It’s been a few days since the Internet collectively scoffed at the assertion that Kylie Jenner is on track to become the world’s youngest “self-made” billionaire.
Among the many responses the eyebrow-raising statement received, one man’s deeply honest comment stands out from the crowd, showing just how absurd the whole story is.
When the New York Daily News shared a link to their woefully out-of-touch article about Kylie Jenner, they managed somehow to up the ante on the really?! factor.
“19-year-old Kylie Jenner is worth $900 million and on pace to become the youngest self-made billionaire ever,” they captioned the link, before asking, “What are you doing with your life?”
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
Well, Shawn Decker took the question at face value, and basically shut the prompt down.
He wrote:
“I was diagnosed with HIV at age 11 in 1987. My parents were told I had 6 months-to-2 years to live. I’m turning 43 on Monday and I’ve spent the last two decades of my life educating about HIV through writing, speaking and laughter.”
I was diagnosed with HIV at age 11 in 1987. My parents were told I had 6 months-to-2 years to live. I’m turning 43 on Monday and I’ve spent the last two decades of my life educating about HIV through writing, speaking and laughter. https://t.co/DEbD4c7kil
— Shawn of the Bled (@shawndecker) July 14, 2018
Shawn’s comment has received over 63K retweets and 260K likes. Clearly, he struck a chord.
The overwhelming response led him to share more of his story:
Wow- just seeing all the tweet love here. Thanks! In Kylie’s defense, she doesn’t describe herself as “self-made” and acknowledges the headstart she got. Was poking more fun at @NYDailyNews. Will answer questions on this thread later! ???
— Shawn of the Bled (@shawndecker) July 15, 2018
Again, wow. I’m in the midst of a crazy weekend of treating a bleed for hemophilia… so I’ve been cooped up and had to cancel some social plans. Thanks for bringing a bigger party than I could have imagined to Twitter. Will be on a bit more tomorrow. ?
— Shawn of the Bled (@shawndecker) July 15, 2018
A lot of folks are asking… in case I missed your question: I was born with hemophilia. To treat the bleeding disorder, I relied on blood products in the 80s when they were contaminated. That’s how I contracted HIV. Blood products have been safe for decades now. ???
— Shawn of the Bled (@shawndecker) July 15, 2018
It’s my birthday! 43. Thanks for all of the love this weekend and a very unexpected gift. Unforgettable. Let’s all keep doing the best with our lives, or at least this particular portion of our journeys. ? pic.twitter.com/VSTXoUvmsM
— Shawn of the Bled (@shawndecker) July 16, 2018
Other responses to the NY Daily News tweet shared a similar position, though none were as poignant as Shawn’s story:
Just because you were born on 3rd base, that doesn't mean that you hit a triple.
— thomas cs. szendrey (@csszrr) July 13, 2018
Just raising 4 kids (2 adopted) to be self-sufficient contributing members of society. Served 10 years in the USMC. Donating money, time, and skills to the local homeless shelter. Being my friend’s health care advocate. Just regular human stuff. Who the f**k is Kylie?
— Mark Duffel (@2mduffel) July 16, 2018
Eating this entire dish of nachos to myself pic.twitter.com/TAdjYXLyQJ
— Helen Lovejoy (@Robert_MacRae) July 15, 2018
Johndoes
lol. I had to look this bitch up.
Apparently she’s the daughter of the infamous bruce Jenner.
It’s easy to make money when you’re born into money. All she had to do was sign some contracts to let companies use her name and image. No real effort was required on her end.
geb1966
As he said in a follow up tweet, SHE doesn’t claim to be self made. That’s something the paper said.
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AtlasRich
“Self-made” is not a description I would use for her. She used the notoriety of dozens of people that lead to her visibility (including OJ Simpson) and that gave her the exposure that enabled the immediate boost of her make-up sales. Not to mention, starting off in wealth gave her the resources to begin and develop the product on a mass scale without having to go to the awful folk on “Shark Tank”. I wish her the best in her endeavor and hope that it doesn’t retard her maturity and becoming a good humanitarian.
Hussain-TheCanadian
Why is it “news” deserving of report that this heffa has hoarded away $900 million dollars? This is not an achievement by any stretch of the word; we as a society should not glamorize this non-achievement even if the wealth is “self made”.
geb1966
The news is NOT about Kylie; it is about the HIV positive man’s response.
spacecadet
Hussain might be referring to the original New York Daily News report regarding Kylie. I also question why that should be regarded as news and their flippant question of “What are you doing with your life?” This “newspaper” is latching on to our society’s obsession with wealth and fame which is gross.
Hussain-TheCanadian
Right on spacecadet; I’m not denying that money is important to survive but this glamorization ot wealth and celebrities has gone beyond the scope of reason.
If we had a society where everyone is dignified with employment, housing, and healthcare, I wouldn’t care if people are hoarding wealth.
dwes09
I’m sure a modest amount of effort and cleverness goes into her twitter and instagram feed (have not bothered to check them out though). But privilege has its privilege after all.
To her credit, it was not her who describes herself as self made, and she acknowledges that her current fame is not likely to last. The original info came from a Forbes article on the richest women, and it is made pretty clear that Kylie’s mother is the driving force as well as a major decision maker. It is also made clear that without her reality TV history (which was foisted on her) her ability to make money would be non-existent.
ShowMeGuy
I wish no ill-will upon Kylie Jenner……she didn’t pick her parents….not her fault they are total assholes.
She has done nothing to be worthy of any praise for accomplishments because she hasn’t had to do anything. Kaylie won the ultimate “participation trophy” just for showing up…..and that sure isn’t “news”.
geb1966
The story is not about Kylie; it’s about the HIV positive man’s response. Read the article before yo comment.
spacecadet
Geb1966 – the original news story is about Kylie and this tangential new story is also based off the original one. Don’t be so dismissive and assuming this commenter didn’t read the article.
Lacuevaman
not sure I get the point of the article but those damn nachos sure look good!
DCguy
What a shock, an account that regularly defends anti-LGBT bigotry pretends not to “Get” the point of an article talking about how worthwhile a person’s life was and what he was able to accomplish even though he became HIV positive at a young age.
nm4047
not sure if the point has equally been lost, that society create these ‘celebrities’ that are then paid disgusting amounts of money for nothing other than the idiots pay to watch or read some grivel about their choreographed and scripted lives. Blame the idiots more than her.
Chrisk
Sure not from me. Total mystery why people about them.
spacecadet
Agreed. This family is simply taking advantage of the fame hoisted onto them by the media that for some reason decided they should be fame-worthy. I blame Ryan Seacrest: https://okmagazine.com/photos/how-were-the-kardashians-discovered-ryan-seacrest-reveals-audition/
Personally, I just try my best to ignore anthing related to this family because it’s all so shallow and vapid.
Henrik
Self-made? – fake news! Or Alternative fact!
Who the f**k is Kylie
seaguy
Fools made. The fools that follow the K-J family and buy their crap.
NOUHAVENT
So he answered the question, next.
DCguy
And she no doubt pays less in taxes than some worker making $40,000 per year no doubt.
tham
I’m not completely sold on her company being worth 900 million…
It has 7 employees and it’s privately held MEANING…we just have to take her word on how much it’s worth…and they’re not really known for their truthfulness.