Business and other news sites erupted on Wednesday afternoon with the word that Warren Buffett had announced that he will retire as a trustee of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The word comes in the wake of the announced between the William “Bill Gates III and his estranged wife Melinda, following numerous allegations of affairs by Gates, and a probe by Microsoft leadership that confirmed at least once of those claims.
As left-of-centerUSA Today framed it, “Warren Buffett resigns from Gates Foundation board, calling himself an ‘inactive trustee’ … The announcement comes weeks after Bill and Melinda Gates announced that they were divorcing after 27 years of marriage but would continue to jointly run the foundation, one of the largest charitable foundations in the world.”
Left-leaningCBS reported Buffett saying, “I am now resigning from that post, just as I have done at all corporate boards other than Berkshire’s.”
“Warren Buffett leaves Gates Foundation board — and says he’s halfway to giving away most of his fortune,” was the spin, per MarketWatch.
“Warren Buffett defends his approach to philanthropy as he quits the GatesFoundation board,” said left-leaning Vox.
In examining the report below from Tompson-Reuters, one should keep in mind this pledge from that firm. “The Trust Principles imposed obligations on Reuters and its employees to act at all times with integrity, independence, and freedom from bias,” per the page linked here on the Tompson Reuter’s news website. Additional information, an MHProNews analysis and commentary in brief will follow. Those items precede the manufactured housing market report at the closing bell for 6.23.2021.
It is worth noting that this was aptly filed under the “Business” news category, rather than philanthropy, human interest, or some other more banal news classification. While announced on 6.23, this was updated by Reuters on June 24, 2021 AT 3:25 AM EDT. Note too that the Reuters headline is contradicted by Buffett himself, who has pledged to give half his fortune, but has not yet done so.
June 23 (Reuters) – Billionaire investor Warren Buffett said he is resigning as a trustee of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and has donated half his wealth to philanthropy since pledging 15 years ago to give away his fortune from running Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N).
Buffett, 90, said in a Wednesday statement he has been an “inactive trustee” for years at the foundation, but fully supported Chief Executive Mark Suzman and that their goals were “100% in sync.”
He did not explain why he is resigning, while noting he has given up all directorships outside Berkshire, reducing his workload.
Buffett also announced a new donation of more than $4.1 billion, comprising nearly 15.2 million Berkshire Class “B” shares, to the Gates Foundation and four family charities, part of his pledge to give away 99% of his net worth.
He has since 2006 donated more than $41.5 billion of Berkshire shares, including $32.7 billion to the Gates Foundation. The overall total is now equivalent to about $100 billion because Berkshire’s stock price has risen.
“Over many decades I have accumulated an almost incomprehensible sum simply by doing what I love to do,” Buffett said. “Society has a use for my money: I don’t.”
Founded in 2000, the Gates Foundation focuses on combating poverty, disease and inequity, spending $54.8 billion in its first two decades.
Its future has been uncertain since its namesake co-founders said last month they were divorcing after 27 years of marriage.
Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) later said it had reviewed an accusation that Bill Gates had tried in 2000 to have an intimate relationship with an employee. read more
GOVERNANCE COMMITMENT
In an email to Gates Foundation employees, Suzman said he has discussed with Buffett and the Gateses how to strengthen governance and decision making, and planned to share more information in July.
“I am fully committed to following [Buffett’s] guidance to ensure we are the best possible stewards of his, Bill, and Melinda’s resources,” Suzman said.
In statements released by the foundation, Bill Gates said he was grateful for his “enduring friendship” with Buffett and that “we will always have a deep sense of accountability” to him, while Melinda French Gates said Buffett’s teachings will help “chart a way forward.” Berkshire did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Buffett’s donations also go to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, named for his late first wife, and charities run by his children Howard, Susan and Peter: the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, the Sherwood Foundation and the Novo Foundation.
Had Buffett not made his donations, his fortune would roughly equal that of Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) founder Jeff Bezos, the world’s richest person according to Forbes magazine.
Bill Gates and Buffett also pioneered “The Giving Pledge,” where more than 200 people like Michael Bloomberg, Larry Ellison, Carl Icahn, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal have committed at least half their fortunes to philanthropy.
NO ‘SWAN SONG’
Buffett has since 1965 built Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire into a more than $600 billion conglomerate, owning businesses such as the BNSF railroad and Geico auto insurance, and stocks such as Apple Inc (AAPL.O).
