I guess what I am thinking about reading this thread is an interview I read with Angelina Jolie where she talks about spending $2000 to throw a party at her house for one of the charities she advocates for and ending up making about $4000 total in donations at the end of the night, when most of the guests there were millionaires. So I think it's pretty common for people who make alot of money to indulge themselves with it rather than try to save the world with it; I guess self-interest is part of what gives them the drive to make that money, much as it pains me to say that. I worry about this shopping thing with him only in that it might be an OC thing...time will tell. But I do think that he is one of those people that is making a stunning contribution to culture both through his art and through his enigma; i.e. he is certainly no Paris Hilton. Much as it pains me to say it it's probably valid considering his future career plans, too

And Rick, I do have that same frustration sometimes.