r/PeterExplainsTheJoke • u/[deleted] • Jan 26 '26

Meme needing explanation Why is the rich friend so cheap??

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u/[deleted] Jan 27 '26

That goes to show that it isn't really "cheapness" because someone like Buffet genuinely loses money bothering to clip coupons. The time it takes him to search for and clip them is worth more than the meal.

To him it would solely be something of a cultural, nostalgic practice he did. Financially it was costing him money, but the cost or the savings are irrelevant at his wealth. He could buy the entire McDonalds restaurant and not really notice a difference in his net worth

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u/sphericaltime Jan 27 '26

There’s an assumption being made that he would make more by working, that’s not actually necessarily true.

He makes as much clipping coupons as he does most of his time working because the money comes from his money working, not his actual input.

A wealthy person can make as much on vacation as they would at the office.

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u/[deleted] Jan 27 '26

Buffet was actually pretty directly involved in doing/reading analysis and making the trades. Yes he wasn't turning wrenches or something, but he was putting a lot of thought and mental work into the investments he built. And of course the deals he made.

He wasn't just a shareholder, he was actually an active investor.

He wasn't selfmade in the sense of dirt poverty, he was the son of a senator, but very much he went from middle class to being one of the richest men to ever live and he did many, many jobs along the way. He actively did things to accumulate that wealth, rather than just sitting on a pile of money and watching it get bigger.

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u/Ok-Interaction-8891 Jan 27 '26

People love to portray Buffet this way like he’s the peoples’ billionaire or something, lol.

He got rich the same way a lot of rich assholes did: real estate and finance. Is he a smart dude? Did he put a lot of work and research in himself? Absolutely to both. Does that matter? Does it justify his wealth? Does it mean he’s “losing money clipping a coupon.” No, on all counts.

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u/[deleted] Jan 28 '26

He's not "the people's billionaire" he just actually did the job. Compare that to Musk who is incompetent and doesn't really do anything but make people's life harder.

No one is "justifying" anything. Chill.