Let’s face it: billionaires are great at making money, but when it comes to running anything else—like public institutions, governments, or even their own Twitter accounts—they often resemble toddlers with a flamethrower. Sure, they’ve got the resources, but that doesn’t mean they have the range. From Elon Musk to Bill Gates to the late William Shockley, history is littered with examples of rich people who thought their bank accounts were an all-access pass to expertise in everything. Spoiler alert: they were wrong.
The Fox Guarding the Henhouse: Elon Musk Edition
Let’s start with the current poster child for billionaire hubris: Elon Musk. Recently appointed by Donald Trump to head the Department of Government Efficiency—or as it’s colloquially known, the Department of the Destruction of Government—Musk is now tasked with streamlining public institutions. Because nothing says “efficient governance” like a man who spent $44 billion on a social media platform only to turn it into a digital Hunger Games.
Musk is undeniably brilliant in his field. He’s revolutionized electric cars, launched rockets, and even made flamethrowers (because why not?). But just because you can land a rocket on a barge doesn’t mean you should be handed the keys to government operations. It’s like asking a Michelin-starred chef to perform open-heart surgery; sure, they’re great with knives, but maybe let’s not test that theory on a living human.
William Shockley: A Nobel Prize in Bad Ideas
Speaking of misplaced confidence, let’s talk about William Shockley. This Nobel Prize-winning physicist helped invent the transistor, laying the groundwork for modern electronics. But instead of sticking to his lane and enjoying his well-deserved accolades, he decided to veer off into eugenics—a field he had absolutely no training in. Shockley spent the latter part of his life peddling wildly racist theories about intelligence and even proposed paying low-IQ women to undergo sterilization. Yes, really.
Shockley’s story is a cautionary tale about what happens when smart people confuse their expertise in one area with universal wisdom. Just because you can design a groundbreaking semiconductor doesn’t mean you should be allowed anywhere near public policy. It’s like letting your dentist pilot a plane because they’re “good with tools.”
Bill Gates and the Common Core Catastrophe
Then there’s Bill Gates, the Microsoft co-founder who decided that his success in tech made him uniquely qualified to overhaul America’s education system. Spoiler: it didn’t. Gates poured billions into developing and implementing the Common Core standards, a well-intentioned but ultimately disastrous attempt to reform public education. The result? Confused students, frustrated teachers, and parents who suddenly needed a Ph.D. to help their kids with math homework.
The Gates Foundation’s involvement in Common Core was like trying to fix a leaky faucet with a sledgehammer. Sure, it made a lot of noise and got everyone’s attention, but it didn’t actually solve the problem. Even after a decade of implementation, studies found no significant improvement in student achievement. In fact, Common Core may have done more harm than good by sparking the kind of culture wars usually reserved for Thanksgiving dinners and Facebook comment sections.
The Billionaire Problem: Money ≠ Wisdom
Here’s the thing: there’s nothing inherently wrong with being rich (other than the occasional supervillain vibes). But thanks to decisions like *Citizens United*, billionaires now wield an outsized influence over our institutions and government. And while their money can buy them power, it can’t buy them wisdom—or humility, for that matter.
Take education reform as an example. Gates wasn’t alone in his misguided efforts; other billionaires have also tried (and failed) to fix public schools using top-down approaches that ignored input from actual educators. It’s as if they think their wealth gives them a magical understanding of complex social systems. Spoiler: it doesn’t.
The same goes for billionaires dabbling in politics. Whether it’s Musk trying to reinvent government efficiency or Jeff Bezos buying up newspapers, their interventions often feel less like thoughtful contributions and more like expensive vanity projects. It’s like watching someone try to fix a broken clock by smashing it with a gold-plated hammer: impressive in its extravagance but ultimately useless.
The Real Cost of Billionaire Meddling
The problem isn’t just that billionaires are bad at running things outside their wheelhouse; it’s that their failures often come at a high cost to society. Shockley’s racist pseudoscience gave legitimacy to harmful ideas that still echo today. Gates’ Common Core experiment disrupted an entire generation of students and teachers. And Musk’s antics—whether it’s gutting Twitter or promoting questionable policies—have real-world consequences for millions of people.
Meanwhile, these same billionaires often evade accountability for their mistakes. Unlike regular folks who might lose their jobs or face legal consequences for screwing up, billionaires can simply throw more money at the problem—or distract us with another flashy project.
So What Should Billionaires Do?
Look, I’m not saying billionaires should sit quietly in their mansions counting their money (although that wouldn’t be the worst idea). They can absolutely contribute to society—but they need to do so responsibly. Instead of imposing their will on public institutions, they should focus on funding initiatives led by experts in those fields. Want to improve education? Great! Listen to teachers and researchers instead of forcing your own vision on an already overburdened system.
Better yet, how about paying your fair share of taxes so that public institutions don’t have to rely on your whims in the first place? Just a thought.
Conclusion: Stay in Your Lane, Billionaires
At the end of the day, being really good at making money doesn’t make you an expert on everything else. Billionaires should stick to what they know—whether that’s building rockets, designing software, or hosting extravagant yacht parties—and leave the rest to people who actually know what they’re doing.
Because if history has taught us anything, it’s this: when billionaires try to run things outside their expertise, they don’t just fail—they fail spectacularly. And unfortunately for the rest of us, we’re often left cleaning up the mess.
Big Education Ape: Is The Common Core 2013 the "new math" of 1963? https://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2013/10/is-common-core-2013-new-math-of-1963.html
The Gates Foundation’s Common Core Disaster -Capital Research Center https://capitalresearch.org/article/the-gates-foundations-common-core-disaster/
Big Education Ape: CALIFORNIA GETS NEW MATH STANDARDS, BUT DO THEY ADD UP https://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2023/08/california-gets-new-math-standards-but.html
Big Education Ape: THE SHOCKLEY EFFECT: REALLY SMART PEOPLE DRIVING IN THE WRONG LANE https://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2023/05/the-shockley-effect-really-smart-people.html
William Shockley | Southern Poverty Law Center https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/extremist-files/individual/william-shockley
Elon Musk is bringing Silicon Valley’s most dangerous idea to Washington https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/elon-musk-trump-doge-silicon-valley-rcna180646
How Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency May Impact Your Wallet https://finance.yahoo.com/news/elon-musk-department-government-efficiency-170025025.html
Big Education Ape: DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE: LET'S OPPROBRIATE THE AMERICAN CAMPAIGN FINANCE SYSTEM https://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2023/06/down-rabbit-hole-lets-opprobriate.html