Sunday, January 16, 2011

A quick survey of robber baron families








Is it really just a question of strong egos pitted against the weak? There were rumors that the late Shah of Iran installed a solid gold toilet in his private jet. Yet, on his death bed, his last words to his expensive medical team were: "Please save me!"

Why are there people who think nothing of living in the lap of super luxury like the spawn of lesser gods while "ordinary" people are forced to scrape and scrabble for a meager sustenance? Could it be the manifestation of a severe personality disorder that some folks seem utterly incapable of empathy?

Joshua E. Keating, associate editor of Foreign Policy, has written an elegant summary of the opulent lifestyles of the rich and tyrannical. Read it and weep... for their souls!