Jackpot: How the Super-Rich Really Live—and How Their Wealth Harms Us All
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-04-14 09:31:09
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Michael Mechanic
- ISBN：198212721X
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
A senior editor at Mother Jones dives into the lives of the extremely rich， showing the fascinating， otherworldly realm they inhabit—and the insidious ways this realm harms us all。
Have you ever fantasized about being ridiculously wealthy？ Probably。 Striking it rich is among the most resilient of American fantasies， surviving war and peace， expansions and recessions， economic meltdowns and global pandemics。 We dream of the jackpot， the big exit， the life-altering payday， in whatever form that takes。 （Americans spent $81 billion on lottery tickets in 2019， more than the GDPs of most nations。） We would escape “essential” day jobs and cramped living spaces， bury our debts， buy that sweet spread， and bail out struggling friends and relations。 But rarely do we follow the fantasy to its conclusion—to ponder the social， psychological， and societal downsides of great affluence and the fact that so few possess it。
What is it actually like to be blessed with riches in an era of plagues， political rancor， and near-Dickensian economic differences？ How mind-boggling are the opportunities and access， how problematic the downsides？ Does the experience differ depending on whether the money is earned or unearned， where it comes from， and whether you are male or female， white or black？ Finally， how does our collective lust for affluence， and our stubborn belief in social mobility， explain how we got to the point where forty percent of Americans have literally no wealth at all？
These are all questions that Jackpot sets out to explore。 The result of deep reporting and dozens of interviews with fortunate citizens—company founders and executives， superstar coders， investors， inheritors， lottery winners， lobbyists， lawmakers， academics， sports agents， wealth and philanthropy professionals， concierges， luxury realtors， Bentley dealers， and even a woman who trains billionaires’ nannies in physical combat， Jackpot is a compassionate， character-rich， perversely humorous， and ultimately troubling journey into the American wealth fantasy and where it has taken us。
Have you ever fantasized about being ridiculously wealthy？ Probably。 Striking it rich is among the most resilient of American fantasies， surviving war and peace， expansions and recessions， economic meltdowns and global pandemics。 We dream of the jackpot， the big exit， the life-altering payday， in whatever form that takes。 （Americans spent $81 billion on lottery tickets in 2019， more than the GDPs of most nations。） We would escape “essential” day jobs and cramped living spaces， bury our debts， buy that sweet spread， and bail out struggling friends and relations。 But rarely do we follow the fantasy to its conclusion—to ponder the social， psychological， and societal downsides of great affluence and the fact that so few possess it。
What is it actually like to be blessed with riches in an era of plagues， political rancor， and near-Dickensian economic differences？ How mind-boggling are the opportunities and access， how problematic the downsides？ Does the experience differ depending on whether the money is earned or unearned， where it comes from， and whether you are male or female， white or black？ Finally， how does our collective lust for affluence， and our stubborn belief in social mobility， explain how we got to the point where forty percent of Americans have literally no wealth at all？
These are all questions that Jackpot sets out to explore。 The result of deep reporting and dozens of interviews with fortunate citizens—company founders and executives， superstar coders， investors， inheritors， lottery winners， lobbyists， lawmakers， academics， sports agents， wealth and philanthropy professionals， concierges， luxury realtors， Bentley dealers， and even a woman who trains billionaires’ nannies in physical combat， Jackpot is a compassionate， character-rich， perversely humorous， and ultimately troubling journey into the American wealth fantasy and where it has taken us。
Reviews
Diane Hernandez
，
Who hasn’t wondered how it would feel to hit the Jackpot？ Whether through the lottery or stock options， with great wealth comes great responsibility （or anguish according to this book）。 The rich， it turns out， really are different。。。 but not necessarily happier。Jackpot investigates every aspect of what great wealth does to people and their families。 From how much it costs， the loss of privacy due to the required staffing including security， and the struggle of how to avoid spoiling the children， Who hasn’t wondered how it would feel to hit the Jackpot？ Whether through the lottery or stock options， with great wealth comes great responsibility （or anguish according to this book）。 The rich， it turns out， really are different。。。 but not necessarily happier。Jackpot investigates every aspect of what great wealth does to people and their families。 From how much it costs， the loss of privacy due to the required staffing including security， and the struggle of how to avoid spoiling the children， it’s all included here。 The book also looks at the impact on society overall of the unprecedented access of the super wealthy to politicians who make the laws。From someone who binge watches My Lottery Dream Home， this book was an eye-opener。 Most of the people on the show win less than a million so the demographics are slightly off。 A better analogy is Tom Hanks’ issues with his rapper son Chet。 Making life easy for your kids is generally not a good thing according to the book。 Some failures in life are character building。Overall， if you are curious about， or envious of， the extremely wealthy， Jackpot is a must-read。 It’s a fascinating look behind the velvet rope that is never seen on carefully curated Instagram posts。 5 stars！Thanks to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review。 。。。more
Judith
，
An engaging， informative read about wealth in America。 I felt like a voyeur peeking through windows as the author described the trappings and sentiments of the wealthy individuals he interviews。 I learned about accredited investors and custom Bentleys but also about the conflicts and complications wealth brings with it。 Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy。
This Feral Housewife
，
This book was seriously interesting in the topics it covered。 You find yourself thinking of all the different ways you have seen this play out in real life。
Susie Stangland
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This book was was riveting！ A fascinating look at the psychology which takes place for those who become suddenly wealthy or already are。 I didn’t quite know what to expect when I began but from page one it instantly revealed it was a high caliber read。 I also appreciated the way he humanized those with vast wealth as apposed to characterizing them the way the majority of people will。 Highly recommend this book！
Lissa
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3。5 stars。 I feel as if this book has two parts。 The first details the lives of the ultra wealthy。 How they earn （or inherit） their money， how they avoid paying fair taxes， how they spend it， how they keep it and how they give it away。 To be honest， I personally find rich people pretty boring so I struggled to get through this part。 The second part， however， talks more about wealth inequity and why it exists and how it is getting worse。 The author does a good job of laying out the issues and I f 3。5 stars。 I feel as if this book has two parts。 The first details the lives of the ultra wealthy。 How they earn （or inherit） their money， how they avoid paying fair taxes， how they spend it， how they keep it and how they give it away。 To be honest， I personally find rich people pretty boring so I struggled to get through this part。 The second part， however， talks more about wealth inequity and why it exists and how it is getting worse。 The author does a good job of laying out the issues and I found the information absorbing yet infuriating。 While I wish the book was more focused on the information in the second part， I still found it informative。 I received a digital ARC of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Akindle
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A story of America’s elite， the upper 10% this book is a 5 Star story of how money makes a difference and what it is like to be wealthy。 I got this as an Arc from NetGalley。 My rating is not affected by getting this for free as an ARC。
Kayo
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