At no point in my life would I choose to spend 10 years in jail for $400m. Only if my current living situation was very poor and this was my only way out of it. I can sort of imagine why one would... but it seems like an awful decision to me.

It seems more plausible to me he actually doesn't have the gold.

▲ craftkiller 2 hours ago | parent | next [-]

I would in a heartbeat. $400,000,000 is never-work-again-in-your-life money. Not just for me, but for my parents and other members of my family. You could put it into bonds at a mere 2% APY (far lower than current interest rates) and get 8 million dollars per year in interest for doing nothing.

At 16 waking hours per day, we're losing at least half of that with work, so it would only take 1 additional decade before I break even in terms of time, not even considering the vastly improved quality of life having millions of dollars of annual passive income nets you. I could even afford dram.

▲ laughing_man 44 minutes ago | parent | next [-]

I might've done it in my 20s. But now that I'm much later in life the time is far more precious than the money.

And I don't think it's a good idea to hand family members never-work money. Their own achievements become meaningless.

▲ MidnightRider39 36 minutes ago | parent | next [-]

Idk I would rather spend 10 years in jail later in life than in my twenties.

Otherwise I agree with you it’s not a trade off that is worth it at any point in life

	▲	laughing_man 12 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		I could have had a whole lot of fun in my thirties and forties with that kind of money. At this point it would just mean iron clad financial security and not much more. Even if I could afford Gabe Newell size yacht I wouldn't buy one.

▲ spicyusername 37 minutes ago | parent | prev [-]

    Their own achievements become meaningless.

I'm sure most people wouldn't mind.

▲

laughing_man 28 minutes ago | parent [-]

Of course not. But I used to know a group of guys who were born fabulously wealthy. None of them were happy. For them to get a job it would be essentially working for free relative to the wealth they have.

I'm sure there are people out there who would find meaning in creating art of some type, or turning their fortune into an even bigger fortune, but I suspect those people are rare.

	▲	thunky 5 minutes ago \| parent \| next [-]
		> None of them were happy That's because they're human, not because they're filthy rich and have all the privileges in the world. If it were that simple they could give all their money away and get a job at Walmart to find perfect happiness.
	▲	lotsofpulp 24 minutes ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		The people I know who do not have to work to ensure healthcare for their kids seem happier than the ones who do have to work. Being able to go on vacations for extended durations or at convenient times is also heavily utilized.

▲ an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

[deleted]

▲ anal_reactor an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Me too. I hate my corporate job. Once I leave jail I'd still have a good chunk of life in front of me.

▲ carlosjobim an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

I'm sure there's an elegant gentleman willing to offer you much more than 400 million in exchange of a bare eternity of imprisonment.

▲ 3rodents an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Could it be the sunk cost fallacy? He started out thinking he’d spend a few weeks, then a few months… and before long, he has been in there for years and so he must continue with the lie lest he have wasted years of his life.

▲ functionmouse 11 minutes ago | parent | prev [-]

you can save hundreds, maybe thousands, from poverty and hunger with that kind of money

10 years is nothing compared to 400m