Zeitgeist: The Sorrows of Sir Allen Stanford, and Other Tales of Woe and Inconvenience
“They make you take off your shoes…it’s terrible….” Sir Allen Stanford of Texas, former guru of somebody, opining to an interviewer on inconveniences of flying commercial (first class of course).
This guy, after he gets out of prison, assuming he goes to prison at all, should be given a more-challenging task: maybe appointed mayor of Detroit and told to solve whatever problems it has (21+% unemployment, home prices in the sewer, Superbowl unlikely to return in our lifetime, etc). Actually I can think of several current and former CEOs who can be assigned that task.
Unfortunately, jurors and judges are star-struck these days (they too read People, National Inquirer, Mad, etc). They watch as much rubbish on television as most people: they probably even watch Springer and Dr. Phil (whatever the hell it is he does on his show). Remember they are supposed to be peers of everybody else). The guy is, was, a billionaire! He made it, no matter how (remember the awed CNBC anchor begging him to tell us how it felt being a billionaire?) He can’t be all that bad. He will probably get less than a young person gets who shoplifts a Seven-Eleven for $25. At least in Texas he will.
Is it a sign of the end of an era? Absolutely not, this geist is always of the zeit. Remember Dennis Kozlowski (Tyco) and Bernie Ebert (MCI, Worldcom), the golden parachutists of the screwed up corporations and of the NYSE management? And what about Drexell, Lambert , Larry, Curly, and Moe? And what about the Savings and Loan champs (they were pussycats compared to now)?
Never fear, with a spineless United States Senate (almost all bought, sealed, and delivered), and lobbyists still flush with money (TARP or TARP-less), happy days will be here again, soon. Sooner than the starstruck gals and guys at CNBC can scream wow!
Just read what some of the CEOs are already beginning to say, as they tentatively come (polite word here) out from under their TARP and other support rocks.
Cheers
mhg
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