M20:53
这是不是 Bill 让你来问的？
Did Bill put you up to this?
不是他让的。
He did not.
不，我知道不是。
No, I know that.
我——你知道，这个建议也不算离谱，不过我们有个更好的答案。
I— he, you know, it's not a crazy suggestion, but we've got a better answer.
Bill 的确能把我的工作做得非常好，而我做不了他的工作。
Bill could do my job very well, and I could not do his job.
不过在 Berkshire 的组织内部，我们至少也有四个人，在很多方面都能把我的工作做得比我还好；当然，大概也有一两个方面，他们在某些环节上可能没我那么，那么擅长。
But we also have at least 4 people within the Berkshire organization that in many respects could do my job better than I do, and probably in 1 or 2 respects they might not be as, as good at certain parts of it.
但他们都会是非常出色的接班人。
But they would be terrific successors.
在这个问题上，我们现在的条件比 Berkshire 历史上任何时候都更好。
We were more blessed in that situation than we've ever been in the history of Berkshire.
如果你往前看十五年，那时候我们可没有四个人选。
If you go back 15 years, we did not have 4.
而且随着我们不断增加新的业务，也不是没有可能，会有更多未来领导人的潜在人选随着这些业务一起加入。
And as we add businesses, it's not inconceivable that more potential future leaders come with those businesses.
所以我们准备得很充分，而且——除非发生特别不寻常的情况，接替我的那位领导者会来自 Berkshire 内部，并且已经在这里待了很长时间。
So we're well equipped, and we would— we will, barring something terribly unusual, we will have a leader that succeeds me that comes from within Berkshire and has been around for a long time.
这样做的一个好处是——当然，如果是 Bill 也未必就是什么坏处——但这样做的一个好处是，我们真的很喜欢 Berkshire 的文化，而由一个已经在这种文化里运作了很多年的人来接手，我觉得是加分项。
One advantage of that, and this would not be necessarily a disadvantage if it were Bill, but one advantage to that is that we really like the culture at Berkshire, and having someone that has operated in that culture for a number of years, I think, is a plus.
另外，你知道，我们也看过他们是怎么工作的，我们了解他们的长处和短处，所以我们现在的准备非常充分。
Plus, you know, we've seen how they work, and we know their pluses and minuses, and we are very well equipped now.
至于 Bill，我想，随着他在 Microsoft 投入的时间减少，他大概会——你知道，Gates Foundation 可能会占用他更多时间。
And Bill, I think, to the extent that he spends less time at Microsoft, he will probably be— you know, the Gates Foundation will take up perhaps more of his time.
我真不觉得他在惦记我的工作，尽管他看到这份工作附带的薪酬水平，也许会馋得流口水。
I don't really think he is looking for my job, although he may salivate at the pay level that's available with it.
Charlie？
Charlie?
嗯，我觉得这确实是个很有意思的问题。
Well, I think it's a very interesting question.