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WORD COUNT
316
MAY 28, 2008
WEALTH CARRIED TO AN
EXTREME – by Jim Hightower
Let's take another
peek into the "Lifestyles of the Rich and Cranky."
The old rich pride
themselves in, well, in having some pride. For example, they tend to set
their venerable mansions behind tall walls and shrubs that discreetly
obscure their wealth. It's a matter of class. On the other hand, the new
rich are more inclined to flaunt their abundance crassly, building
garish houses that amount to neon signs screaming; "Look how rich I am,
sucker!"
How surprising then
that one of the showiest of these look-at-me celebrities of wealth has
gotten pouty about being featured in a movie that, after all, is about
him. He's Henry Kravis of Manhattan, South Hampton, and ... well, so
many places. In Henry's life, everything is about him. He heads an
eponymous Wall Street equity firm that essentially borrows money to take
over corporations that other people built. To pay off his lenders,
Kravis sells off whole chunks of the captured corporation. Then he fires
thousands of workers, slashes the wages and benefits of those who
remain, and pockets the savings for himself.
In days of yore, such
predators were called pirates. But pirates could not have imagined the
level of gold plundered by the likes of Kravis. How rich is he? In 2006,
he made $51,400. Not for the year, of course. Nor for a month, a week.
Or even a day. Kravis hauled in $51,400 per hour, every hour of every
day. That's what $450 million a year comes to. He grabbed more in 30
minutes than many of his downsized workers make in a whole year.
Far from being
discreet, Henry flaunts his piracy with luxurious homes and a lavish
lifestyle. Indeed, that's what the movie is about. It's titled: "The War
on Greed, Starring the Homes of Henry Kravis." Henry hates the movie.
But I'll bet you'll like it. Check it out at
www.warongreed.org.
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For more information
on Jim Hightower’s work – and to subscribe to his award-winning monthly
newsletter, The Hightower Lowdown, visit
www.jimhightower.com -- A photo of Jim Hightower
is available CLICK HERE
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