Gates Still Richest, Gambling Tycoons Make The List

from the slouching-towards-bethlehem dept

Congratulations to Bill Gates for once again coming out on top of the Forbes' richest people list. Larry and Sergey are gaining, but it'll probably take more than the acquisition of an Ajax word processor to bridge the gap. While these lists make for great gawking and cocktail-party chatter they can be informative as to the world's economic zeitgeist. The emergence of steel barron Lakshmi Mittal (#5) in recent years reflects the world's growing thirst for industrial materials. World #3 Carlos Slim Helu, founder of wireless giant America Movil, has capitalized on economic growth in Latin America. Fittingly this year's new entrants are in the realm of gambling. Executives at gambling sites Bodog.com as well as Party Gaming both made the list, as the world still can't come down from Texas Hold 'Em fever. At the same time, speculation is a hot hobby, with the newly public NYSE and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange profiting greatly. It seems that as people get rich they like to bet on things like sports, cards and the price of December 2009 light sweet crude contracts. Let's hope this merry fit of speculation and gambling doesn't end like every single one before it.
Hide this

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team


Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread


  1. identicon
    Ben McNelly, 10 Mar 2006 @ 11:26am

    Dang.

    mmm, dang.. I missed the list again.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  2. identicon
    Bilal Aslam, 10 Mar 2006 @ 11:53am

    Re: Dang.

    Lol, yeah if u take the richest person on there, i have about 0.00001% of their net worth >

    link to this | view in thread ]

  3. identicon
    phreakindee, 10 Mar 2006 @ 12:07pm

    HAHAHA

    did anyone see number 207, Anurag Dikshit? seriously, thats his name.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  4. identicon
    Playgued, 10 Mar 2006 @ 12:17pm

    Re: Dang.

    You're lucky. In a better world that would be the waiting list for the guillotine.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  5. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 10 Mar 2006 @ 12:58pm

    Re: Dang.

    Why? Because they were successful?

    waaaah!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  6. identicon
    angry dude, 10 Mar 2006 @ 1:10pm

    Bill Gates

    I have no problem with Bill Gates being No 1 on this list as long as his company doesn't steal intellectual property from me or other guys.
    Unfortunately, MS routinely and knowingly steals IP from smaller rivals and individuals.
    Somebody estimated that the total liabilities of MS for illegaly using someone else's IP are somewhere between 100 and 200 billion bucks...
    When all those small companies and individuals start demanding their compensation from MS (and some of them already did), Bill Gates will quickly move down on that list...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  7. identicon
    E. Cox, 10 Mar 2006 @ 1:12pm

    Re: HAHAHA

    Seriously? "Dikshit"

    link to this | view in thread ]

  8. identicon
    Ben McNelly, 10 Mar 2006 @ 1:18pm

    it could be worse

    "New to the technology billionaires' list in 2005 were Anurag Dikshit (#207, $3.3 billion),"

    I doubt he got an honerable mention just because he is new. Funny though, this guy down at the Y keeps thnking I am this guy here. We must look alike... Cuz I sure aint rich.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  9. identicon
    XYZ, 10 Mar 2006 @ 2:00pm

    Re: HAHAHA

    This is an indian name which means as follows.

    Dikshit: initated into a religious order Divij: born of the sky, heaven born, divine, a god Divij at: born of the sky, born of heaven Durva: heavenly grass Dvarik: door attendant; one of the eighteen attendants of Surya Dyumnik: inspired; grand; mighty; a son of Vashisth Dyutit: enlightened; clear; shining

    link to this | view in thread ]

  10. identicon
    J Q Public, 10 Mar 2006 @ 2:51pm

    Re: HAHAHA

    For $3.3 billion, you could call me "dipsh!t" for all I care. ;)

    link to this | view in thread ]

  11. identicon
    CW, 10 Mar 2006 @ 5:44pm

    Re:HAHAHA

    hell for $3.3 billion you can call or do (almost) anything to/at me!!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  12. identicon
    haha, 10 Mar 2006 @ 6:01pm

    haha

    i would not be complaining. for 3 billion dollars u could take my left side(arm leg, knut)

    haha

    link to this | view in thread ]

  13. identicon
    David Mcleod, 10 Mar 2006 @ 6:51pm

    Re: Re:HAHAHA

    for 3.3 billion you can call, say,or do anything and everything to me or any member of my family!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  14. identicon
    Andrew Strasser, 10 Mar 2006 @ 8:27pm

    These guys obviously missed that discussion in the

    I mean If you're at the top to create a trickle at the bottom don't you have to be rushing money out at the top of the waterfall or does that trickle really just help everyone on the way. Where do you take this stuff and is it really worth going there over?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  15. identicon
    Chris A, 11 Mar 2006 @ 4:10am

    for 3.3 Billion u could...

