretutz blue aardvark
June 12 · 02:26:20 AM
Actually, when I lived in laguna beach I recall buffet buying a swanky beachfront property. All the local charities were drooling.
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Toro Blanco ynohtnA
June 11 · 10:18:05 PM
You don’t get rich by spending it, after all.
However, I'm not faulting him for his frugality: he lives in a modest home, buys modest vehicles, and doesn’t seem to care for excessive or gaudy purchases. If you gave me 10 billion dollars tomorrow I’d make very similar choices for what appears to be the same reasons Buffet has: I don’t want nor need that expensive stuff.
There’s nothing in there to suggest Mr. Buffet doesn’t buy high-quality American-made appliances, or shop from local grocers that have coupons and purchase from local farms and ranches, or that those hail-damaged cars he gets aren’t American made, either. Plus, he’s donating his fortune to charity and already backs a number of charitable causes.
I’m a hard, HARD left socialist. No one wants to vilify the ultra-wealthy as the vile and heartless oligarchs many of them unashamedly are more than I (and I relish doing so), but Buffet just isn’t one of them.
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slowbutsure Toro Blanco
June 11 · 11:38:02 PM
Thank you for this comment — it is what I would have written — if I were a better writer...
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ynohtnA Toro Blanco
June 12 · 02:25:22 AM
Again, chartity is not as effective as consumption in aiding the working classes, stimulating the economy, or paying for government. Save is built into all of us and its natural to praise those accomplished, but only to a point. If every rich person bought a new bathroom, a new kitchen, a new car, it put the enevatable weeks.
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Ceri Cat Toro Blanco
June 12 · 03:01:38 AM
These tend to be common traits in billionaires if some of the sensationalist tripe is to be believed Sam Walton was much the same with regards to driving older more practical vehicles.
In Buffet’s case he grew up in the depression and worked hard to build his income, the fact he still favours things like coupons is probably a hold over from that.
And yeah 10 Bn would set me up to do a lot of things quickly to safeguard my partner and children, everything else would go towards much the same and given my own background be aimed at housing and jobs (thought a lot about what I’d do with a miracle).
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TheNobster ynohtnA
June 11 · 10:18:27 PM
Not
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chancew ynohtnA
June 11 · 10:26:05 PM
What the hell is wrong with someone being cheap? And, what does that have to do with American goods?
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SoldierTeacher ynohtnA
June 11 · 11:24:41 PM
Being “notoriously frugal” doesn’t mean that one is “cheap” but rather, one doesn’t have any desire for many material things other than that which is necessary to live a comfortable life. Also, have you considered the notion that Mr. Buffett is “notoriously frugal” because he might not see any need of impressing anyone else? All of us, even you, have the right to live our lives in a manner that makes us feel comfortable with ourselves. IMHO, none of us have any right to criticize or belittle someone who chooses to practice financial frugality. It is my understanding that Mr. Buffett is very generous with his employees and the charities that he supports. If that is what being “notoriously frugal” means than I wish I could be just as frugal.
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ynohtnA SoldierTeacher
June 12 · 03:05:19 AM
Soldiers and teachers are paid from taxes. Charity isn't taxed.
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SoldierTeacher ynohtnA
June 12 · 08:11:58 AM
Your observation is correct. Taxes do pay my salary (and military retirement). However, I would like to know the Point you seem to be trying to make. I have served the nation and my community. I hope that I am not responding to a troll but if I am, así sea.
Did you know that Mr. Buffett also pays taxes and that he pays at a much higher rate? Did you know that I have to pay taxes on everything I receive from the government? I also have to pay taxes on my teacher’s salary.
I don’t see your point about pointing out something that I’ve been aware of for decades. I am, however, happy that you gave me the opportunity to share knowledge that others may not have been aware of.
I also contribute to several charities and have done so since my return from Viet Nam in spite of the laughable pay that I received. I didn’t enlist and remain in the Army for the pay but rather for the desire to serve this nation and I kept my promise to defend the Constitution to the very best of my abilities.
Insofar as being a teacher is concerned, I entered the vocation with the knowledge that I would not receive any genuinely fair monetary compensation for what I would have to do. It has been a special blessing for me to have served my nation and my community in two very special professions.
I have spent in excess of $500 on average every year for more than 20 years out of my own pocket that I have been a public school teacher just for supplies such as pens, pencils and paper. In addition, I have bought food for my students who have come to school with empty stomachs because they do not qualify for the free breakfast program. Almost all have expressed their appreciation because they know that we teachers don’t make a lot of money. Many of my former students have kept in touch with me since and I am extremely proud of having contributed to their education experience. Many have gone on to become surgeons, lawyers, West Pointers, pharmicists, caretakers, entrepreneurs, etc., etc. Their success has always been my compensation.
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splashy ynohtnA
June 12 · 02:08:26 PM
Yes, and Buffet has advocated for higher taxes on himself and others that are wealthy to pay for those things, along with social programs. He has pointed out that his secretary pays more percentage wise than he does, and said that he thought it was wrong.
