Let me start my reply with a quote from Elon Musk (damn, soon I will be seen as the “Musk guy”):
So, the money you have saved, how you spend it, decides who you give job to. You buy food, electronics, holidays, you give jobs to cashiers, factory workers, hoteliers. You cut back, some hotels and restaurants get closed. Whatever businesses are left will try to cater to whatever basic needs you will still have.
These are exactly the things that you would not cut back on, so there would be plenty funding for them. And probably good teachers would be paid more to educate better.
Eventually, this money would also find its way into technological research. Faster computers, cheaper energy. The more long-term investors there are, the more it’s worth to invest in technology.
So, to conclude, I think if all people in the World were frugal Mustachians, you would have fewer jobs catering to pure direct consumerism, and more R&D jobs. As a result, our technology would develop faster.
I think you have a point. Investing in VT is optimized for the highest return at its level of risk. If you care for ethics or ecology, or if you want to invest more in technological growth, you will either lower your expected return or increase your risk. I myself have been considering investing in TSLA or ARKK for a while, because of this.
I think, however, that by being frugal, and investing in VT, you are already pushing the World in a better direction, which is not so consumption-oriented. With slightly adjusting the allocations of your little (in a global scale) portfolio, you’re not going to make a difference anyway. If you’re in a position of power, be it in a company or in politics, this is the place to make serious impact. Your real job is the place where you make conscious and educated decisions about who to do business with.
@1000000CHF @Julianek I would love to hear your input on these matters.