In a speech given by Bill Gates at the World Economic Conference in Davos, Switzerland, he bites the hand that fed him: capitalism. In an ironic twist, one of the richest men in the world calls for a “kinder, gentler” version of capitalism, the very form of free enterprise that allows him the luxury of both charitable giving and a ultra comfortable lifestyle.
I know Gates means it when he says he wants to reform capitalism, you can tell by the large percentage of his personal money he gives to charities, and the philanthropic fund he started to run in his “retirement” from Microsoft. It still somehow smacks just a bit of insincerity to hear him call for reform in a speech, even though he tends to put his money where his mouth is. It’s just hard to make that mental leap from “billionaire several time over” to “economic reformer”.
“We have to find a way to make the aspects of capitalism that serve wealthier people serve poorer people as well,” Mr. Gates will tell world leaders at the forum, according to a copy of the speech seen by The Wall Street Journal.
The most interesting aspect of his views on capitalism and the economic gap between rich and poor is his take on the role technology plays in the divide. he thinks that technology should be helping close the income gap, especially in poorer countries, and instead technology seems to be making the poverty gap worse. I’d have to agree with him there, but I also see his own software company as one of the biggest examples of why technology makes it worse – expense, and proprietary software. Now that the Open Source movement is catching on everywhere, maybe technology can finally help close the gap.
Putting some final ironic touches on his talk with the WSJ, Gates said:
. “The idea that you encourage companies to take their innovative thinkers and think about the most needy — even beyond the market opportunities — that’s something that appropriately ought to be done,” he said.
Really? In spite of his funding of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for philanthropic giving, and in spite of the huge recognition of his name as a major player in technology all over the world, I think Gates will have a hard time selling his ideas. Not for the man he has become, but for the man he was, and the greedy company he made as that younger version of himself. In order to really be taken seriously, I think this billionaire would have to change the way Microsoft works, but since he is leaving in June, I think that would be asking too much. Regardless, It will be interesting to follow him on this self-proclaimed crusade to narrow the gap and see how he does in the coming years.