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ynohtnA splashy
June 12 · 05:25:36 PM
He could pay her more to compensate for her higher tax rate.
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splashy SoldierTeacher
June 12 · 02:07:19 PM
Not only that, he has advocated for higher taxes on himself and others that are very wealthy, to keep the social programs going.
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gosoxataboy ynohtnA
June 12 · 12:01:18 AM
Our country is too consumption oriented as it is. He is investing — better for our nation long term than consumption. And then he is giving it all away. Frankly, we would be better off if many more people adopted this approach.
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ynohtnA gosoxataboy
June 12 · 02:59:45 AM
Our economic system is capitalism tempered by government. Without consumption are economy collapses. We should spend wisely, that's where our consumer culture could use some tweaking, but we must spend. It could change if significantly more people were involved. Maybe the founder generation will figure it out.
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gosoxataboy ynohtnA
June 12 · 03:08:36 AM
Capitalism doesn’t require this level of consumption. We have too much consumption and too much of it is debt driven. Our system was just fine before we went on a debt-induced consumption binge. We require efficient allocation of capital and investment, not simply endless consumption. This isn’t the balance we need.
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ynohtnA gosoxataboy
June 12 · 04:05:46 AM
Spend wisely. People need to be educated to do that. Help a teacher. Help a school. Teach what you know to others. How advertising plays people is interesting. That's that endless consumption thing.
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gardnerhill ynohtnA
June 12 · 01:09:48 AM
There’s a difference between being cheap and being frugal. A guy who drives a beat-up car and lives in the same house he got in the 50s, but donates millions to charity, clearly wishes his money to be used in other ways than displaying his wealth.
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ynohtnA gardnerhill
June 12 · 03:01:10 AM
Chaity doesn't get taxed.
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gardnerhill ynohtnA
June 12 · 03:06:06 AM
Which has exactly fuck-all to do with what you wrote and how I replied.
So you’re just being whiny and petulant for no good reason (oops, of course I meant “contrarian”).
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ynohtnA gardnerhill
June 12 · 04:08:08 AM
Don't insult me.
I misspelled charity.
I no longer care.
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splashy ynohtnA
June 12 · 02:11:24 PM
Yes, but Buffet has also pushed for higher taxes on himself and other wealthy people, so he’s not just trying to avoid taxes.
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splashy gardnerhill
June 12 · 02:10:36 PM
Not only that, he has advocated for his taxes, and the taxes of other wealthy people, to be raised to take care of social programs and other societal needs.
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charliehall2 ynohtnA
June 12 · 01:29:58 AM
Why should he waste money?
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wesmorgan1 ynohtnA
June 12 · 02:23:02 AM
Actually, according to various sources, it means things like…
…living in the same modest home since the late 1950s.
...grabbing breakfast at McDonald’s on his way to work.
...buying a modest car every few years.
...picking visitors up at the airport instead of sending a driver.
...cheap hobbies — bridge, playing the ukulele, etc.
...using a flip phone until (at least) 2013.
...using coupons.
...working in the same office building for 50 years.
I really don’t see anything wrong with any of that. I mean, we routinely critique rich people for their mansions, their wasteful tastes, their extravagance...why on earth should we criticize a guy who lives like us?
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Davidsfr wesmorgan1
June 12 · 04:41:40 PM
That breakfast at McDonald’s is the one thing I would find fault with. Can’t he patronize some independent local Omaha place instead?
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MarinaInWonderland ynohtnA
June 12 · 09:48:49 AM
He’s nothing on J. Paul Getty. I did a fair amount of research on him at one time and was rather aghast. His mother left money directly to her grandkids and later heirs in a trust because she didn’t trust him to do right by them.
In one of the discoveries for an international lawsuit against Getty Oil, I learned more about the disgusting Claus Bulow—he didn’t use the “von” at the time. Never a nice person or employee.
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Uncle Moji
June 11 · 09:25:54 PM
Buffet is well-known for his protective views of the people of his beloved hometown of Omaha. I’m not surprised that he paid the tip. I continue, however, to be surprised when people, people with money, people who have money to be shareholders, stiff a waitress. That’s the lowest of the low. It’s despicable. Leave the damn tip and write her a note that says we weren’t happy with the service because…. But when you stiff a waitress you make her work for less than minimum wage, you nasty selfish F*s, that’s $2.13 cents an hour to “serve” you, you cheap ass b*stards.
If you think I’m furious, you’re right.
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LaPinturaBella Uncle Moji
June 11 · 09:37:39 PM
It sounds like it was a really large party and only one server. The restaurant is partly to blame....they should have dedicated enough servers AND bussers to cover the party so no one would be overwhelmed. I'm very happy to hear that Buffet made a point to pay her the tip.
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jiffypop LaPinturaBella
June 11 · 09:54:56 PM
Here in L.A.with a party of 6 plus, 18% tip is added to check.
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bosdcla14 jiffypop
June 11 · 10:01:18 PM
At every restaurant? By statute or custom?
