Rockefeller: Wealth is a responsibility

"We should not spend money recklessly, our money should only be used where it creates value for human beings, and we must not give any selfish person a little benefit." 」

　　Translation of the epistle

　　November20，1907

　　Dear John,

　　At this point, all of us can breathe a sigh of relief, and a financial crisis that almost caused national disaster has finally passed!

　　Now, our President of the United States of America, Mr. Theodore Roosevelt, can go on vacation to Baton Rouge with peace of mind, and our Mr. President's performance in this crisis has been astonishing, and his incompetence has been fully demonstrated. In the midst of the crisis, Mr. President also did something, but he did nothing but worry that he had done nothing. Oh my God! How was this president elected to the White House at that time, are we taxpayers blindfolded?

　　Frankly, the mention of Theodore Roosevelt's name and what he did to our oil refining company infuriated me. He was a narrow-minded, reckoning villain. It is such a villain who, with the power in his hands, has planned an unfair game. Of course he succeeded, which led to the federal court issuing a huge fine unprecedented in American history and ordering the dissolution of our company.

　　Look at what this despicable man has done to us!

　　However, I believe that Theodore Roosevelt's so-called punishment will not succeed in the end, but will make him feel greatly frustrated, because I believe that all our companies are not garbage, we have excellent management team, we have sufficient funds, we can withstand any risks and blows, and our wealth will roll in because of their healthy bodies. Wait and see! We'll have moments of secret rejoicing.

　　But we have indeed been hurt and treated with great injustice. Theodore accused us of being wicked men of great wealth, and the judge insulted us as notorious thieves, as if our wealth had been scheming to plunder. wrong! Those stupid guys don't know how big businesses are built, and he doesn't want to know. Every penny we have permeated with our wisdom, we have paid a heavy sweat for every step we take, and the cornerstone of our career edifice is laid by our lives. But they don't want to hear it, but they want to be like paranoids, believing only in their own incompetent judgments, insultingly belittling our business aptitudes, and ignoring the fact that we have illuminated The United States with the cheapest and highest quality kerosene.

　　I knew that the sword in Theodore's hand would be wielded until it was a great gain, for he rejected our offer of reconciliation. But I am fearless, because I have no shame, and the worst result is that he uses the power in his hands to break up our glorious and happy family, but happiness will not stop, and glory will not land. A future based on reality will prove it all.

　　There is no doubt that we are experiencing unprecedented persecution, persecution from the government of Theodore Roosevelt. But we can't be emotional, we can't suppress our conscience with anger, and we can never stand idly by when a crisis comes, it will make us feel humiliated and uneasy, and we should come forward. Because we are citizens of the United States, we have a duty to save our country and our fellow citizens from disaster. As a rich person, I know that great wealth is also a great responsibility, and I have a mission to benefit mankind.

　　As the financial crisis swept across the financial world, with panicked depositors lining up to take deposits from banks, a run, and a crisis that would lead to another Great Depression in the U.S. economy, I had a premonition that the country was in a double crisis: a lack of funds for the government and a lack of confidence in the population. At this moment, "Mr. MoneyBag" must do something about this, I called Mr. Stone, asked the Associated Press to quote me, and told the American people: Our country has never lacked credit, and people of insight in the financial world are more trustworthy, and if necessary, I am willing to give half of the securities to help the country maintain credit. Believe me, financial earthquakes don't happen.

　　Thank God that the crisis is over and the U.S. economy is out of trouble. And I did what I had to do for this moment, as the Wall Street Journal commented, "Mr. Rockefeller helped Wall Street with him and his voice and huge sums of money." However, one thing that will never let them know is that in overcoming this panic, I am the one who takes the most money from my own pocket, which makes me very proud.

　　Of course, the U.S. financial community was able to survive this credit crisis, and Mr. John Pierpont Morgan was a great hero, the commander of the war, he brought together a group of business men and women to deal with the crisis, and saved Wall Street with his irreplaceable financial talents and decisive personality. So I say that the American people should thank him, the people of Wall Street should thank him, and Theodore Roosevelt should thank him even more, because John Pierpont Morgan did for him what he should have done but did not do because of incompetence.

