Forbes list of billionaires is not independently verified

I always knew the Forbes list of wealthiest people in the world was not etched in stone. There really is no way for them to know how much money these people have with holding companies, art collections, jewelry, gifts, private stashes of cash... They call up the person and just ask them how much money they have.

People have lied to Forbes in order to get on the list. They want on the list for their ego. I'm not saying every billionaire on the list is a megalomaniac like Gary Michelson who might lie to get on the list. Some refuse to verify. In those cases Forbes bases their wealth on public holdings.

Gary Michelson has a lot of holding companies that are private. There is no way they can independently verify his net wealth without asking him. I have a feeling they call him up and just ask him. Note that Gary Michelson told Forbes "I'm single and good looking." Who says that, even if they are single and good looking? That's truly a conceited thing to say especially to Forbes who will be repeating it.

I remember the story about Prince Alwaleed who lied to Forbes to get on the list. http://www.forbes.com/sites/bruceupbin/2013/07/04/in-london-trial-prince-alwaleed-blasts-libyans-gets-accused-of-lying-in-order-to-sell-a-plane/

He went so far as to supposedly "adjust" the share value of his holdings right before the list comes out to inflate the value so he could make the list. If you take a look at the entire list of billionaires, there are few sane people on the list. There are also some truly horrible drug lords, militant rulers on the list. I personally think this list is not a good idea. Being a billionaire is not really a good thing in the real world. It causes some crazy people to aspire to be on the list.