    For 3.3 billion i would...
    -tie a 2 ton bolder to by balls and drop it off a bridge.
    -cut my nipples off and sow them to my forhead.
    -crap while freefalling just before opening the chute
    -eat raw sewage with chop sticks

    With 3.3 billion i could...
    -live on the moon
    -each slim jims every day all day
    -build the first particle accelerator cannon just for burning ants when i get bored
    -buy someone elses balls, have them surgicly grafted on me, and have moon babies with heidi klum

    link to this | view in thread ]

  16. identicon
    TriZz, 11 Mar 2006 @ 1:34pm

    For 3.3 billion I'd suck Bill Gates dxck on National Television.

    I could spend the .3 billion on mouth wash and then have a REALLY nice life.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  17. identicon
    saejin, 11 Mar 2006 @ 5:09pm

    Re: Re: Dang.

    If you had have about 0.00001% of how mush they had then you are still a multi-millionare!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  18. identicon
    coyote, 11 Mar 2006 @ 5:51pm

    What he did.

    For 700 Billion I'd spend my most active years creating and growing a software company that would enable people like this to write comments in a forum like this, as long as I didn't have to read them.

    BG probably feels this. I on the other hand have been getting a run of cold cards, and was looking for a tiny diversion - which I found.

    Cast Out Your Old Tired Expectations.

    That's c o y o t E L o g i c

    See ya,
    c

    link to this | view in thread ]

  19. identicon
    XYZ, 11 Mar 2006 @ 6:17pm

    0.00001%

    0.00001% of $1 Billion is $100,000.....not a multi-millionaire....but I would'nt complain

    link to this | view in thread ]

  20. identicon
    JesusH, 11 Mar 2006 @ 7:09pm

    0.00001%

    So, not to beat a dead horse, but if 0.00001% of $1 Billion is $100,000 and you have $700 Billion, that would be $70 million dollars, which seems like a multi-millionaire to me.

    Finally all my college math classes came in handy! I KNEW this day would come!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  21. identicon
    Andrew Strasser, 11 Mar 2006 @ 7:29pm

    I'll take a millionth in that case.

    7 mil not bad.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  22. identicon
    Brendan, 11 Mar 2006 @ 9:33pm

    Re: for 3.3 Billion u could...

    I'm right there with you.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  23. identicon
    Not a Millionaire, 11 Mar 2006 @ 10:54pm

    Re: 0.00001%

    XYZ is right.
    .00001% of 700 Billion => .0000001*700,000,000,000=70,000 that is 70 thousand, not 70 million. For example using smaller numbers => 1% of a hundred dollars is one dollar right? So, .01 * 100 = 1. Remember, you need to move the decimal place over two when using percentages. Now, back to relative integration...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  24. identicon
    Abram Gutang, 12 Mar 2006 @ 12:11am

    3.3 Billion Dollars (U.S.)

    If I had that - I would pay out my debts, and the rest of them could wait some more...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  25. identicon
    Johan, 12 Mar 2006 @ 1:13pm

    Re: 3.3 Billion Dollars (U.S.)

    I'd still eat Kraft Dinner

    link to this | view in thread ]

  26. identicon
    LukeD, 12 Mar 2006 @ 3:29pm

    Re: for 3.3 Billion u could...

    I don't know...I would MUCH rather have my balls than a few billion dollars. I mean really!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  27. identicon
    Jay, 12 Mar 2006 @ 4:03pm

    Re: HAHAHA

    Hell, For $3.3 billion, you could even call me collect.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  28. identicon
    Effeminem, 12 Mar 2006 @ 4:13pm

    Well, you only really need one testicle. The other is just a spare.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  29. identicon
    Question, 12 Mar 2006 @ 7:33pm

    Re: Bill Gates

    how do I go about "demanding my compersation" from MS

    link to this | view in thread ]

  30. identicon
    Solari, 13 Mar 2006 @ 1:27am

    Bill G.+B.

    Bill and co. deserve every $ they get as they opened up the world in unbeleavable ways. Global mankind should all buy Origami and start a new revolution on the Net.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  31. identicon
    angry dude, 13 Mar 2006 @ 7:15am

    Re: Re: Bill Gates

    Invent some neat software trick, file a patent on it,
    offer to license or sell it to MS...
    MS will always say that they are not interested in your stuff (no matter how brilliant your stuff is...), but then will quickly turn around and implement it in their products without asking you...

    Once you get your patent (3-5 years later), just sue the crap out of them...

    Read this: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8122859/

    To add to this story, MS recently had to "downgrade" their Office suite to get rid of this useful feature from Amado's patent.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  32. identicon
    Abdul Rahman Aziz, 24 Mar 2009 @ 12:26pm

    hi,

    good evening sir,i am commenting about you.i am living in Ghana and i am a student and i found my living hard.so i want you to help me please.

    link to this | view in thread ]


Follow Techdirt
Essential Reading
Techdirt Deals
Report this ad  |  Hide Techdirt ads
Techdirt Insider Discord

The latest chatter on the Techdirt Insider Discord channel...

Loading...
Recent Stories

This site, like most other sites on the web, uses cookies. For more information, see our privacy policy. Got it
Close

Email This

This feature is only available to registered users. Register or sign in to use it.