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PlayerOneDad t1_j68d505 wrote

Never thought of it as a cult. More like rich people funneling money into a church to keep the tax man away.

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CassCat OP t1_j68dcky wrote

Guy who built it is co-chief of world's largest hedge fund, I'm learning, so that may be correct. However, one man's tax shelter could be beneficial to the public, I guess?

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PlayerOneDad t1_j68dvjm wrote

Come for the park like setting, stay for the networking event with industry leaders about sustainable supply chain, but this involves God somehow, so don't tax the expenses, please.

https://gracefarms.org/events/design-for-freedom-summit-2023/

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CassCat OP t1_j68e2i8 wrote

They also drink a lot of tea. Perhaps it's innocuous, but this is shades of Perfect Strangers (good show BTW). Psilocybin anyone?

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flyingfred1027 t1_j6947p3 wrote

  • 9 Perfect Strangers. Unless there was something I didn’t catch, and Balki and Larry were actually running a cult.
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CassCat OP t1_j694hnn wrote

Yeah it wasn't actually a cult in the end. But I think viewers were led to think that it was. Similar vibes as Grace, I guess is what I was trying to say.

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Squaddr t1_j697pvo wrote

Never saw a show more falsely, misleadingly suspenseful, it was like a never ending blue balls situation, felt so unsatisfying and I ditched after the 3rd episode or so. Worthless entry.

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CassCat OP t1_j697w8e wrote

Yeah, "they were doing drugs" is kind of an unsatisfying premise for a show which established so much intrigue in the beginning...still enjoyed it.

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Squaddr t1_j698dgb wrote

I felt it was so draggy and pseudo psychological.. Nicole Kidman looked like a menacing nutjob but never blossomed.

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tofucatskates t1_j69kn81 wrote

SERIOUSLY! dude i declined the “tea ceremony” when our band played there. everyone else did it. come to think of it, i’ve never seen them again… 🤔

(jk 😂)

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CassCat OP t1_j69w1bz wrote

Hahaha, yeah they’re around. Their organs are just in different people.

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xiroir t1_j6e2klm wrote

Hey myke celium! How you doing today?

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CassCat OP t1_j6e2tye wrote

Huh?

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xiroir t1_j6e33zt wrote

Its a mycology dad joke.

Mycelium is what mushrooms grow out of.

So myke celium.

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CassCat OP t1_j6e3bbq wrote

I am dad, and agree that all the smarter dad jokes require explanation 😂

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xiroir t1_j6ejrde wrote

Nah it means i have reaaaaally gotten into growing my own mushrooms! Not that my joke is smart!

Speaking of which, i highly recommended entangled life by merlin sheldrake. It will blow your mind.

Like how trees communicate to other trees (avatar way of water style) through mycelium.

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jppianoguy t1_j68fd9n wrote

A lot of billionaires do that all the time. Think Rockefellers and Carnegies, now the Gates', etc.

They create nonprofits that do good work, for sure, but they also hire their friends and family members to run them.

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CassCat OP t1_j68fthp wrote

Seems to me that once you have a stupid amount of money, the only thing left to do is shape the world in your image, which is potentially bad if you happen to be a dick.

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Snerak t1_j6967aq wrote

The problem is the extremely short supply of people with stupid amounts of money that aren't dicks.

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bramletabercrombe t1_j6b1ccc wrote

it should be illegal. That's what kings do. One person shouldn't have the power to shape the direction a society leads, that's the job of government. The fact that we let companies skirt antitrust law for generations then allow the heirs of those companies to dictate societal changes is disgusting. If they want to create a charitable trust let THE PEOPLE decide where that money goes and who's name goes on it.

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CassCat OP t1_j6dtnbw wrote

But doesn’t it all trickle down eventually? 😒🙄

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bramletabercrombe t1_j6b0kf6 wrote

Read up on what that scumbag Walton family does with their billions. They use CLATs to shelter their money from taxes.

The basic operation of a CLAT is as follows. The donor gives property to
a trust. The trust then pays the charity a certain amount each year for
a certain number of years. When the trust terminates, the property is
then transferred to the donor's heirs.

This is a modern kingdom. Not only has this scumbag family spent the last 30 years sending all of our manufacturing and trade secrets to communist China but they never had to pay a dime in taxes while they were selling out the U.S.A.

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Lost_city t1_j69i8sa wrote

Andrew Carnegie built 2,509 libraries for the public. Must have had a lot of friends to employ.

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bramletabercrombe t1_j6b28ie wrote

I'll assume you never heard Homestead strike. Maybe you would have if he only built 2508 libraries. You see, when you have unlimited wealth you can also buy unlimited PR to whitewash the fact that you were once a mass murderer. No one should have unlimited wealth.

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WhittlingDan t1_j691mxo wrote

I posted this as a general comment but will reply to your comment by reposting it since you included the hedge fund piece here.

Its part of a push towards privately owned public spaces.... Do you see where this goes? Do you see the connection to privately owned public services and more privatization? It also gives them more control because they do not have to follow the constitution the way the government does. A privately owned public space does not have to protect free speech for example! Facebook is like a privately owned public space. If every free public space disappeared how long do you think private space would remain free? Maybe this place isn't exactly like that but it serves as a good source of propaganda for privatized public spaces.

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ovrhere_ t1_j693mdj wrote

Like when people suggest privatizing libraries. First they'll be free, then they won't, suddenly a substantial economic class loses access to information and resources.

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bramletabercrombe t1_j6b2hse wrote

Facebook is it's own nation. In the information age it's the most powerful nation on earth. Listen to Zuckerberg's recent speeches. He sounds like a despot because he knows he owns all he politicians that have any ability to stop him.

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champagne_in_a_box t1_j697krs wrote

It’s actually his wife who built and runs it. I live close by and have been to a few of their fundraisers and events. It’s almost certainly a tax haven, but they actually do good work for human rights keeping slave labor out of construction projects. During Covid, they were the first team to acquire and distribute free PPE to the area. So yeah, it’s a somewhat odd institution, but I’d wager it’s no sketchier than your average church.

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apraetor t1_j695gmy wrote

That's basically the justification for allowing some charitable donations to be tax-deductible.

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orionSaylor t1_j6a6098 wrote

It IS in New Canaan, so...I would venture a guess that you're right

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