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Toro Blanco bosdcla14
June 11 · 10:21:10 PM
Custom, most likely; when I worked as a chef in LA it wasn’t law to my knowledge, but restaurant owners play fast and loose with the laws because they know their employees are too broke and desperate to do a damn thing about it anyway.
However, many restaurants do NOT pass that mandatory gratuity or “service charge” on to your server. I knew plenty where management simply pocketed it as revenue and left the server to resent every large group that came in. Others were more “generous” and split the charge, half for the house and half for the staff. Only the best places (“best” in terms of owner integrity, not food quality) gave the entire amount to the server.
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N4GIX Toro Blanco
June 11 · 10:24:46 PM
That is why I always make a point to leave a cash tip for my server.
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MarinaInWonderland N4GIX
June 12 · 09:56:12 AM
I give an extra tip in cash to servers in some restaurants known to steal from the servers, or to give them lower hours and fewer tables.
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LaPinturaBella bosdcla14
June 11 · 10:38:52 PM
Custom, at least in Palm Springs, so I assume all of CA. In some restaurants the 18% doesn't get added unless the party is 10 or more people. Some restaurants include 20% gratuity. Others leave it up to the server...automatic tip included or risk it that the customer will leave you more.
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Ceri Cat LaPinturaBella
June 12 · 03:08:31 AM
Some servers have a real IGMFY attitude with tipping, they don’t want to see tipping abolished for a living wage because they might make a little less (I have trouble believing anyone routinely brings home 3-4 figure tips).
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LaPinturaBella Ceri Cat
June 12 · 01:50:31 PM
What would you consider a living wage? Because I average $20-$25 per hour IN TIPS on top of my $11/hour wage working part time. And those are the tips I take home after tipping 42% out to the bar, the bussers, the food runners and the hostesses. $15 per hour in CA (which has a really high cost of living) would be a disaster for all of the servers I know and work with.
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LaPinturaBella LaPinturaBella
June 12 · 02:06:28 PM
And it's not anIGMFY attitude. It would be a real decline in their income. I seriously doubt restaurants are going to all of a sudden start paying staff $20 to $30 per hour and get rid of tipping. In some states wait staff don't even make the Federal minimum wage. Sorry you have trouble believing it.
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MarinaInWonderland bosdcla14
June 12 · 09:54:39 AM
at most of them.
In Europe, a gratuity for the server is included in your tab. You are welcome, but not required, to tip more, but no one looks askance at you if you don’t add to the fee on your check.
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LaPinturaBella MarinaInWonderland
June 12 · 02:32:24 PM
Because on Europe servers are valued. They also make a decent wage.
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LaPinturaBella jiffypop
June 11 · 10:35:44 PM
Same in Palm Springs.
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TheNobster LaPinturaBella
June 11 · 10:25:08 PM
I see that but seriously. You’re a big crowd, you should expect the waitress to take longer to serve your food. Those people need to grow the hell up and look in the mirror. No one, but no one should be stiffing wait staff EVER. If the waitress spits in your soup it’s because you deserve it. I have embarrassed restaurant patrons on more than one occasion for being rude to wait staff. Haven’t had a black eye yet — but if I do it won’t stop me.
No one is lesser than anyone else — they may be poorer — but they are not lesser.
Good for Buffet. Sadly one of the few.
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LaPinturaBella TheNobster
June 11 · 10:46:31 PM
Absolutely. I'm a server part time, so I truly get it. I'm just surprised the management only had one server for a large party. Where I work, if it's 10 or more people, at minimum it's 2 servers. We split the tip and it makes the service better. Also, some patrons try to run the service by deciding when they will order. Or they order in stages, individually. That's a challenge as well because the server is timing the food with the kitchen and with their other tables so no one has to wait too long. I suspect the people in that party were ordering drinks and things one at a time so the server was running constantly.
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MarinaInWonderland LaPinturaBella
June 12 · 10:06:15 AM
Restaurant owners like patrons who drink because it brings in a lot of money, and the diners often order more food.
Staff on the other hand have to deal directly with the drunks, and female servers have to deal with harassment.
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MarinaInWonderland TheNobster
June 12 · 10:03:36 AM
Actually, the kitchen will be hard-pressed as well to get everything out simultaneously. I’m willing to bet they didn’t inform the restaurant in advance of the size of their party, either.
I agree with the grow up already.
My husband’s sweetie is incredibly rude and obnoxious to waitstaff, claiming that she was one once, and it’s justified. He hates taking her out to eat.
My sister, who was a waitress for about 20 years, is the opposite. She is always cheerful and polite to the waitstaff, tips well, and if I don’t stack the finished/empty settings she glares and chivvies me—she had a stroke, so she can’t do it herself very well these days.
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Major Kong LaPinturaBella
June 11 · 10:44:53 PM
I frequently have to eat by myself when I’m out on a trip.
My nightmare is that I end up sharing a server with a large party. They tend to figuratively suck all the oxygen out of the room.
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LaPinturaBella Major Kong
June 11 · 10:51:05 PM
They do. It would be really smart to assign servers to the part for the duration and have them take other tables BEFORE the large party. But too many restaurants are a bit screwy with the way the assign tables in the rotation anyway.
