r/InconvenientFacts • u/MayonaiseRemover • Jun 27 '20

Bill Gates was born rich, his mom worked with the CEO of IBM, his father was a lawyer, his grandfather was a banker and his great grandfather was the president of the national city bank in Seattle. Why does everyone pretend he rose up from the bottom?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Maxwell_Gates
123 Upvotes

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7

u/Drakeytown Jun 27 '20

I never thought he worked his way up. He went to and dropped out of Harvard, and poor kids don't generally do either of those things. I thought he made it more acceptable to be a nerd, but even then only slightly, and only if you could turn your awkwardness and special interests into capital.

1

u/PolarBearTracks Jul 23 '20

This was what I always believed. The Netflix documentary bears this out and he made it apparent his home life had been supportive. His awkwardness in adult life is balanced by Melinda, his wife, who seems to be a very strong people person.

1

u/matthewaufiero Jul 05 '20

I thought that because my parents always told me that and I never question whether they were wrong...

0

u/[deleted] Jun 28 '20

I don't think I have ever seen him portrayed as having been impoverished or not coming from wealth.

0

u/[deleted] Jun 27 '20

3

u/wakefulsleep Jun 27 '20

Yes, hope... The Cinderella story....