Money, Money, Money

The Bezos wedding reportedly cost around $50 million, which is a drop in the bucket for someone worth $ 220 billion. The celebs poured in. Do we think that Jeff and Lauren have hung out and dined with all of these people? Are they all besties?

Bezos built an empire that changed the way the world consumes. Game-changing. Bezos doesn’t come from a wealthy family; I mean, he cooked at McDonald’s in high school. He possesses a brilliant scientific and technological mind, combined with an entrepreneurial drive. So, put these two together, there is something wild about him having the wedding he wants because he can.

On the other hand, people are being snatched up by ICE, and the money has been deeply cut, if not gone, from countless programs that each state relies on for many of its residents. America might not call itself a socialist country, but getting a social security check, being on Medicaid, having the mail delivered, free public school education, public housing, and more speaks volumes about the reality of where the taxes go, or used to go.

Between the greed at the federal level and the cuts for the wealthy, the wedding is a slap in the face to all who are reeling, or about to reel, from the lack of empathy from our leaders. It is a pure tone deaf echo chamber of access. There is a cultural disconnect. It is not pretty.

Thankfully, McKenzie Scott, Bezos’ ex-wife, has donated almost $20 million to organizations focused on economic mobility, racial equity, public health, and climate change. I hope she has taught her children to read a room.