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slowbutsure Major Kong
June 11 · 11:51:41 PM
If you ever want to write a diary about your dining experiences, I would like to read it! You must have *a lot* of stories, and my experience is that you relate the interesting ones...
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Major Kong slowbutsure
June 12 · 12:41:33 AM
I’ve had a few!
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Human Adulthood Major Kong
June 12 · 01:54:22 AM
They’d be fun to read!
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wesmorgan1 Major Kong
June 12 · 02:25:08 AM
Been there, done that, ordered the t-shirt but it never got to the table. *grin*
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False equivalency Major Kong
June 12 · 06:21:15 AM
Dining out alone on a business trip is (to me) much better than dining with colleagues. Gives some alone time.
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MarinaInWonderland False equivalency
June 12 · 10:07:50 AM
I agree. I don’t have to make nice when I’m that tired. I don’t always want to eat what the rest of the party does, too.
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6412093 LaPinturaBella
June 12 · 12:08:53 AM
I don’t recall seeing what sort of tip Buffet left; 10%? $10?
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Uncle Moji 6412093
June 12 · 12:40:29 AM
I am sure Buffet left a very good tip. He’s only a cheap ass b*stard when it comes to spending money on himself.
Buffet’s salary as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway in 2012 was $100,000. Yup, I didn’t drop a zero, he was paying himself one hundred thousand dollars in salary. The billions he is worth is from the money he makes for all BRK shareholders. He makes money when he makes money for them. He doesn’t skim off the top like most CEOs — the average base salary for the major banking CEOs is $1.5 million.
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paytheline Uncle Moji
June 12 · 01:21:02 AM
THIS is the greatest thing about Buffet’s business ethics. Every day CEO’s loot the company. Read about Elon Musk’s package, for instance. Buffet’s wealth is in the same stock I was lucky enough to buy one share of 25 years ago, not by converting shareholder investment into options and bonuses for himself.
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MarinaInWonderland 6412093
June 12 · 10:08:45 AM
I should hope it was at least 25%!
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splashy LaPinturaBella
June 12 · 02:13:11 PM
I’m thinking they didn’t reserve a place, or at least call ahead, so they could get enough workers in there. I blame the customers for expecting the restaurant to handle a large crowd with no warning.
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MarinaInWonderland Uncle Moji
June 12 · 09:52:24 AM
Most people have no idea how little tipped employees are paid—and then the IRS taxes them for the 15% tips, whether or not they made that much in tips.
I think Goodwill pays their disabled employees the same, no matter what their handicap, and it’s not always developmental delay. Keep them in their places, unable to escape. It’s from a clause in a 1931 Wage Act which needs to be closed, but despite several attempts over the years, Congress has yet to let it get out of committee.
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oldhousepoor
June 11 · 09:30:28 PM
When I have out-of-town visitors here in Omaha I take them past Warren’s house. It’s nice, in a charming well-established neighborhood, worth about $600k. It’s not a billionaire’s house. Still, I completely understand why he would prefer it to some mega-mansion. Also, I doubt it’s his only house.
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revm3up oldhousepoor
June 11 · 10:07:48 PM
Mr Buffet did have one other home in California until it was sold in 2005. Here is a slideshow link that may clarify some of his thoughts (make sure you click on the ‘read more’ next to each of the 9 photos):
Buffet's Home
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Tribecastan revm3up
June 12 · 01:38:53 AM
That may have been a house he bought for his wife when they had an amicable separation. She later died of cancer. Supposedly she is the one who made him much more social conscionable.
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revm3up Tribecastan
June 12 · 05:51:50 AM
Yes, Susie lost her battle with cancer and lived apart from Warren in California.
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TheNobster oldhousepoor
June 11 · 10:27:14 PM
I used to travel to Omaha quite regularly. People there love him. Apparently on Halloween, he comes to the door himself and hands the candy to the kids.
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Whateverittakes
June 11 · 10:04:53 PM
Thank God for people like Warren Buffet, one of the very few unselfish billionaires.
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SoldierTeacher
June 11 · 11:08:10 PM
I am not be surprised that someone has once again mentioned Mr. Buffett’s empathy nor his frugality insofar as his personal habits. “The notoriously frugal billionaire, who’s net worth is $85 billion, lives in the house he bought in 1958, buys hailed damaged cars for the savings and is known for clipping coupons.” is part of the reason that he continues to be a genuine billionaire. Why should anyone who is self-assured and comfortable with one’s self have to impress others? The same can not be said for donny the dotard aka Cadet Bonespurs.
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MichaelNY SoldierTeacher
June 12 · 12:14:00 AM
I thought one hailed cabs. What is a hailed car?
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scottsvine MichaelNY
June 12 · 12:34:39 AM
I think it means dimpled from hailstones(?)
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MichaelNY scottsvine
June 12 · 01:35:54 AM
I thought of that.
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False equivalency scottsvine
June 12 · 06:24:05 AM
Did you just throw a Hail Mary
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SoldierTeacher False equivalency
June 12 · 08:13:27 AM
Good one!
