Reply #3: it's all relative. [View All]

as filthy rich people go, buffett is one of the better ones.

for the most part, he makes his money in legitimate, sound, conservative companies. not exclusively, but for the most part. plus his personal commitment to will away not just half his wealth but nearly all of it (i think he's leaving each kid $5,000,000, which is huge by mortal standards but puny by ultra-rich buffett standards) is FAR better than, say, what sam walton did in leaving his rotten kids super rich and in full control of wal-mart. sam walton was a more-of-less decent discounter (again, relatively speaking); the importing everything from china crap and the rotton treatment of workers really blossomed under the kids.

so it's not that he's good in an absolute sense. no one becomes rich or powerful without committing big crimes, as the saying goes. but buffett hasn't completely lost perspective like most of his peers have.