CBC interviews an author who spent time among the Tech Tyrants and wrote a book about them. He focuses on yachts as the ultimate status symbol, the ultimate way of competing with other rich fuckheads. They don’t care much about the features, even though most gigayachts have things like saunas and Imax movie theaters. The only thing that matters is LOA, which is a fancy way of saying Length Overall. In other words it’s all schnitzel measurement.
Tech fuckheads are New Rich. Old Rich don’t care about flashy status symbols. They already have enough status, and use money for less dramatic and sometimes even productive purposes.
I’m sure there must be some Old Rich around now, but BY DEFINITION we aren’t going to hear about them. The first rule of Old Rich Club is Don’t Talk About Old Rich Club. Don’t get in the headlines, don’t stand out. Live like a human being, with enough money to be secure and safe and comfortable.
The same new/old distinction applied to cars. New Rich wanted the longest lowest car. Take up as much room as you can, dominate the road. Cadillac was New Rich, Packard was Old Rich. Cadillac changed every year, getting longer and flashier each time. Packard changed slowly, putting most of the luxury inside. But the oldest rich didn’t buy either of the recognizable luxury brands. They bought whatever they enjoyed.
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The author also discusses laser eye surgery, which is certainly not a luxury. Upper-middle types can afford it. The tech tyrants aren’t getting lasered for simple convenience. They know that civilization is going to collapse, so they’re prepping for a time when you can’t get new stylish glasses or contacts. Though the author doesn’t say it, in fact the tech tyrants can “predict” collapse in the same way that they can “predict” a stock crash. When your occupation is repairing cars, you can “predict” that the cars will be repaired. When your occupation is destroying the world, you can “predict” that the world will be destroyed.
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