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Three White Tenants, One Asian Landlord: A Story About Opportunity

Updated: 04/01/2022 by Financial Samurai 140 Comments

All any of us want is an opportunity to try and succeed. We don’t want handouts. We just want the opportunity to try. Unfortunately, opportunities don’t come evenly.

I realized the other day that all my tenants are white. I’d never thought about my tenants’ racial makeup until I read an article by Washington Post journalist, Michelle Singletary, entitled, “The Legacy Of Slavery Made My Grandmother Fear Investing.”

Michelle writes how discriminatory policies of the past shaped the way her grandmother approached investing. Her series of articles provides an interesting personal perspective on why there is a racial income and wealth gap today.

Here are some passages from her article that stood out:

When my first employer introduced a 401(k) retirement plan, I sought advice from Big Mama. But she actively discouraged me from “gambling” in the stock market.

“That’s for White folks,” Big Mama said. “They can afford to lose money.”

“The legacies of slavery, Jim Crow, and the New Deal — as well as the limited funding and scope of anti-discrimination agencies — are some of the biggest contributors to inequality in America,” says a 2019 report by the Center for American Progress

So, yes, it’s going to take more than a financial workshop to overcome the anxiety my grandmother lived with all her life and passed on to me.

There was only one investment that Big Mama trusted: her home.

The last line about Big Mama trusting only one investment, her home, really resonated with me.

This article will share some of the following insights:

  • Why there are so many Asian landlords and small business owners
  • Why real estate and small businesses are so highly valued among many minorities
  • How the lack of equal opportunity changes behavior
  • Where the belief of not depending on anyone but yourself comes from


Read More…

How Rich Must You Be To Dine At French Laundry Like Gavin Newsom?

Updated: 01/04/2022 by Financial Samurai 61 Comments

Since 2007, the Michelin Guide has awarded The French Laundry their highest rating of three stars. Unless you’re really rich or a politician, you will likely have to wait months to get a reservation at this Yountville, California restaurant in Napa Valley.

Deca-millionaire California Governor Gavin Newsom and his wife were spotted having an opulent dinner with California Medical Association officials in mid-November. The 12 of them were all sitting in close quarters indoors without masks, which is against what Newsom has been encouraging Californians to do.

How Rich Must You Be To Dine At French Laundry Like Gavin Newsom?
Source: Fox 11, Gavin Newsom with CMA officials

As a Financial Samurai, you know the rules are different for politicians and the rest of us. There are folks out there who learn how to befriend more politicians so they can do what they want. Therefore, none of us should be surprised or angry at the hypocrisy. After all, it is the people who give politicians power by voting.

Instead of getting upset, think about the bright side.

Perhaps Newsom and his rich and powerful friends know something we don’t? Maybe COVID-19 isn’t as deadly as they are making it out to be. Or maybe they secretly got vaccinated already since that’s what politicians tend to do, take care of themselves first.

If these things weren’t true, Gavin and his wife wouldn’t have risked dining with the glass doors closed with multiple households, especially since they still have young children. Politicians also wouldn’t sing the virtues of a public school education while sending their kids to private school.

But enough about Gavin’s actions. Let’s talk about the cost of The French Laundry and how rich one must be to dine at similar types of restaurants!



Read More…

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