Malcolm Gladwell just went nuts on a Wall Street billionaire's $400 million donation to Harvard

Abby Jackson

Jun 4, 2015, 01:49 IST

In case you missed it, a Wall Street billionaire donated $400 million to Harvard on Wednesday. That donation, by hedge fund manager John Paulson, was Harvard's largest gift of all time and added to Harvard's already mammoth $36.4 billion endowment.

Never one to mince words, famed author Malcolm Gladwell pounced on the news on Twitter, insinuating that Paulson's money could have been put to better use.

It came down to helping the poor or giving the world's richest university $400 mil it doesn't need. Wise choice John! http://t.co/2bFmuTy397
- Gladwell (@Gladwell) June 3, 2015

Next up for John Paulson: volunteering at the Hermes store on Madison avenue. Let's make this a truly world class retail outlet!
- Gladwell (@Gladwell) June 3, 2015

Working the coat check at Art basel. They're short staffed!
- Gladwell (@Gladwell) June 3, 2015

If billionaires don't step up, Harvard will soon be down to its last $30 billion.
- Gladwell (@Gladwell) June 3, 2015

Apparently $200 mil is earmarked for a satellite campus on St Barts.
- Gladwell (@Gladwell) June 3, 2015

It's going to be named the John Paulson School of Financial Engineering
- Gladwell (@Gladwell) June 3, 2015

Harvard's pitch to Paulson: not all privileged people are equally privileged!
- Gladwell (@Gladwell) June 3, 2015

Paulson to Harvard: is there a way to give back without actually giving anything back?
- Gladwell (@Gladwell) June 3, 2015

Gladwell is no stranger to conversations about social science and the way people interact with the world around them, and has been lauded as one of the best nonfiction writers of his generation. He also has a number of critics who accuse him of oversimplification of ideas - which may be how some people view his tweets.

NOW WATCH: Here's what happens when you get bitten by a black widow

Next Story Meet some of the big winners of the Wall Street-Washington revolving door policy