Zappos founder Tony Hsieh dies
Quote: mcallister3200Apparently was injured in a house fire while visiting family in Connecticut. 46 years old. Was responsible for initiating the revitalization of the Fremont East area of downtown.
Sounds fishy. Cause of death not released. I'm sure there is more to the story.....
Yeah, well, that’s just like, your opinion man.Quote: SOOPOO....
Rest in Peace. The man was a visionary.
https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/500-Pequot-Ave_New-London_CT_06320_M43599-51915#photo0
Quote: SOOPOOSounds fishy. Cause of death not released. I'm sure there is more to the story.....
Well, fires are sometimes used to cover up evidence. (or try to) Not as guaranteed as some might imagine.
. Obviously. What I post tends to be my opinion. My point is that if someone dies in a fire or as a result of one the cause of death is not usually a mystery.Quote: mcallister3200Yeah, well, that’s just like, your opinion man.
I know virtually nothing about the man, other than he was a successful CEO (Zappos) and was involved in revitalizing downtown Vegas. But when young ultra wealthy men die.... there is often a surprise back story.
Quote: SOOPOO. Obviously. What I post tends to be my opinion. My point is that if someone dies in a fire or as a result of one the cause of death is not usually a mystery.
I know virtually nothing about the man, other than he was a successful CEO (Zappos) and was involved in revitalizing downtown Vegas. But when young ultra wealthy men die.... there is often a surprise back story.
I get it. I also accidentally edited out the "sounds fishy" part when I quoted you. Here's where my response came from.
NSFW two F words.
But as I have thought about and read a little more, this is going to be a big loss and really hurt Las Vegas as far as the Downtown Revitalization Project. Progress has been slow, but you did see it happening. I mean he is the sole source of funding for that project. Does it just dry up now?
Quote: kewlj. I mean he is the sole source of funding for that project. Does it just dry up now?
I'd be surprised if he had any will at all.
Quote: kewljI don't want to get into any suspicious deaths conspiracies. When I read the new of Mr. Hsieh's passing this morning, my first thought was that's a shame. He seemed like a good guy. I have never read a negative word about him. He gave back to the community, privately helped a lot of people. You can't drive more than a mile on any highway running through Vegas without seeing a sign that Zappo's has adopted that highway for litter control.
But as I have thought about and read a little more, this is going to be a big loss and really hurt Las Vegas as far as the Downtown Revitalization Project. Progress has been slow, but you did see it happening. I mean he is the sole source of funding for that project. Does it just dry up now?
Most times, a project like this is done by a foundation that outlives the person who started it. Hopefully, that is the case here.
Quote: kewlj
But as I have thought about and read a little more, this is going to be a big loss and really hurt Las Vegas as far as the Downtown Revitalization Project. Progress has been slow, but you did see it happening. I mean he is the sole source of funding for that project. Does it just dry up now?
If I am not mistaken I believe he had pretty much pulled out of that project more than a year ago.
https://www.curbed.com/2020/10/tony-hsieh-park-city-utah-real-estate.html
I suspect, with his detachment from DTP and Zappos in the past year or so....that some other things may have been going on, professionally and personally.
There have been reports of...well, without fanning flames, some personal issues in the past.
The fact that this tragedy occurred on November 18...and not one word was leaked out until he passed was a bit strange as well.
Terrible tragedy.
For me, he was one of those personalities that people associate with a company — like Dave Thomas of Wendy's — and so he was another reason I was happy about Las Vegas, especially downtown. He brought optimism.
Quote: mcallister3200So reading a summary of his book “delivering happiness” I found that the title of this thread is actually inaccurate, he did not found Zappos. He became an advisor and early investor about 2 months after it was founded. This was after selling his first company to Microsoft for 265 million at 24.
I think it's similar to the way Elon Musk is credited as being one of the founders of Tesla, even though he wasn't there at the very beginning. Hsieh invested in a startup that was called Shoes.com or something like that. He was instrumental in changing the name to Zappos and installed himself and his friend from his pizza days into management. So he was there from the beginning with Zappos although there was an earlier incarnation of the business. He had started his first company six months after graduation by cold calling companies. Two years later he sold it for $265 million.
