Just because rich people have thick pockets doesn't mean they're not capable of acts of kindness.
Many wealthy people genuinely like to help others and struggling institutions. George Soros, for example, is known for his philanthropy by giving scholarships to South African Black students during apartheid and Chuck Feeney, who actually became nearly broke after secretly giving away a great deal of money to various human rights causes.
Unfortunately, there are also plenty of affluent people who are led by their avarice to flaunt their privileged status.
Curious to hear examples, Redditor nononononononi asked:
"What's the most disturbing thing a rich person has done?"
Power and corruption go hand-in-hand.
Convicted Sex Offender
"I mean.... Epstein is probably up there."
– Dan_-_-_
"and everyone else involved."
– Ih8JE
Genghis Khan
"Epstein is terrible, I agree -- but more for the hint at what his existence implies lies beneath the veneer of society. Historically speaking, Epstein doesn't even make the top 100."
– froggysayshello
No Limits
"Leopold II of Belgium in the Congo must be one the the most disturbing. 10 million people died to make a man who was born a prince even richer. Just shows there are no limits to greed."
– scotty18192
King Leopold II And His Brutal Methods Of Punishment
"His administration of the Congo Free State was characterized by atrocities and systematic brutality, including torture; murder; and the amputation of the hands of men, women and children when the quota of rubber was not met."
– O_Methodical
Another Convicted Felon And Businessman
"Ed Buck is definitely up there. His thing was luring black, gay sex workers to his house, injecting them with crystal meth to the point where they'd pass out and then assault the victims. Some took the drugs 'willingly,' others did not. Two of the victims died because he overdosed them."
"Luckily he's been sentenced to 30 years in prison. At his age, he'll die there."
– HarrysonTubman
The Shroud Of Wealth
"Robert Durst and the many murders he committed while insulated behind a shield of money. People who have researched his patterns of behavior suspect there are many other unsolved murders that were likely committed by him."
– loki_cometh
The following corporations were scrutinized for their corruption and scandalous affairs.
Ties To The Liberian Civil War
"Firestone (the tire company) basically operated a giant slave plantation (it took up a good amount of the entire country) that grew rubber in Liberia up until the 1980s. They contributed to the conditions that caused the Liberian Civil War that got countless people groups genocided. They evacuated white workers while leaving their black basically-slave workers to get massacred."
– Atiggerx33
Have You Heard About Ford Lately?
"Ford did basically the same thing in Brazil in the 1920s. He even named it 'Fordlandia.'"
"It all came crashing down in 1930 when (among other dumb things) the cafeteria in the 'town' switched to self-service. Personally, I would've drawn the line at the forced square dancing classes the citizens had to attend."
– StrifeRaZoR
Looking Out For Number One
"Nestle as a corporation stopping African women from producing their own milk with just enough free samples, ensuring they have nestle formula as their only option."
– leswhinin
Bad Medicine
"Just watched Dopesick so create a highly addictive and incredibly dangerous drug, then lie about its dangers to make billions and create an opioid epidemic that still plagues millions. Oh and caused half a million deaths."
– leese216
Murderer & Philanthropist
"John DuPont sponsored olympic sports competitors including members of the US wrestling team. His involvement went so far as to build private facilities at his Foxcatcher ranch, personally supporting athletes and their families with housing and travel. He befriended them and was extra involved to the point of hosting holidays, birthdays, and became semi-delusional that he was also an elite athlete."
"His delusions escalated as his own mental health deteriorated culminating in the murder of US Olympic wrestler Dave Schultz who he had an extremely long and close friendship."
"DuPont spent the rest of his life in an institution while all the athletes he supported, not to mention the victim's family, had to find other means to support themselves."
"There are many articles about what happened at Foxcatcher Ranch and a Netflix documentary featuring extensive interviews with athletes, police, and the victims families. Home videos are used throughout the Netflix doc and it's heartbreaking to see something that was seemingly wholesome end how it did."
– onagonal
For The Sake Of Banana Pricing
"In 1952, The United Fruit company had their profits threatened because Guatemala initiated a land reform program to redistribute land back from international corporations to the Guatemalan people. In response, the CIA orchestrated a coup detat to overthrow the Guatemalan government and installed a far-right dictator whose economic interests were aligned with the US. This was done for low banana prices."
– simulacrasimulation_
There is no shortage of wealthy people and their atrocious misdeeds.
Posh Boys
"Plenty of examples from the Bullingdon Club. It's a student club at Oxford University for posh boys to flaunt their (parents') wealth. They're known for burning money in front of homeless people and smashing up restaurants and pubs."
"The really disturbing part is that two of the UK's last three Prime Ministers were members."
– MrScaryEgg
Land For Sale
"As one small but notable example:"
"In Mom's hometown, many acres of land from a former farm became available for sale."
"When news of the town intending to buy it to build affordable housing and a playground/park, a wealthy lady bought the property immediately at a much higher price because she 'didn't believe it was suitable to have low-income people decreasing property values in the area.'"
– Back2Bach
Impulsive Murderer
"The Jameson whiskey cannibalism story stands out to me. Paid to have a child brutally killed because he was bored."
Unwitting Comedian
"Canadian NDP leader Jagmeet Singh getting laughed at like a professional comedian by government MPs for making a serious question about the affordability of groceries in Canada during the current inflation situation."
He basically said 1 in 4 Canadians are going hungry meanwhile the rich are enjoying record breaking profits and he proposed to tax them more... And the MPs laughed at him like they couldn't control themselves."
– UltimateStrenergy
Money and corruption go hand in hand.
The examples mentioned above are only the tip of the iceberg as there are many other cases of people exerting their power and wealth that have yet to be exposed.
