The private jets crowded out Marco Polo Airport, and the super yachts sailed in. The billionaires are in town for one of the biggest events in their social calendar.
This weekend Jeff Bezos, a man worth some 225 billion dollars will marry his long term partner Lauren Sanchez a journalist and media personality.
In a world economy going through a protracted period of inflation and economic turbulence, this display of extravagance hasn’t gone down too well. The Itallian city, Venice has become a symbol of this.
The city has long struggled with its popularity with tourists, who have driven up rents and the general cost of living to unsustainable levels. Protestors are using the wedding as an opportunity to protest against the rising economic inequality between the super rich and those of more average incomes (like me).
A group “No Space For Bezos” has mobilised to protest against the wedding, plastering protest posters around the city. A larger demonstration is planned for the Saturday. Concerns over protestors led to the wedding being moved from the 16th Century hall Scuola Grande della Misericordia to the Arsenale, a more secure location. Some of the protestors later claimed this was a great victory.
City officials have been dismissive of the protestors concerns. Presumably anticipation of the backlash the Bezos couple donated $3.5 million to local organisations, and no doubt the $40 million dollar cost of the wedding is bringing significant benefits to the local businesses of the city. Many of the most luxurious hotel suites are fully booked for the weekend, and millions are being spent with local suppliers.
In general, im amiblavent about the whole thing. He got rich by providing an excellent commerce platform. Amazon provides a crushingly fast and efficient online shopping experience. Their prices arent as cheap as they used to be – but if I order something it gets there the next day, or sometimes the same day. And if I dont like the product when I take it back – as soon as the returns label is scanned, the refund is processed.
Why wouldn’t you shop at Amazon?
