Philosophy
Driving with the shorter of the short people the other day and he asks, "How much is a fortune?" I explained that some terms are vague, they don't have definite meanings, that there is not a particular amount of money that makes up a fortune.
But the more I've been thinking about it, there is some sense to the term. It doesn't just mean a lot. We use it that way metaphorically. "I bet that cost a fortune," means that you spent a lot more than one normally spends on something like that, but it doesn't literally mean that you spent a fortune.
It does have the connotation of something that could be inherited -- "he spent his family fortune on the project." And so we get the sense of more money than a single person usually has or generally needs.
Is it, perhaps, a sum that would be sufficient to live off of without having to work? That might make sense of the phrase "small fortune" which is diminutive in that it is a lot of money, but not enough to make one financially self-sufficient.
How much is a fortune?
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There's an old sketch film called Amazon Women on the Moon and one of the bits is a parody of the old Leonard Nimoy show, "In Search Of..." called, "Bullshit or Not?" with the tagline "Bullshit or not? You decide." It's a line I like so much that...
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Remember the premiums offered on cereal boxes or the advertisements in the back of the comic books not approved by one's parents. Most were for hundreds of Revolutionary War figures or a modern army. Some offered one to be a salesman and make a "fortune"...
Philosophy
How Much Is a Fortune?
Driving with the shorter of the short people the other day and he asks, "How much is a fortune?" I explained that some terms are vague, they don't have definite meanings, that there is not a particular amount of money that makes up a fortune.
But the more I've been thinking about it, there is some sense to the term. It doesn't just mean a lot. We use it that way metaphorically. "I bet that cost a fortune," means that you spent a lot more than one normally spends on something like that, but it doesn't literally mean that you spent a fortune.
It does have the connotation of something that could be inherited -- "he spent his family fortune on the project." And so we get the sense of more money than a single person usually has or generally needs.
Is it, perhaps, a sum that would be sufficient to live off of without having to work? That might make sense of the phrase "small fortune" which is diminutive in that it is a lot of money, but not enough to make one financially self-sufficient.
How much is a fortune?
- Philosophy (huh) What Is It Good For?
Yesterday was George Soros' 80th birthday. One of the world's wealthiest men, he made a fortune investing. Before that, he was a student of Karl Popper at the London School of Economics and claimed that his application of Popper's falsificationism...
- The Ethics Of The Scam
Confused, Maybe Not clued me in to this article about an atheist run company that contracts with Christians to take care of their beloved pets after they a raptured away. When the end times comes, who will be around to take care of Fido and Fluffy? For...
- Bullshit Or Not: Thomas Jefferson Edition
There's an old sketch film called Amazon Women on the Moon and one of the bits is a parody of the old Leonard Nimoy show, "In Search Of..." called, "Bullshit or Not?" with the tagline "Bullshit or not? You decide." It's a line I like so much that...
- Penn & Teller - Shadows
This weekend I had the privilege and good fortune of seeing my first live Penn & Teller magic show in Las Vegas, and I must say it was one of the highlights of my life. Their tricks are incredibly entertaining, excitingly ambiguous and deliciously...
- Some Nostalgia
Remember the premiums offered on cereal boxes or the advertisements in the back of the comic books not approved by one's parents. Most were for hundreds of Revolutionary War figures or a modern army. Some offered one to be a salesman and make a "fortune"...