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Bill & Melinda Gates getting divorced

Cornell

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I'm fascinated by the responses here. Maybe both of them are happy. Mid-life crisis? Melinda trophy wife? And not everyone (me for one) thinks that Bill Gate's philanthropic work is wonderful.

He seems like a meglomaniac as far as I'm concerned.
 

Snazzylass

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I'm fascinated by the responses here. Maybe both of them are happy. Mid-life crisis? Melinda trophy wife? And not everyone (me for one) thinks that Bill Gate's philanthropic work is wonderful.

He seems like a meglomaniac as far as I'm concerned.
Thank you! The only surprise here is that it was announced.
 

pedro47

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I am surprise and shocked . I just wish them both Happiness.
Life is liked a box of chocolates. IMHO.
 
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Beachclubmum

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The youngest child is 18 so I wonder if this decision was in the works for awhile.
 
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CalGalTraveler

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This one surprised me as they seemed happy together. Sad. I also don't believe that he wanted a younger wife. Besides, as stated in an article, when they first met, Melinda was dating several men and Bill was busy with Microsoft.

I think it is Melinda who is much younger and has always been in the shadow of Bill who wants out. She wants to make her mark on the world and it is hard to get credit when she is his wife. She might be asking, "Is this it?"
 
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Ironwood

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What a disappointment....we recently watched the Netflix series 'Inside Bill's Brain' and now feel somewhat hoodwinked. While it was done in 2019, the series portrayed them as a tight, loving and colaborative couple...albeit with a few clips of Melinda implying she had to be flexible to accomodate Bill on a few issues. But, how disingenuous was that series!
 

CalGalTraveler

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I don't believe Gates is a meglomaniac. Driven to succeed? Yes. But who isn't driven that has made the kind of accomplishments like he has?

I can't fault a guy who is trying to do some good with his money and brains. He is not pushing to put his name on university buildings to stroke his ego, or throwing money at a charity as a way to feel popular at their annual gala and gain tax writeoffs.

Too many rich people like Larry Ellison spend their money on expensive hobbies like supersize yachts, and buying up beachfront property. What have they done for the world?
 
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rhonda

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davidvel

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Welcome to my ignore list.
I suppose she won't see this but sorry she was offended. I truly thought that someone who posted that they knew the inner workings of two people's relationship, to the extent they were surprised they were separating, all from their body language and facial expressions seen in a few photos, had to have been said in jest.
 

PigsDad

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I suppose she won't see this but sorry she was offended. I truly thought that someone who posted that they knew the inner workings of two people's relationship, to the extent they were surprised they were separating, all from their body language and facial expressions seen in a few photos, had to have been said in jest.
If that's what you meant, you could have said it in a much nicer way originally. I can easily see how your first reply could come off as crass and insensitive to someone, IMO. That's a pitfall of forums...

Kurt
 

DaveNV

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I worked with a woman about twenty years ago who had the perfect marriage. Her husband was a really nice guy, and the two of them were always doing something fun and interesting with their lives. I joked with them both that they should adopt me, because they were such a cool family.

Just a few weeks later she casually mentioned that she had moved over the weekend. I said, "Oh, did you two find a new house?" She said, "No, we're getting divorced."

My jaw hit the floor. It seemed impossible that the happiest couple I knew would be splitting up. I said as much to her. Her reply was, "Surprise! People only see one side of the story."

It was a valuable lesson that no matter how well we think we know someone, especially through their public persona, we are not privy to the inner workings of that relationship. We should try to avoid judgment, because it truly is none of our business.

Dave
 

DrQ

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... we are not privy to the inner workings of that relationship. We should try to avoid judgment, because it truly is none of our business.

Dave
:thumbup: :thumbup:
 

bluehende

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What a horrible and evil person.




The aim was to scale up the efforts of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to save children’s lives in the developing world, in the belief that, as Gates has it, “all lives have equal value”.
 

DaveNV

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But Bill Gates sure has made it his business trying to the the whole world how to live. Sorry - Not giving him a pass.

Not sure I understand what you're saying. How is he telling the whole world how to live? By offering a product (Microsoft) to a computer-hungry world? The consumer has other options than buying Microsoft products. But regardless, how are he and how wife somehow bad people for splitting up at this point in their lives? I'm trying to understand your position here.

Dave
 

joestein

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But Bill Gates sure has made it his business trying to the the whole world how to live. Sorry - Not giving him a pass.

Thank you. I think he is full of it.

In articles posted today, Bill Gates said he is leaving his children a 'miniscule' portion of his wealth. So, that they will need to get by on their own.

Meanwhile, he bought his oldest daughter a $5MM condo to stay at during college and paid over $30MM for an equestrian property in Florida for her to ride at. She is a 'champion' equestrian and rides with the children of a lot of other rich famous people. Way to get by on her own. Minuscule probably means a few percent. Just a few billion.

He has become the largest land owner in the US. His foundation has a $50BB endowment. However, I feel that there are ulterior motives. He can park his assets there and his family can continue to exert control over them and avoid capital gains/estate tax.

He has a right to do with his assets as he wishes. He is obviously brilliant and I don't begrudge his success. However, his talk and his action don't line up.
 

DaveNV

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Thank you. I think he is full of it.

Thanks, Joe, for stating those points. I wonder how many years ago he bought his daughter that condo, as compared to when he said he plans to leave his kids a minuscule portion of his wealth? I don't follow the news about him or what he's up to, but I wonder about the context of those actions. I'd hate to be held accountable for the rest of my life for decisions I made when my kids were in school. For that matter, are the Gates children living "charitable" lives, and trying to make their own way in the world, or are they demanding Daddy support them, or capitalizing on his name, similar to the behaviors of so many children of other wealthy people?

On a more general scale, I wonder if there are similar feelings about Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, or even Elon Musk? Are they in the same category, or is Bill Gates in his own category?

Why am I even asking? I actually don't even care about any of them. :D

Dave
 

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I thought it was interesting that they plan to continue to work together on their foundation. I toured the foundation office in Seattle a few years ago and was amazed at how expansive their work was—so much more than I'd been aware of. They have chosen to focus on some major problems and really address them with concentrated funding not available otherwise. Of course, their exhibits are going to tell the positive story, but I still was very impressed, knowing they had chosen to spend their money this way.
 

Brett

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But Bill Gates sure has made it his business trying to the the whole world how to live. Sorry - Not giving him a pa
I'm fascinated by the responses here. Maybe both of them are happy. Mid-life crisis? Melinda trophy wife? And not everyone (me for one) thinks that Bill Gate's philanthropic work is wonderful.

He seems like a meglomaniac as far as I'm concerned.
I'm guessing you probably don't like Mark Zuckerberg ;)
or Steve Jobs ... or Mackenzie

gates.jpg
[/QUOTE]
 
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