Forbes richest facts
The Slate 60 attempts to fuse two essential but conflicting
aspects of the American character: generosity and competitiveness. So, it's not surprising that the inspiration for the list
came from a man rich in both qualities, Ted Turner. In
1996, Slate editor Michael Kinsley was struck by remarks Turner made in an
interview with Maureen Dowd: The CNN founder bemoaned the influence of the
Forbes 400 list of richest Americans, saying it discouraged the wealthy from
giving away their money for fear of slipping down the rankings. Turner suggested that a list of charitable contributions
could inspire rich Americans to compete in a more beneficial way. Kinsley thought such a list would be an important
contribution to American journalism and civic life, and launched the list in
1996, Slate's first year in existence. In 2000, Slate
partnered with the Chronicle of Philanthropy, who now compiles the data for the
list. For more: http://www.slate.com/id/2136385/
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WSWS : News & Analysis : North America
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For the first time in the history of its compilation, the Forbes magazine list of the 400 richest Americans includes only individuals who hold a net worth estimated at over one billion dollars.
That personal wealth valued at one billion dollars has become rather humdrum
in the
The total combined wealth of the 400 richest Americans now stands at $1.25 trillion. This figure has expanded by $120 billion in only one year.
The figure $1.25 trillion is practically unfathomable. But
to give some indication of its magnitude, consider that if it were divvied up
among the entire
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2006/oct2006/forb-o16.shtml
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The total wealth of
the Forbes 400 reached $1.4 trillion in 2000 in real 2006$, when the 400
richest people in the
Over 1.4 trillion in value 2006
http://oregonstate.edu/instruction/anth484/forbes.html
Charity and Forbes 400 9-24-04 http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/invest/forbes/P129955.asp
Forbes 400 list of richest Americans: snapshot of a financial oligarchy
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The current issue of Forbes Magazine contains the publication’s annual list of the wealthiest Americans, ranked by net worth. While one’s first instinct might be to turn away in disgust from such a flaunting of individual wealth and greed, it is instructive to consider the figures, for they provide an important indication of the nature of American society.
According to Forbes, “The economy’s recovery may be a little shaky, but you wouldn’t know it from looking at this year’s Forbes 400. The combined net worth of the nation’s wealthiest climbed to $1 trillion, up $45 billion in 12 months. With a $750 million admission price, 9-digit fortunes are an endangered species here: 78 percent of the people on this year’s list are billionaires.”
World Social list website…2004
The 400 Richest Americans
Edited by Matthew Miller and Tatiana Serafin 09.21.06,
6:00 PM ET
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