Epstein muses on wealth transfer and philanthropy in loosely‑structured interview

Missions to Mars, age reversal. understanding the big bang, teleportation , Artificial Intelligence and Synthetic Biology are this weeks topics. “In the past, only governments had this kind of money, money ofa truly altering scale,” says Epstein in a chipper and smoothed-out Brooklynese. “In fact, it used to be that the rich, reaching a certain point of philanthropy, merely hoped to help make the world a better place, now they want to question some basic assumptions and try change the world. Rockefeller and Carnegie were, as examples of social-engineering philanthropy, unique for their time . They alone had such resources and will. Now you have legions of people who must at some point ( hopefully before death, but eventually non the less ) transfer vastly larger fortunes than Rockefeller or Carnegie had at their disposal, or might even have imagined. “Except that it turns out it is actually hard to give away this kind of wealth, without unintended negative consequences that may cause as many problems as you’re solving.” Epstein’s long-time business thesis is that the hyper rich know very little about the essence of money. They may know about their own businesses, but the great sums that are realized asa result are ultimately an afterthought and demand an entirely different sort of intellectual discipline. The Forbes 400, says Epstein, not immune to an amount of wonder, increased their wealth by $500 billion last year, meaning, in effect, that on average every Forbes-list billionaire makes more than another billion every year. And, points out the 63-year- old Epstein, they will almost all be dead in 50 years, most well before that, meaning $4.2 trillion, compounding everyday, will eventually willhave to be transferred to new hands . “So, to understand the future, what you have to begin to do is follow the money, not in Watergate- like terms backwards, as in who has gotten it, but forwards to where it will go and who will get it.” Epstein can find himself echoing aspects of Thomas Piketty on the inequities of the accumulation of wealth (“the divide is between people with assets, which appreciate, and people without assets, who fail to advance—that is, of course, the miracle of compounded interest’’), except for the fact that Epstein, knowing the rich, understands a point that Piketty doesn’t: “Nobody, nobody, of the hyperwealthy wants to give it all to their children. Everybody now has the modern appreciation that one of the curses of great wealth is that its burdens are in many cases too much to handle. One of his rules for the younger generation eventual recipients is that they all take accounting classes. Along with a video tape of the parents discussing their views on money. This acts as the bible for the too often conflicts amongst following generations Epstein’s role in this discussion of the private allotment of what is in fact a decent fraction of the U.S. Gross Domestic Product is not only as an experienced philanthropist himself but as a sort of adviser or brain—the “ rich whisperer’—making him, in addition to his own vast wealth (two private islands , one for guests ) , arguably among the most influential people you’ve only heard of for reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with his influence. Epstein sometimes seems to have an out-of-body attitude toward his own fate and bad press—that’s something that occurs and there is little one can do in the parallel world of the lunchbox crowd . Not long ago, when I met him for lunch in New York, he noted that he hadn’t been out to eat out in a restaurant in ten years. It was a not particularly pleasant experience for him and we were done in 30 minutes. ( He said he couldn’t connect with so many distractions ) On the other hand, Epstein’s life sometimes may seem part of a challenge: not just look at me, but, even I can’t believe what you see? But, perhaps, he is just naive to what others are thinking: a negligent and ina sense childish tone deafness. Press accounts recycle the mysterious billionaire mythology—a man of vast and unsourced riches living in a parallel world of absolute entitlement—with brief glimpses of him stepping out of the house (the same photos endlessly republished), and the assumption of wrongdoing inside. In fact, the life in the house, without wife or children or conventional domestic demeanor, rather conforms to the scripted fantasies: somewhere between Daddy Warbucks and Eyes Wide Shut. There is indeed a group of young women—in their twenties and thirties—who act as Epstein’s support staff and companions. Some have worked for him for many years, marrying, having children, and continuing as part of his business and HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_023628