The Saddest Thing - The Billionaires Who Rule America Aren't Even Enjoying Themselves
Money doesn't buy happiness
This single post says more about our ruling class than a thousand policy papers.
The saddest thing about today's system is that the men robbing the rest of us - sabotaging our economic prospects, our pensions, our access to affordable healthcare - are not even happy.
They're exhausted, isolated, compulsive, and - by their own words and actions - deeply unfulfilled.
Here's what their lives actually look like.
Elon Musk
Musk has openly admitted his life consists of "great highs, terrible lows and unrelenting stress." He has 13 children across multiple mothers, yet many of them have distanced themselves from him. One changed her name and said she no longer wants to be related.
Elon rage posts at 3 a.m., feuds with everyone, works himself to the bone, and once describes his schedule as "excruciating."
The richest man alive says money doesn't buy happiness - and then keeps grinding like a man possessed, as if another acquisition or another late-night tweet will finally fill the hole.
Larry Ellison
Oracle's founder has been married six times. In the 1970s, his first wife divorced him because she thought he "lacked ambition." That rejection became one of the defining stories of his life - the fuel that drove him to build a fortune. Today, he lives on enormous yachts, owns Hawaiian islands, and flies between luxury compounds. When "enough" is never enough, no amount of sailing or private jets seems to fix it.
Donald Trump
Even back in the White House in 2016–2020, Trump was drowning in lawsuits - over 600 challenges to his policies in his first year alone, endless court battles, purges, and constitutional crises. He rages at judges, at the Supreme Court's shadow docket, at anyone who disagrees. He looks perpetually angry, perpetually on the defensive.
The man who once said he'd "win so much he'll get tired of winning" now spends his days fighting for survival and on Truth Social. If power and money brought peace, why does he still look like he's perpetually one tweet away from a meltdown?
Bill Ackman
The Pershing Square billionaire has spent years in public combat: against Harvard, against DEI, against journalists, against anyone who crosses him. His hair turned gray at age nine - stress, apparently, even as a child. He wages endless ideological wars on X, funds campaigns, and turns personal grievances into crusades. The man who could retire tomorrow in comfort instead chooses daily combat. That doesn't look like happiness. It looks like compulsion.
People who must keep hoarding until they have more than they could spend in a thousand lifetimes, end up controlling the strings of power in our money-driven political system.
They manipulate power, fight redistribution, and trap everyone else in their economic machine - all while living in a permanent state of misery.
And they end up isolated - surrounded by people attracted to them only for their money.
Kurt Vonnegut captured it perfectly in his poem about Joseph Heller at a billionaire's party:
"I've got something he can never have."
"What on earth could that be, Joe?"
"The knowledge that I've got enough."
The plutocrats who rule our world don't have that knowledge. They never will. They're driven by wounds they don't understand, compulsions they can't stop, and a hole no amount of wealth can fill.
And yet we let them steer the planet.
Maybe the saddest part isn't that they're miserable.
It's that we've built a civilization that hands the steering wheel to people who are psychologically incapable of enjoying the ride - or letting anyone else be happy either.
About the Creator
Scott Christenson🌴
Born and raised in Milwaukee WI, living in Hong Kong. Hoping to share some of my experiences w short story & non-fiction writing. Have a few shortlisted on Reedsy:
https://blog.reedsy.com/creative-writing-prompts/author/scott-christenson/
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The United States of America is celebrating their 250th anniversary in 2026. I'm proud to be an American and as someone who was born here, I wouldn't imagine myself living anywhere else. This is a country where opportunities are possible. Where anyone can be successful in anything they desire to do. Equality, community, and togetherness are the backbones of what America is and should be about. However, we have an administration who wants to erase and disregard those who have made positive, meaningful impacts in our country, specifically Black figures, such as Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, and Maya Angelou. President Trump and his administration have been constantly complaining and fighting against what they call the "Woke agenda". They use this excuse as a distraction from other issues they refuse to address, such as the high cost of living, climate change, and inflation. That equality is dividing America, when in reality, it's bringing us together. Being woke is not tied to a specific political party. No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, you can still care about other people and their plights. Compassion and empathy for others isn't tied to a political party, either. We were taught as children to treat others the way we want to be treated and not judge others because they're different from us. Caring about others isn't a personal attack on your beliefs. It doesn't make you any less of a person. People who are easily offended over African American figures, past or present, or anything related to it, are grasping at straws. Current and future generations need to know who people like Harriet Tubman and Shirley Chisholm were, especially in the classroom. Black History is part of American History. It should be recognized, not hidden or forgotten. Besides, you can't shield children from everything, just because your feelings are easily hurt.
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8 Killed in Explosion at Biotech Company in Northern China, State Media Says
An explosion at a biotechnology company in northern China has killed at least eight people and injured several others, according to Chinese state media, raising renewed concerns about industrial safety in the country’s rapidly expanding high-tech manufacturing sector. The blast occurred on Tuesday morning at a biotech facility located in an industrial park on the outskirts of a major northern Chinese city. Local authorities said emergency services rushed to the scene shortly after the explosion was reported, sending fire crews, medical teams, and hazardous materials specialists to control the situation and search for survivors. Thick plumes of gray smoke were seen rising above the complex, while nearby buildings sustained damage from the force of the explosion. Windows were shattered within a wide radius, and several vehicles parked near the factory were damaged by flying debris. Casualties and Rescue Efforts State broadcaster CCTV reported that eight people were confirmed dead by early afternoon, while a number of others were hospitalized with injuries ranging from burns to trauma caused by falling debris. Rescue teams continued to comb through the wreckage for hours, using heavy machinery and thermal imaging equipment to ensure no workers remained trapped inside. Local officials said the injured were receiving treatment at nearby hospitals and that their conditions were being closely monitored. Authorities did not immediately disclose how many workers were on site at the time of the explosion. “We are doing everything possible to treat the injured and investigate the cause of the accident,” a spokesperson for the municipal emergency management bureau said. What Is Known About the Company The facility belonged to a biotechnology firm involved in chemical and biological product development, according to government records. While specific details about the materials stored at the site were not released, the company reportedly worked with industrial chemicals used in pharmaceutical and research applications. Such facilities often store volatile substances that require strict safety procedures. Investigators are examining whether hazardous materials were involved in the blast and whether safety regulations were properly followed. The company has not issued a public statement, and its operations have been suspended pending the outcome of the investigation. Possible Causes Under Investigation Authorities said the cause of the explosion remains unclear. Initial reports did not indicate whether it was triggered by a chemical reaction, equipment failure, or human error. Environmental monitoring teams were deployed to test air and water quality in the surrounding area to ensure there was no ongoing threat to residents. 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Comments (3)
Good article-Canada is a bit of a dump but I look south and realize-it's likely worse there
Good article! Many wealthy people relish any opportunity they have to just act like a normal person with people who don't know who they are. When you have money, everyone wants it, everyone is a player. Not that I would know from experience, it's what they say.
I almost felt sympathy...almost. I think it's a bit like the tale of the scorpion and the frog for these men. Their nature is such that they can't do anything else. Maybe they need to take time out of spending and earning money to do something just for the doing. Test themselves in other ways. How about being philanthropic with those billions? Elon, try knitting or pottery. Happiness is not something to be bought but you can conjure it yourself. Great feature, Scott.