New Forbes 400: Total net worth up 8% over last year

[Newsjock]

Source: Forbes via The Globe and Mail

It has been a year of reclamation for America's richest. The total worth of the Forbes 400 was up 8 per cent to $1.37-trillion (U.S.), well out-earning the 1 per cent rise in the S&P over the same period of time. More than half (217) are richer than they were a year ago.

The headline number tells a partial story. Just over one-third of the 400 failed to add to their fortunes or lost ground. Still far above us is the record of $1.57-trillion in total net worth set in 2008.

But the very top of the list gained, as good friends Bill Gates and Warren Buffett were up $4-billion and $5-billion, respectively. They, too, are short of their personal highs. Mr. Gates, who in March lost his title of world's richest person to Mexico's Carlos Slim, is still America's richest person – for the 17th year in a row.

... The price of admission to the 400 is back up to the $1-billion mark. Last year it was $950-million, the first time since 2005 it had fallen below 10 figures. The most notable of the 18 returnees is Ford Motor scion William Ford Sr., who made the cut after a four-year absence as the automobile company's stock hit five-year highs.

Read more: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/the-richest-people-in-america/article1718758/

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The full list: http://www.forbes.com/wealth/forbes-400?partner=globeandmail%20%20
1 Bill Gates
2 Warren Buffett
3 Larry Ellison
4 Christy Walton
5 Charles Koch
5 David Koch
7 Jim Walton
8 Alice Walton
9 S. Robson Walton
10 Michael Bloomberg

[xchrom]

1. #10 is campaigning for 'centrists' in in both parties.

Notably Reid and Whitman.

[Starry Messenger]

2. I consider Larry Ellison my arch-foe.

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local&id=6045093

Ellison's tax break hurts local schools


San Mateo County assessed Ellison's 23 acre Woodside property at $163 million dollars, but he thought it was worth $64 million; claiming among other things that the 16th century Japanese architecture limits its appeal. The county agreed with him and will give him a $3 million dollar tax refund. In Portola Valley, about $300,000 dollars of that will come from the schools.

"There are some people through attrition who are going to lose their jobs, people who are in district office type positions and support positions, not in the classrooms," said Tim Hanretty, Asst. Superintendent.

It cuts especially deep here because this is a Basic Aid district - meaning most of the school's money comes from property taxes. So while the district will lose about $100,000 dollars from the cuts coming out of Sacramento, the loss from Ellison's property taxes is three times that amount.

<snip>

Countywide all of the San Mateo County schools will lose about $1.4 million dollars from one man's property tax refund, of course that one man is worth about $25 billion dollars.


I'm so happy to hear he's still keeping his head above the water. :sarcasm:

[HughBeaumont]

3. Wowz. 6 of them are from two families. Classic.

All 6 are heavy donors to Republicans and their issues. You know, because they simply aren't rich ENOUGH and those mean ol' "Taxacrats" aren't very . .. "Business-Friendly" (meaning, "Just let us do what we want, shut the fuck up and there'll be no problems!")

Zero-sum wealth inequality and Greed are apparently American virtues.