Fetch me a table away from the rabble

The class separations are being created and marketed for the online world.

In the real world, the average Joe watches the Red Sox-Yankees game from the bleachers while the affluent mingle in the corporate boxes. Everyday Eddie deals with parking and public restrooms during his day at the beach, yet the mega-rich drop their keys with the valet and settle into a reserved lounge chair at a private club.

Online, the waters are parting too.

The "average" and "everyday" are the domain of the lower classes. The wealthy exist in the realm of the exceptional and rare.

Though it once seemed that the Web was the last place where status didn't matter, the elite are now looking for a comfortable place to mingle with like-minded people. They're leaving Facebook and LinkedIn to the riffraff.

"Riffraff". The undesirables must be kept at a distance so as to not pollute the pristine waters of the wealthy.

Some networks come with strict invite-only policies and a rigorous application process based on education, job title, connections and lots of virtual velvet rope.

Once invited to join the network (only selected members with a sturdy Rolodex are given invite powers), a member can browse the market guide (a high-end Craigslist where there are currently 500 member-listed yachts for sale), surf the luxury-travel guide and global-event guide, or participate in forum discussions

"People are unhappy with the free-for-all at LinkedIn and Facebook and MySpace. They are looking for a specialized group to mingle with, and paying a fee weeds out the ones who don't belong," says Chris Curtis, director of Web Business Ownership LLC, a Delaware-based Internet consulting company.

The arguably egalitarian nature of the Internet is undesirable for the "mega-rich". It is a chaotic "free-for-all" that does not give the necessary nod to the exceptional nature of the wealthy. To compete and coexist with the commoners is to sacrifice the individuality and exceptionality that is expected when one is wealthy.

From: http://www.forbes.com/2008/05/02/social-networks-vip-tech-personal-cx_nr_0502style.html

I refuse to donate money to the orphans unless I see some goddamn razzle-dazzle

The current economic downturn is making it tough for charity organizations to raise money from the wealthy.

Ms. Murray explained, however, that there is pressure in the philanthropic world, despite the economic downturn, to always outdo past performances.

“There was some talk about getting a normal tent — our budget is about 10 to 15 percent lower than it was a couple of years ago — but we don’t want to give people less,” she said, adding that Mr. Simmons rented a free-span tent two years ago and didn’t want to do without it this year. “What does it say about you if you’re charging less or giving them less? Each year we’re expected to grow this event. People want to see some razzle-dazzle.”

Of course, if you want to maximize profits, you must first minimize labor costs.

Eliza Rand, a spokeswoman for the Children’s Museum, said planners realized a week before the July 12 gala that they would fall short of their $280,000 goal, so “we decided to downscale in order to maximize what we were bringing in.” Out went the cover band, in came the local teenagers and museum instructors, performing free or for $75 stipends.

Things are so bad that even the daily flower arrangements aren't being outsourced.

It might be too early to call this the East End’s summer of austerity, but Jeff Pennington, a high-end florist, said he had noticed that many of his steady private-home accounts had fallen off. “They’re asking for estimates, which they never used to,” he said. “For weekends when they don’t have guests, people are just doing their floral arrangements in-house.”

What I think this shows is charitable giving by the rich is often done in an atmosphere that does not require them to be somber or reflective. Rather, it is a way for them to engage in their already-hedonistic lifestyle with the added exoticism and thrill of it ostensibly being for a humanitarian cause. It is a fetish where excitement is enhanced by the fake selflessness that promotes it.

Via Ohio

From: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/19/nyregion/19galas.html?_r=4&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin&oref=slogin&oref=slogin&oref=slogin