While he retired from Zappos last year, I'm sure he would have accomplished much more in the years to come.
His book is great, but if you want to know more about Zappos read The Kingdom of Happiness.
“barricaded” is not a term generally used to describe a situation like this.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/before-tony-hsiehs-death-firefighters-rushed-to-burning-home-with-trapped-man-11606691000
Quote: rxwineI'd be surprised if he had any will at all.
Why?
Quote: mcallister32009 days after a fire. Sounds like a rather painful agonizing way to go.
I worked on burn patients for the last 15 years of my career. The greatest likelihood is that he was kept in what is sometimes referred to as a medically induced coma for those 9 days.
I still think there is more to it than just a random guy caught in a fire. Just an educated guess.
Quote: billryanWhy?
Because he was still young enough to think he wasn't about to die anytime soon. But the fact that he was wealthy does make it more likely he would have one.
At least according to gallop polls.
Quote:Americans' likelihood of having a will depends largely on their age and socioeconomic status. Sixty-eight percent of those aged 65 and older have a will, compared with just 14% of those younger than age 30. Of Americans whose annual household income is $75,000 or greater, 55% have a will, compared with 31% of those with incomes of less than $30,000. And while 61% of those with a postgraduate education have a will, only 32% with a high school education or less do.
Also, if he had a wife and children, I think it would be more likely, but he had neither.
What a tragedy, however it happened. This world could use a few more Tony Hsiehs.
Quote: billryanBack east, oftentimes people buy houses, renovate them and never update the plans with the city/village. Building walls where they shouldn't, converting living rooms into two bedrooms and such., and blocking egress's in the case of a fire. It happens more in poorer neighborhoods but I've seen people convert garages and basements into mancaves and such that lacked any kind of exits. In the 1960s, wood paneling was really popular for finishing basements and in a fire the fumes will knock you out in a heartbeat.
What a tragedy, however it happened. This world could use a few more Tony Hsiehs.
I agree with your comments. I cannot say exactly what happened to Tony, but I knew a coworker from EC who was drunk and was taking a nap in his basement man cave while family was out. The house still had old electrical wiring that caused a fire from the 1st floor and ended up spreading to the basement. He had no egress due to him converting the basement on his own without thinking. He was trapped, but luckily his neighbor called 911 and he was rescued. He inhaled a lot of smoke and had long-term negative impact to his lungs. He used to have therapeutics and humidifiers in his office all the time to improve his conditions. I’m not saying it happened to Tony, but when I read basement and fire, it reminded me of my old coworker.
Too many of the wealthy have succumbed to drugs
What I find shocking are the nitrous stories
Apparently Tony loved nitrous
Thats scary because somebody with his money, you can buy huge tanks of it
I used to see those tanks after concerts, run by the nitrous mafia but thats another story
I've done quite a lot of Nitrous in my life . Essentially its N02. One nitrogen molecule attached to 2 oxygen molecules
Its quite a buzz
but
I never got addicted to it. Most dont
So sad and kind of weird with nitrous being one of the drugs of choice for Tony.
Quote: terapined...nitrous...
Public service announcement: the formula for "nitrous oxide" is N2O. Accept no substitute!
I remember a news story years ago about the theft of a tank of another of the nitrogen oxides. The authorities were warning that the tank did not contain nitrous oxide but another compound that was deadly if inhaled.
Quote: terapinedI've been reading about Tony Hsieh
Too many of the wealthy have succumbed to drugs
What I find shocking are the nitrous stories
Apparently Tony loved nitrous
Thats scary because somebody with his money, you can buy huge tanks of it
I used to see those tanks after concerts, run by the nitrous mafia but thats another story
I've done quite a lot of Nitrous in my life . Essentially its N02. One nitrogen molecule attached to 2 oxygen molecules
Its quite a buzz
but
I never got addicted to it. Most dont
So sad and kind of weird with nitrous being one of the drugs of choice for Tony.