He still holds 31.5% of Berkshire’s voting power, even after the donations.
Buffett’s statement on Wednesday also addressed recent criticism after a ProPublica investigation included him among wealthy people who paid low taxes.
Buffett said his donations have resulted in only about 40 cents of tax savings per $1,000 given.
“Nevertheless, tax deductions are important to many – particularly to the super-rich – who give large amounts of cash or securities to philanthropy,” he said.
Buffett also used references to American football to assure fans he has no plans to step away, including from Berkshire.
“These remarks are no swan song,” he said. “I still relish being on the field and carrying the ball. But I’m clearly playing in a game that, for me, has moved past the fourth quarter into overtime.” ##
Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva
Additional Information, MHProNews Analysis and Commentary in Brief
Gates Foundation CEO Mark Suzman makes it clear that this ‘stepping down’ from the board has little practical meaning. ” Suzman said he is “100% in sync” with Buffett and that “I am fully committed to following [Buffett’s] guidance to ensure we are the best possible stewards of his, Bill, and Melinda’s resources.” A fair reading of that is that nothing practical will change.
Vox, in contrast to covering the same news as Reuters above, took their story of Buffett’s announcement more in the direction of a critique. That critique begins to probe the ‘why’ behind Buffett and other billionaires nice words about their so-called ‘philanthropy’ For example: “Vox and Data for Progress polling from earlier this year found that the American public is skeptical of the idea that billionaires are role models and frustrated by the growth of their wealth in the pandemic. New reporting into how the rich sidestep federal income taxes makes these figures even less sympathetic.”
Vox elaborated in part by saying: “This all means the importance of and dynamics behind billionaire philanthropy is only growing. Billionaires become more plentiful and more powerful, making charities more dependent on their funds and their critics more restless to rein in the power of the ultrarich. That growing frustration with the rich, and how they use their money, stands in stark contrast to the words of Buffett…”
That’s a start, but still misses some relevant and meaty points that clearly impact the public view of manufactured housing, as the following will unpack.
Buffett’s son, Peter Buffett, has made it plain during a video interview that the so-called philanthropy of his father and others is more akin to “philanthro-feudalism.” It is a method of extending influence for business, political and other reasons while dressing up tax-deductible ‘donations’ that buttress the public image of a ‘donor.’ MHProNews, and our sister-site MHLivingNews, have explored those themes periodically in a manner that reveals that the foundations and nonprofits Buffett-bucks flows to are used to influence more than one side of the issues in manufactured housing.
For instance, nonprofits like MHAction or Prosperity Now, PBS, NPR, and other organizations have been used to frame stories that have often cast a darker tone to manufactured housing, thus apparently acting as part of the Buffett moat in the industry. See the linked reports below for the details.
Further, Gates and Buffett bucks have apparently influenced the 2020 election through nonprofits too.
It is not only his son Peter’s revelations, but also statements by those recorded in the documentary drama, Poverty, Inc that makes it clear that numbers of nonprofits are not changing anything for the good. Robert F. Kennedy Jr, a self-proclaimed life-long Democrat, is among the voices on the left that has ripped the Gates Foundation by name. Influencer Russell Brand, ripped Gates and Buffett, as has others.
These are issues that have gone largely overlooked or ignored by others reporting on manufactured housing industry issues. That noted, the arguably more important need is to formally probe the Buffett and Gates empires to see what laws may have been violated, as the evidence of purported wrongdoing grows. Once more, to learn more, see the linked reports. Those links will be followed by our manufactured housing market snapshots for 6.23.2021.
If someone or an organization has a largely compliant/complicit media, then the truth can hide in plain sight for weeks, months, or years on end.
Even when reality is periodically revealed by a mainstream ‘news’ account, if it’s preceded and followed by largely glowing accounts, sobering realities can continue to lurk in a manner that won’t stir up serious scrutiny, much less legal investigations that fit the meaning of that phrase.
Reuters arguably did not do as good a job as Vox at raising issues about Buffett’s so called philanthropy. Ironically, what MHProNews and our sister site has reported are largely based on records that are publicly available and are cited in our research, reports, and analysis.
It’s not that mainstream news and big tech media are dead, as some like to say. Rather, they are often propaganda tools unwilling to look behind the curtain for authentic stories far larger and more consequential than the offered spin-laden and paltering coverage too many provide instead. Not least is the notion that without a sense of history on a person, organization, or topic, the truth that has been previously revealed can effectively get papered over and memory holed.