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ceebee7
June 11 · 11:08:16 PM
Buffett needs to id a champion Dem and back him with mega bucks. Now.
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roberb7 ceebee7
June 11 · 11:22:28 PM
OK, but if he read the negative comments here, it’s entirely understandable that he would tell the Democrats, or at least the DKos wing of it, to f**k off.
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gardnerhill roberb7
June 12 · 03:12:55 AM
Nah, just the 2-3 “fuck all the rich bastards” people here piling it on.
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sparky81884 ceebee7
June 12 · 05:49:00 PM
No. We don’t need a mega-donor created candidate to come save us. That’s OUR job; all we need to do is actually vote.
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justmypiece
June 11 · 11:44:44 PM
I have mixed feelings about the man. I lost respect for him when I read an article how his company builds mobile homes and people think they’re getting a choice in shopping around, when in actuality, almost all sellers are selling his homes (under different names). Then, no one wants to finance mobile homes, so they have their own financing, with interest rates double to triple what they are on stick-built. Mobile homes don’t appreciate. During the crisis and even since, the rates of foreclosure are pretty high on these homes.
Also, it was his trailers in Katrina and even Puerto Rico that can’t be used because people were getting sick, mainly from the formaldehyde. I doubt his company gave any credits for homes that were worthless.
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Tribecastan justmypiece
June 12 · 01:43:49 AM
I think any billionaire is going to have a mixed record. I admire many of the things Buffet has done and how he lives his life. He is a BIG supporter of a more progressive tax rate. At the same time, his holding company is one of the larger share holders of Wells Fargo Bank and he has been totally mum on that subject. I wish he would either influence the bank to be better or divest his company from them.
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shrike Tribecastan
June 12 · 02:01:36 AM
The Wells Fargo board fired the CEO. Berkshire must control several seats as their largest stockholder.
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benamery21 shrike
June 12 · 05:56:15 AM
And replaced him with a guy who was giving press quotes about the lack of a problem with the sales culture as early as 2013.
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MarinaInWonderland justmypiece
June 12 · 10:12:14 AM
I thought there was a class action/MDL suit in the 80s to stop that formaldehyde use in walls and floors.
Maybe it was only against one mfr.
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Rambler797
June 11 · 11:46:18 PM
So far so good. How about a reprimand for stiffing employees?
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Little Big Zebra
June 11 · 11:47:35 PM
During my time in Omaha, I could not help but see the irony of WB living in a neighborhood listed as “blighted”, drive a 10 yr old Buick and not provide his children with ‘unearned benefit’ from any wealth. Years later, I met his son and was impressed by his normality, humility and ability. Possibly far better than what most parents try to instill in children with their insecure overprotection and too much unearned privilege. And while extremely wealthy, his overall view appears very grounded and morally guided. It just so happens he could strategically manipulate portfolios to huge profits.
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gardnerhill Little Big Zebra
June 12 · 01:13:43 AM
Buffett once said he wanted to give his kids enough money so they could do anything — but not so much money that they could do nothing. He’d visited some of his fellow billionaires’ homes and seen what horrifically spoiled and entitled monsters their kids had become as they lounged around waiting for their trust fund checks.
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AppleP gardnerhill
June 12 · 01:50:01 AM
I have met children of the mega-rich and completely agree with his philosophy. Some of them are able to live fairly normal lives, but the majority end up being self-destructive or even worse, destroy the lives of those around them (not unlike our current President).
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gardnerhill AppleP
June 12 · 02:07:47 AM
Hell, I grew up with a lot of those entitled creatures — it was like they were on another planet from me even though I lived in the same wealthy neighborhood.
Every now and then I fantasize about not having to work. But I think of the kids who lived on trust funds their whole lives who are my age and are now useless adults. I’m very glad I didn’t become them.
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AppleP gardnerhill
June 12 · 02:48:30 AM
Not having to work can be a blessing or a curse depending on the person. My BIL just retired after 45 years of teaching and is miserable. I can tell his health is declining quickly. His wife OTOH, lost 60 pounds after retirement and is spending her days on hobbies and the grandkids and will probably live to 100. Her passion is her grandkids an his is teaching, which is why he never should have retired. Once your reason for living is gone then you give up and your body gives up too. If you have no reason for living then you give up and your body gives up as well — even young people.
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gardnerhill AppleP
June 12 · 03:18:54 AM
BIL may be able to find some part-time volunteer work with kids — or tutoring, something to keep his hand in teaching-wise.
Not a good idea to focus 100% on your job — you wind up not knowing what to do when it’s gone.
My dad always said the best thing about retirement was not having to put away his woodworking projects on Sunday afternoon!
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splashy AppleP
June 12 · 02:22:40 PM
Yes, a person has to have some reason to get up in the morning. Your BIL needs to find something to do ASAP. Something like tutoring kids having problems, or something similar would likely do him some good, and he could choose when to do it.
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Ceri Cat gardnerhill
June 12 · 03:15:49 AM
Not everyone is like them, it’s never one single thing that makes or breaks us as people. I agree with the premise of making sure they’ll never be without but not so much so they don’t need to be active in something useful though as well.
