Author Topic: Rockefellers turn back at Exxon - is this the beginning of a new era?  (Read 5598 times)

Kalergie

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http://www.reuters.com/article/us-rockefeller-exxon-mobil-investments-idUSKCN0WP266

Are we witnessing a pivotal shift here that will finally spin the world in a new, clean direction? one can argue that the Rockefeller family simply doesn't believe one can make enough cash in oil these days, or at their sudden realization of fossil fuels being harmful to the environment is hypocritical But: I believe this can move 100 times more than any climate summit or green initiative.
Thoughts?

zz_marcello

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Re: Rockefellers turn back at Exxon - is this the beginning of a new era?
« Reply #1 on: March 24, 2016, 11:18:13 AM »
It could also be a perfect example of why
- the first generation makes a fortune
- the second generation keeps the fortune
- and the third generation squanders it nearly always away
(because they where never taught what it means to invest/safe/live frugal but had silver spoons from day one)
Lack of badassity ;-)

Unbelievable but true: Fortunes are nearly never kept after a few generations passed.
My children are learning from me how I accumulated a 7 digit fortune in less than 15 years from the scratch.
The real challenge will be that my grandchildren will get the same message...

LordSquidworth

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Re: Rockefellers turn back at Exxon - is this the beginning of a new era?
« Reply #2 on: March 24, 2016, 03:15:56 PM »
It looks like its a family charity fund, it's not the Rockefellers.

Retire-Canada

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Re: Rockefellers turn back at Exxon - is this the beginning of a new era?
« Reply #3 on: March 24, 2016, 04:49:30 PM »
The real challenge will be that my grandchildren will get the same message...

If you are passing on your wealth can you do it in a way that they don't have a choice or that at least a portion of the wealth is managed in a way that they can't mess with it.

Retire-Canada

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Re: Rockefellers turn back at Exxon - is this the beginning of a new era?
« Reply #4 on: March 24, 2016, 04:54:53 PM »
Are we witnessing a pivotal shift here that will finally spin the world in a new, clean direction?

Thoughts?

I'm not sure this particular act is the sign that something major is happening, but green tech and climate issues are bubbling up from so many different directions now that the change is inevitable in the near future. Will it be enough to avoid major problems? Who knows, but we are at the end of the carbon era.

That's not to say humanity won't be using petroleum products for a long long time still, but having that part of our economy shrink vs. grow will be a major step in the new direction.

energyguy

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Re: Rockefellers turn back at Exxon - is this the beginning of a new era?
« Reply #5 on: March 24, 2016, 08:47:05 PM »
Meh. Name one industry that divestment killed. The demand for the product is still there - it just lets other people reap the rewards at a lower cost. The only way you're going to starve oil and gas of capital is when they've been passed by other technologies and they aren't making money any more. That day will come. I personally would be very careful with your time horizons when invested in fossil fuel companies. Look at Peabody Energy (BTU). No one needed to divest from coal - when technological and regulatory changes render a technology obsolete, it becomes worthless. It will happen to others over the next 20 years.

Kalergie

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Re: Rockefellers turn back at Exxon - is this the beginning of a new era?
« Reply #6 on: March 25, 2016, 12:37:29 AM »
Meh. Name one industry that divestment killed.

Slavery? :/

2Cent

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Re: Rockefellers turn back at Exxon - is this the beginning of a new era?
« Reply #7 on: March 25, 2016, 02:44:31 AM »
The real challenge will be that my grandchildren will get the same message...

If you are passing on your wealth can you do it in a way that they don't have a choice or that at least a portion of the wealth is managed in a way that they can't mess with it.
But you can't make it in such a way that they have to pass it to their children in a way that they can't mess with it. But the greater threat to family fortunes is having more children. If you have 3 kids who give you 10 grand kids, each has only 10% left of your original fortune. In the past aristocrats would leave everything to their first male heir for this exact reason. That is why they where able to sustain great wealth over hundreds of years. Also if you get your allotted portion you will feel it's yours to do with as you please. But if you get everything and your siblings get nothing, you will feel it belongs to the family and it's your job to manage it well.

YoungInvestor

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Re: Rockefellers turn back at Exxon - is this the beginning of a new era?
« Reply #8 on: March 25, 2016, 06:27:13 AM »
Meh. Name one industry that divestment killed. The demand for the product is still there - it just lets other people reap the rewards at a lower cost. The only way you're going to starve oil and gas of capital is when they've been passed by other technologies and they aren't making money any more. That day will come. I personally would be very careful with your time horizons when invested in fossil fuel companies. Look at Peabody Energy (BTU). No one needed to divest from coal - when technological and regulatory changes render a technology obsolete, it becomes worthless. It will happen to others over the next 20 years.

I feel like a lot of the "ethical" divestment we see in energy companies is due to that last reason.

If you can lower risk and look good at the same time, why not?

Retire-Canada

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Re: Rockefellers turn back at Exxon - is this the beginning of a new era?
« Reply #9 on: March 25, 2016, 08:06:23 AM »
If you are passing on your wealth can you do it in a way that they don't have a choice or that at least a portion of the wealth is managed in a way that they can't mess with it.

I'm not an expert in this area. I figured you could setup a trust that would be able to provide financial benefits to your heirs and have that trust invest/spend in a sustainable way so your kids and their kids never see the principal. They just get some distributions.

libertarian4321

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Re: Rockefellers turn back at Exxon - is this the beginning of a new era?
« Reply #10 on: March 26, 2016, 03:00:11 AM »
Not that "divestment" does a damned thing anyway, but this particular "fund" has a paltry $130 million, of which only a tiny fraction is invested in any "evil" fossil fuel company.

This is, in short, a NON EVENT.

marty998

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Re: Rockefellers turn back at Exxon - is this the beginning of a new era?
« Reply #11 on: March 26, 2016, 03:30:41 AM »
The real challenge will be that my grandchildren will get the same message...

If you are passing on your wealth can you do it in a way that they don't have a choice or that at least a portion of the wealth is managed in a way that they can't mess with it.
But you can't make it in such a way that they have to pass it to their children in a way that they can't mess with it. But the greater threat to family fortunes is having more children. If you have 3 kids who give you 10 grand kids, each has only 10% left of your original fortune. In the past aristocrats would leave everything to their first male heir for this exact reason. That is why they where able to sustain great wealth over hundreds of years. Also if you get your allotted portion you will feel it's yours to do with as you please. But if you get everything and your siblings get nothing, you will feel it belongs to the family and it's your job to manage it well.

And then those kids divorce and the lawyers get everything...