It's actually N2O. I was in college in the 90s and it was very popular back then. Someone would show up at a party with a tank and charge 5 dollars a balloon. You could tell which party by the balloons on the sidewalk outside. Two friends of mine used to make a lot of money doing that. They would get the tank refilled at a warehouse (possible a food supply place, I don't remember).
I have no idea if they are legal, or if this would cause you to fail a drug test, but it was pretty common knowledge that he indulged in them.
Quote: billryanIt kind of makes sense. Mr. Hsieh was a big believer in happiness and whippets will make you very happy. For about ten seconds.
I have no idea if they are legal, or if this would cause you to fail a drug test, but it was pretty common knowledge that he indulged in them.
Nitrous oxide expert here. You would not fail a drug test unless it was administered seconds or at most minutes after you used it. It is used as an anesthetic, but is a very weak one. The 'gases' we use in anesthesia require a 1 or 2% concentration to put you to sleep for a full surgical operation. If you were only to use Nitrous Oxide you would need a concentration which exceeds 100%. remember, you need 20% oxygen, so max Nitrous Oxide possible concentration is 80%. In practice, we rarely exceed 70%. So Nitrous is never a sole anesthetic, but if combined with narcotics (fentanyl) or benzodiazepines (midazolam) it can be effective.
When I give N2O it is always mixed with supplemental oxygen. I have no idea if recreational users do so. If not, hypoxia is a real risk.
It has fallen out of favor in modern practice, as it does (theoretically) increase the likelihood of post op nausea. Apparently it is super cheap, so is still used in poorer countries a lot.
Quote: billryan
I have no idea if they are legal,
Whippets are definitely legal, sold in stores. The question is why? Unlike other inhalants, like glue, bath salts, that have a practical purpose, I don't see any practical purpose for whippets? Can anyone enlighten me?
Quote: kewljWhippets are definitely legal, sold in stores. The question is why? Unlike other inhalants, like glue, bath salts, that have a practical purpose, I don't see any practical purpose for whippets? Can anyone enlighten me?
Aren't they used in baking cakes or something like that?
Quote: kewljWhippets are definitely legal, sold in stores. The question is why? Unlike other inhalants, like glue, bath salts, that have a practical purpose, I don't see any practical purpose for whippets? Can anyone enlighten me?
Used to create whipped cream
You can go the the grocery store, buy canned whipped cream. Normally you shake it. turn upside down and out comes whipped cream
Or
You can not shake it. Keep it upright. Release the gas, suck on the tube and get a nitrous hit.
Professional whipped cream devices use the small nitrous canisters called whippets to create whipped cream
Had a crazy friend. Bought a case of canned whipped cream. Sucked the gas out of all of them. Tried to return the case to the store. He was crazy and insistent they take it back and give him his money. Store called the cops
Quote: kewljWhippets are definitely legal, sold in stores. The question is why? Unlike other inhalants, like glue, bath salts, that have a practical purpose, I don't see any practical purpose for whippets? Can anyone enlighten me?
The legitimate use is whipped cream.
While they are legal for culinary uses, it is illegal to use it to get high, just like paint, glue, solvents, etc.
If you look at the warning label on any of these products commonly used to get high, it will say something like “it’s a violation of federal law to use this product in any way other than it’s intended use”
Quote: jjjooogggSomeone recently told me about Nitrous.
It was everywhere back in the day at Grateful Dead concerts
Its everywhere at Phish concerts
My last nitrous hit was Dec 31 outside the Chase Center in San Francisco at a Dead and Company concert
I really like nitrous
But not as much as Tony apparently.
Quote: mcallister3200Family has filed notices planning to sell 90+ Las Vegas properties.
Is there a list of the properties?
Quote: billryanIs there a list of the properties?
Not that I know of. All I did was read a quick article online. Perhaps in court filings, they filed the notices with Clark county. Of note terms to highest and best bidder, all cash sales, family may or may not retain some/all of properties they’re just making them available at this time.
If they want to liquidate, some bargains might be found.