We need to generally make sure there are opportunities though.
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MarinaInWonderland Little Big Zebra
June 12 · 10:18:49 AM
I know two trust fund adult kids who are decent people. One lived on his trust until he started making enough money from his SF output. One is doing historical research, as much as possible given his failing health. He contributes to charities in healthy amounts.
Neither men have children, but they may have nephews & nieces to endow, aside from any charities to which they bequeath funds in their wills.
They may be exceptions, but they’re very nice men, and goodhearted.
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GlobalAffects
June 12 · 12:00:48 AM
he has billions cause he saved billions … can you imagine how many pennies that would be?
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Skookum GlobalAffects
June 12 · 02:08:06 AM
No need to imagine. A billion dollars equals a hundred billion pennies. 85 billion dollars equals 8.5 trillion pennies, which in scientific terms I believe is called a “shit tonne” of pennies. Requiring a larger piggy bank than I presently have, for sure.
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onionjim
June 12 · 12:08:04 AM
He seems like a nice guy, unusual for the rich folk. Money turns them to clay.
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libera nos
June 12 · 12:31:53 AM
The 11th Commandment: Thou shalt not stiff the help.
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sparky81884 libera nos
June 12 · 05:45:58 PM
A lesson few have learned despite the obvious negative results of miserliness on job performance.
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lesliet
June 12 · 12:39:49 AM
He donates quite a bit of money to his sister’s “letters project”, where a group of volunteers read letters from people who need money and distribute it where it will do the most good.
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Catte Nappe lesliet
June 12 · 04:22:21 PM
The Chronicle of Philanthropy calculated the giving since 2000 of the 10 richest people in America, and calculated their charity as a share of their total wealth.
Buffett topped the list, giving away more than $46 billion since 2000. That worked out to 71 percent of his $65.5 billion fortune.
www.cnbc.com/...
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gardnerhill
June 12 · 01:03:48 AM
Which means Warren Buffet knows WHEN to spend. He’s not cheap or stingy, he’s frugal. And he knows a working woman is worth her hire!
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fourthcornerman
June 12 · 02:09:59 AM
This is the class that a super-rich nation has created: people (mostly white males) who grew up free from any want or need, with privilege that brought certain immunities that most people don’t have from punishments, and educated in fancy schools and prestigious universities to only look for the biggest profit at least cost without any moral guidance. They thus consider themselves superior beings to the rest of us, thinking much like a Nazi did over a Jew, with no inkling of reality. They infest our corporate boards, their shareholder ranks, Washington DC, media networks, any place where there is lots of money to be made. They are drawn to those things like flies to shit. We have as much a chance of turning them back as we do convincing Trump voters they’re wrong.
That’s the American Royalty — and it’s now become embedded by heredity and inheritance.
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Seraphiel
June 12 · 02:26:43 AM
Considering how skilled Mister “Bankrupted Four Casinos” is at running businesses, the whole organization is probably an origami sculpture awash in red ink.
Buffet could probably spare a few million to buy up the garbage family’s many outstanding debts, then refuse to roll them over when they come due. That would be fun to watch.
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writeofwinter
June 12 · 02:31:02 AM
Something about this seems off. One of the old boy’s lackeys gets called out for treating, “the rest of us,” like crap and steps in to save the day.
I think somebody wants to be governor or senator of NE.
You’re guy ain’t a saint and he’ll make just as much money when the recession hits as he does when the market is at its impossibly-high levels now. Paying a tip isn’t money in this case, it’s publicity.
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MarinaInWonderland writeofwinter
June 12 · 10:23:07 AM
I haven’t heard any interest in running for office.
When Meg Whitman and Carly Fiorina attempted to buy elections in which they were candidates, Californians resisted. Each of them nearly sent the businesses they ran, into the ground. And we should have elected them why?
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Catte Nappe writeofwinter
June 12 · 04:03:30 PM
The man’s nearly 90, and there’s been no indication of the remotest interest in running for office yet, so I doubt it’ll emerge at this point.
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ebrann
June 12 · 02:58:56 AM
Isn’t the problem here the ridiculous custom of tipping? Let the businesses pay their workers. It should not be the customer’s responsibility. The business should pay enough that the workers want to make all the customers happy.
Try living somewhere where tipping is frowned on as an insult to the worker who takes pride in giving everyone the best service possible. Then you’ll know why tipping is a bummer.
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gardnerhill ebrann
June 12 · 03:24:56 AM
Yes, it would be better if everyone was paid enough that they didn’t have to rely on tips to make up the deficit in their paychecks. (Especially for women, who tend to do tip-work in cheaper eating places and can get stiffed despite excellent service because she didn’t let some pig grope her, or she didn’t smile enough at him.)
Until we can raise the pay rates for staff in the food service (uphill climb with so many CEOs of food-based corporations leaning on lawmakers) we have tipping.