Who makes such allegations and claims? Ironically it is often those in the media itself, as well as those who have studied and reported on these concerns.
Next, is our evening market report and related left-right headlines.
The Business Daily Manufactured Home Industry Connected Stock Market Updates. Plus, Market Moving Left (CNN) – Right (Newsmax) Headlines Snapshot. While the layout of this business daily report has recently been modified, several elements of the basic concepts used previously are still the same. The headlines that follow below can be reviewed at a glance to save time while providing insights across the left-right media divide. Additionally, those headlines often provide clues as to possible ‘market moving’ items.
Several of the illustrations shown in this report can be opened in many browsers to reveal a larger size. To open this picture, click the image once. When the window opens, click it again to reveal the larger size photo. Use your browsers back key to return to the article.
Weeks before others in the mainstream media began to flash their ‘inflation warnings,’ MHProNews added first the top, then later the second notice above. When someone has even a basic understanding of the principles of economics, ‘inflation’ was predictable. The question is, will hyper-inflation follow? There are voices on both sides of that debate.
Headlines from left-of-center CNN Business = evening of 6.23.2021
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FILE – In this March 30, 2021 file photo, the Ever Given, a Panama-flagged cargo ship, is anchored in Egypt's Great Bitter Lake. An Egyptian appeals court on Sunday, May 23, 2021, said it lacks jurisdiction to look into the Suez Canal Authority's demands to uphold financial claims that led to the the seizure of the massive Ever Given that blocked the waterway in March. The authority and the ship's owners are in dispute as to whose fault it was that the ship ran aground and how much compensation should be paid.
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TRAVEL
Tails fins of passenger aircraft operated by American Airlines Group Inc. at Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida, U.S., on Wednesday, June 16, 2021. Daily U.S. air travelers exceeded 2 million for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic began, reaching almost three-quarters of the volume recorded on the same day in 2019, according to the Transportation Security Administration.
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A new ruling says the CDC can’t stop cruise ships
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FAA’s new cleaning methods aim to curb delays
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FOOD SHOPPING
People shop at a Kroger grocery store in Madeira, Ohio, on Tuesday, March 2, 2021.
Grocery stores are excited to charge you higher prices
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People wait in line to enter a gun store in Culver City, Calif. in March. (AP)
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Manufactured Housing Industry Investments Connected Equities Closing Tickers
Some of these firms invest in manufactured housing, or are otherwise connected, but may do other forms of investing or business activities too.
NOTE: The chart below includes the Canadian stock, ECN, which purchased Triad Financial Services, a manufactured home industry lender
NOTE: Drew changed its name and trading symbol at the end of 2016 to Lippert (LCII).
NOTE: Deer Valley was largely taken private, say company insiders in a message to MHProNews on 12.15.2020, but there are still some outstanding shares of the stock from the days when it was a publicly traded firm. Thus, there is still periodic activity on DVLY.
Berkshire Hathaway is the parent company to Clayton Homes, 21st Mortgage, Vanderbilt Mortgage and other factory built housing industry suppliers. · LCI Industries, Patrick, UFPI, and LP each are suppliers to the manufactured housing industry, among others. · AMG, CG, and TAVFX have investments in manufactured housing related businesses. For insights from third-parties and clients about our publisher, click here. Enjoy these ‘blast from the past’ comments.
MHProNews. MHProNews – previously a.k.a. MHMSM.com – has celebrated our 11th year of publishing, and is starting our 12the year of serving the industry as the runaway most-read trade media.
Sample Kudos over the years…
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All on Capitol Hill were welcoming and interested. But Congressman Al Green’s office was tremendous in their hospitality. Our son’s hand is on a package that included the Constitution of the United States and other goodies. Tamas has grown considerably since this photo was taken.
By L.A. “Tony” Kovach – for MHProNews. Tony earned a journalism scholarship and earned numerous awards in history and in manufactured housing. For example, he earned the prestigious Lottinville Award in history from the University of Oklahoma, where he studied history and business management. He’s a managing member and co-founder of LifeStyle Factory Homes, LLC, the parent company to MHProNews, and MHLivingNews.com. This article reflects the LLC’s and/or the writer’s position, and may or may not reflect the views of sponsors or supporters.
