Thursday, May 26, 2011

Foundations are like the Medieval Catholic Church - places where capital goes to die

Julius Rosenwald did it different - he gave his entire fortune away during his lifetime for a great cause:

In the years immediately after World War I, Julius Rosenwald, the man who made Sears Roebuck great, used much of his fortune to build 5,400 schools for black children in the South. By some estimates, 60 percent of American blacks who completed primary-level education in that period attended a school built by Mr. Rosenwald. As he said, “Permanent endowments tend to lessen the amount available for immediate needs, and our immediate needs are too plain and too urgent to allow us to do the work of future generations.”



Still, few today remember Julius Rosenwald, as there is no foundation keeping his memory alive. Many rich donors are fond of the idea of creating a foundation that will carry their name into the next century and beyond. There is absolutely no blame in this. If I had a billion dollars to dispose of, I would be sorely tempted to do the same. I like the idea of my great-grandchildren knowing I was still acting from beyond the grave to help improve the world.

I used to go to B School in Rosenwald Hall, but aside from that he is forgotten.  And yet I'm sure my Grandchildren will be drowned in (leftist) monuments to Gates and Buffet - perhaps they'll just shorten it and worship the Great and munificent God Gaffet.  Read the whole thing.

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