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Ceri Cat gardnerhill
June 12 · 04:58:38 AM
Some of the fiercest defenders of tipping I’ve encountered claim to be women making high 3 figures or more a night in tips. It’s ludicrous, and they’re shitty that someone else will be paid a fair amount while they’ll allegedly be getting a lot less. I tend to call horse shit on this but if they’re not full of it it reeks to the high heavens of IGMFY.
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gardnerhill Ceri Cat
June 12 · 03:29:57 PM
Hmm. Most of the big-tip getters are waitERS at the $50/plate steakhouses and upscale restaurants, not the waitRESSES at the $9/plate Dennys and the like — which is why the divide on raising wages/eliminating tips is heavily gender-based.
I’m sure there are a few selfish outliers on the distaff side (especially if they’re young, conventionally good-looking and that’s a major part of why they have the job in a nightclub or bar) — but most female waitstaff don’t fall into that category.
I especially remember one woman who talked about waiting on a customer in a diner (“a guy, of fucking course”) who told her at the end of the meal that he wasn’t going to tip her because she hadn’t smiled at him. The day was September 11, 2001, and for some reason she hadn’t SMILED at this guy so he stiffed her.
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MarinaInWonderland gardnerhill
June 12 · 10:24:12 AM
I wish I could recommend you four times over for this comment!
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splashy ebrann
June 12 · 02:28:10 PM
Agreed. That’s a hold over from when affirmative action was for white men, where any job mostly done by women and POC was deemed too menial to be covered by the minimum wage requirement, to ensure that white men were able to earn more, thereby amassing more wealth and power.
It definitely needs to be changed, along with agricultural work.
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Catte Nappe splashy
June 12 · 03:56:54 PM
According to Michael Lynn, a professor at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, tipping in the United States began just after the American Civil War in the late 1800’s. Lynn suggests that wealthy Americans traveling abroad to Europe witnessed tipping and brought the aristocratic custom back with them to “show off,” or prove their elevated education and class.
...
A movement against tipping began in the late 1890’s as many Americans believed that tipping went against the country’s ideals and allowed a clear servile class that would be financially dependent on a higher class….The anti-tipping group believed that tipping was the “vilest of imported vices” because it created an aristocratic class in a country that fought hard to eliminate a class-driven society. In 1915 six state legislators from Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Tennessee and South Carolina attempted and failed to pass an anti-tipping bill that would make leaving gratuities unlawful.
www.foodwoolf.com/...
Restaurants and rail operators, notably Pullman, embraced tipping primarily, Jayaraman says, because it enabled them to save money by hiring newly freed slaves to work for tips alone. Plenty of Americans frowned upon the practice, and a union-led movement begat bans on tipping in several states. The fervor spread to Europe, too, before fizzling in the United States—by 1926, the state tipping bans had been repealed.
www.motherjones.com/...
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SilverDogIV
June 12 · 03:13:44 AM
Mr. B has pretty much eschewed publicity his whole life. Like Popeye,’I yam what I yam’ is his motto. Sometimes a tip is just a tip — the right thing to do. I can respect that all day. Wish that attitude was contagious among the rest of the wealthy...
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COMALite J
June 12 · 03:28:45 AM
Ever notice how billionaires who earned their billions (like Buffet, Gates, et al) tend to be more progressive, while those who inherited at least a substantial start towards their billions (the Kochs, Trump, etc.) tend to be conservative?
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splashy COMALite J
June 12 · 02:32:39 PM
It is a glaring thing, isn't it. Both Buffet and Gates have said they benefitted by being born at the time when their particular talents were well paid, that luck was a huge factor.
I have read that Buffet said that if he had been born 100 years before he was born he would have been in poverty, because he can’t do much of anything else besides what he does.
The ones born into wealth who aren’t loved like they need to be tend to think they are genetically superior or something, and that everyone else is inferior.
I think it’s a syndrome created by parents that don’t understand the harm they do when they create the environment where their children bond with things rather than people.
Oh, and I bet their parents are major racists/sexists/poorists who think that anyone not just like them is inferior, not quite human. That’s was the case with the Kochs and 45.
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Vinnie Vegas
June 12 · 04:16:44 AM
I'd love to see more of this kind of diary on DK. Thanks for sharing. Love Buffett.
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Paul C
June 12 · 04:20:14 AM
I thought Buffet was a good guy until I learned that he was fighting to get state laws passed to prevent homeowners from installing rooftop solar because it posed a threat to his investments in utility companies burning fossil fuels.
So he basically would condemn countless species to extinction, cut short countless lives, just so his investments returned a profit, no matter how ill advised those investments might have been.
The man is eccentric. I give him that. But when push comes to shove it is all about the money.
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splashy Paul C
June 12 · 02:33:14 PM
Do you have a link to that? I would like to read about it.
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False equivalency
June 12 · 06:29:51 AM
Decades back, he did some shenanigans with his Saloman Brithers unvestement that bordered on illegal and got away with it.
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MarinaInWonderland
June 12 · 08:57:41 AM
Can entitled stockholders sick with affulenza be sanctioned or otherwise punished for this stunt?
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Mnemosyne
June 12 · 11:27:53 AM
Good for Mr. Buffett.
