Something feels eerily familiar about the current market turbulence hitting tech stocks. The headlines trumpet billions in “losses” for Silicon Valley’s elite, but those of us who lived through 2008 know better. From my desk in South Melbourne’s tech corridor, watching the numbers tumble brings back memories of similar “catastrophic losses” that somehow always seem to work out rather well for those at the top.

Let’s be real - when you’re worth tens or hundreds of billions, a 30% dip isn’t keeping you up at night. While regular folks stress about their superannuation taking a hit, these tech titans are likely viewing this as an opportunity rather than a crisis. They’ve got the capital to weather any storm and the resources to capitalize on distressed assets when they become available.

Recent headlines proudly proclaim Australia’s position as second globally for median personal wealth, but these numbers deserve a closer look. The reality beneath the surface tells a more complex story about what true wealth means in our economic landscape.

Looking at property values between comparable cities raises some interesting questions. Take Chicago and Sydney - while a beautiful inner-city home in Chicago might fetch USD 1.6 million, a similar property in Sydney could command AUD 4-5 million. Does this make the Sydney homeowner genuinely wealthier? The GDP per capita between these cities suggests otherwise.

The tech world has taken quite a turn lately, hasn’t it? Meta’s recent announcement about dropping fact-checking, combined with Zuckerberg’s peculiar image transformation and Tim Cook’s political donations, paints a disturbing picture of where we’re heading.

From my desk in Richmond, watching these tech billionaires realign themselves feels like observing the final act of a particularly grim play. Gone are the days when Silicon Valley at least pretended to care about making the world a better place. Now, it’s all about naked power grabs and political maneuvering.

Reading through recent online discussions about retirement and pensions has left me both frustrated and bewildered. There seems to be an endless parade of posts from wealthy retirees seeking advice on how to maintain their pension benefits while sitting on substantial assets. The mental gymnastics some people perform to justify this behaviour is truly remarkable.

Picture this: someone with a million dollars in assets wondering how to keep receiving government benefits. It would be comical if it weren’t so concerning. These aren’t isolated incidents either - they represent a broader mindset that views the pension as an entitlement rather than what it truly is: a social safety net.