　　Nowadays, many people, and of course newspapers, praise generous people, but in my case it is worthless. The peace of conscience is the only reliable reward, and when the country is in trouble, we should not let it go and have the courage to bear it. I think those who sincerely reach out to help are like me, we just want to shine on our motherland with our strength, faith and loyalty.

　　But I'm not without a shameful record. Forty-six years ago, when many young Americans heeded the call of their fatherland and loyally went to the front to fight for the emancipation of slaves and the preservation of the unity of the Union, I, too, as a young man, did not go to war on the grounds that the company had just opened and my family depended on it to live.

　　It seemed like a reassuring reason, but then the country needed me, and we needed our bloodshed. This incident kept my conscience uneasy, and it wasn't until the economic crisis that came more than a decade ago that I had a chance to redeem myself. At that time, the federal government was unable to guarantee gold reserves, and Washington turned to John Pierpont Morgan for help, but John Pierpont Morgan was powerless, and it was I who funded the government to quell the financial panic. It makes me very happy, more than how much money I make.

　　But I don't see myself as a savior, much less as a fool, only a fool would be pretentious because he had money, because I was a citizen. I know that I have great wealth, and I also bear great public responsibility because of it, and what is more noble than having great wealth is to serve the motherland according to its needs.

　　Son, we are rich, but at any time, we should not spend money recklessly, our money is only used in places that create value for human beings, and we must not give any selfish person a little benefit. Of course, we will never donate money to Republicans to help us, and that Theodore Roosevelt has already hurt us.

　　Fame and virtue are the decorations of the soul, and without her, even if the flesh is beautiful, it should not be considered beautiful.

　　Love your father

　　Rockefeller's inspiration: to have wealth without getting carried away

　　Rockefeller told his son in his letter that the more wealth we have, the heavier the responsibilities we shoulder, and even if we have huge wealth, we must spend every penny in the place where we create value for mankind.

　　Money is a necessity of life, the basic guarantee of food, clothing, shelter and transportation, without which it is impossible to survive in a reinforced concrete city. Valuing your money is not about teaching you to be stingy, but about using it where it should be. If you show off too much how rich you are, then you put your wealth at risk.

　　There is a joke that there is a big man who has become rich overnight, sitting in a designer sports car, wearing a designer watch, and wearing a designer leather shoe on his feet. In short, everything that can be shown off is all brand-name goods. One day, he was driving out for a ride and had a vicious traffic accident. He survived, and when the ambulance crews worked hard to get him out of the carriage, he cried when he saw the destroyed limousine: "Oops! My Mercedes! At this time, an ambulance worker found that the arm of the large money had been broken, and he said to him angrily: "Just know crying your car, look at your arm!" Da qian glanced at his arm without saying anything, and then cried again: "Oops! My Rolex! ”

　　Material abundance cannot replace spiritual emptiness. In addition to the wealth that can be shown off, there is no grace, no knowledge, no ideals, no cultivation, and the really "poor" only has money left. A man who values money more than life is not so much a slave to wealth as he is to wealth.

　　Some young people in contemporary times always like to compare dignity with money, thinking that with money there is dignity, and showing off wealth is the embodiment of noble status. In fact, these are two completely different concepts, money can not buy real respect, and human dignity can not be measured by money.

　　You should cherish your wealth, but you don't have to show it off. Extravagance and waste, it is better to be diligent and thrifty. Shen Qingjing, a well-known "Weijing Xiaoshen" in Taiwan's business community, has billions of assets. The self-made rich man usually did not pay much attention to eating and wearing, even the tie sometimes did not play, friends occasionally criticized his suit style is not new, the material is not good, he always replied disapprovingly: "So-so!" However, if the photocopy paper in the company is consumed too much, or the lights are not turned off casually, he will often scold him.

　　A person's dignity is not high, unattainable, and it is a manifestation of dignity to look at the world from an equal and level perspective, and not to be obsessed with the common sense of the world.

　　For human feelings to be cold and warm, the world is hot and cold, and it is necessary to have a detached attitude to be considered a great enlightenment. But many people do not have this detached attitude, and they do not know that inflamation is the normal situation in the world.

　　If you flaunt your wealth excessively, just to elevate your vanity, it is a sign of your vulgarity. This way you will only get farther and farther away from people, or even be completely isolated. When you use your wealth where it is used, people respect you more.