And a report that his shareholders stiffed a waitress is particularly disturbing given the price of Berkshire Hathaway shares — these aren’t the things generally bought by amateurs and people who don’t already have a chunk of investment activity ongoing.
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Khaaannn
June 12 · 02:42:42 PM
No wonder the rest of the “Investor Class” hates him.
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satx
June 12 · 03:07:48 PM
So hyper-wealthy Warren flicks a few bucks at a poor waitress?
Warren Buffett's mobile home empire preys on the poor
www.publicintegrity.org/...
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shakker
June 12 · 03:43:53 PM
The eternal argument that Warren Buffett is Satan or Thor or Godzilla or whatever is crazy. He is a skilled investor who seeks to take advantage of situations where companies have reasonably effective management, market share that is hard to take away from them and generate cash profits. That in and of itself is not good or evil. Sometimes the reason these companies have this ‘protected market share’ is really stupid investment regulations or more often the lack of proper regulation and antitrust enforcement. That is not his fault and he has on occasion mentioned that the laws that make this happen should be changed. He has also said that it is wrong for the government to tax his secretary at a higher effective rate than he pays. He knows this directly because he does the taxes for all his employees in his office for free every year. He has I think 40 or so people who work for him.
He is by all objective measures a relatively humble, intelligent, human being who has by his admission been very fortunate to have lived a long healthy life in a great country of opportunity and has been lucky in some investments but mostly compounding over such a long time of interest and other gains made upon earlier investments because he didn’t need all he earned to live on.
If you want to learn something about investment read his part of the annual reports of Berkshire Hathaway. He admits actual mistakes and why he thinks he made them. It is comforting for a small investor like me to see that in print because I have made some choices that turned out badly and that is part of investing. There are also those that you screw up just as bad and make a lot more than you thought and you should not pat yourself on the back for that. If you do congratulate yourself for luck and inflate your ego — you will really screw up big time. I have been lucky that I never learned to invest with borrowed money or played in options or other things where you can lose MORE than you invest. I picked some real turkeys over the years that I was very glad that they had to stop going down at zero. Still over 30 years or so I have earned enough income for me and grown my investment to 4 or 5 times what I had if you assume that I actually get my unrealized gains when I sell my current investments. I made 1 or 2% of that in Berkshire Hathaway stock.
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LenR
June 12 · 03:59:59 PM
This is an admirable action on Mr. Buffet’s part. I do have to say that I’ve lost some confidence in his investment choices due to his unwavering support for his Wells Fargo investment, even after them being caught in a string of large-scale broadly occurring criminal procedures against customers.
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BluSoutherner
June 12 · 05:20:03 PM
I would be curious to know what, if anything, Buffett planned to say to the stockholders who stiffed the waitress.
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sistersnark
June 12 · 05:28:28 PM
My son works for a Berkshire Hathaway company and he makes good to his employees too through a generous benefit package which includes a fully funded FSA to cover their out of pocket costs.
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sparky81884
June 12 · 05:40:16 PM
A nice reminder that there’s a difference between being frugal and being miserly.
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Bluefirewolf
June 12 · 05:41:51 PM
Warren has proved himself to be time and time again a good man — I honestly don’t think I have heard anything really negative about him. I think in some way that he realizes his good fortune, in terms of wealth, and understands that there are hard working people out there, who have worked as hard as anyone and still don’t get the pay they should. I, for one, hate it when someone wealthy says, “well I worked hard”. Which implies that everyone else is a lazy shit. Firefighters, police, and nurses work hard too and don’t get paid their worth. I once saw a cartoon that depicted a teacher riding a limo and a basketball player driving an old volvo (or something along those lines) and the caption was, “in another universe”. Ok thanks for letting me stand on my soap box lol.
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DFW Dallas
June 12 · 05:43:09 PM
I wonder if he could be convinced to hire Jeff Daniels to be the nightly news anchor? Trouble is, while Buffett could afford it, the station then probably wouldn’t make money.
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CoastieVet
June 12 · 05:43:29 PM
Good for Warren Buffet. Being frugal with his money is his business, but I really appreciate his action in making sure that someone who earned their wage gets paid. The SOB responsible for stiffing the server needs to get fired.
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HippyDippy1
June 12 · 05:49:19 PM
This wonderful act of kindness gives me hope in a very hopeless country.
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Mustang3
June 12 · 05:49:57 PM
And, has remained an actual human being, despite the scourge of great wealth, which is perhaps the MOST amazing thing.
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BFGirl
June 12 · 05:54:33 PM
Glad Mr Buffet took care of the tip. Obnoxious people who stiff servers are mean!
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southportjl
June 12 · 05:56:35 PM
He could give the waitress $100 million and not know it.
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RareBird0
June 12 · 06:07:13 PM
Surely the failure to take care of the due gratuity fell on someone’s shoulders. If this was an intentional thing, I hope this person gets axed. No doubt these rich folk weren’t eating at Chili’s—not that Chili’s workers don’t deserve their gratuities as well. They were probably being taken care of at the best digs there are. So, it goes with the territory that service is going to cost. Shame for trying to dodge it.
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