While you might not see them on Forbes’ list of wealthy people, criminals and their beneficiaries are some of the richest people on the planet.
For example, Bloomberg alleges that the heirs of a prominent Nazi are billionaires [4] who own half of BMW [5] who are also closely connected with Daimler [6]. Four of the heirs are worth $1.2 billion each [7], and much of their wealth allegedly came from slave labor [8] at German concentration camps.
Barclays, Chase, and the Bush family [9] also made money hand over fist financing [10] Hitler.
The Vatican has built a secret property empire worth close to a billion U.S. dollars using money Italian dictator Mussolini gave the church for blessing fascism [11].
Modern tyrants have gotten wealthy from oppressing people as well. For example, the family of U.S.-backed Egyptian dictator Mubarak holds $40-70 billion [12]. Russian leader Putin also has a current net worth of $40 billion [13]. (They pale in comparison to Libya’s Gaddafi, worth $200 billion [14].)
Indeed, given up to $32 trillion [15] dollars are being hidden in offshore tax shelters [16], the amount of wealth accumulated through crime is nearly impossible to track.
What should have happened, of course, is that ill-gotten gains should have been clawed back from the criminals as soon as they were discovered, just as they should be clawed back from Wall Street fraudsters [17].
But that is not likely to happen, since many political and business leaders are unrepentant and unwilling to root out crime [18].
Indeed, when the elite profit from things such as laundering drug and terror money [19], funding both sides of wars [20] and other unsavory acts, no one wants to stop the music. [21]
Balzac may have been exaggerating when he said, “Behind every great fortune lies a great crime.” There are some wealthy people who earned their money by honestly delivering a better or cheaper product or service.
But not many [22] …
Source
DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
Stop giving these people the facts about banks, corporations, and their behind-the-scenes manipulations of our economies and governments. And ESPECIALLY the source of their wealth. Too "tin-foil hat" for them. Like I've said before, it AIN'T Tyrone in Harlem letting cargo ships and 747's through our borders with tons of drugs. Its bankers and politicians and military leaders making THAT happen. And it AIN'T the CLERKS in Congress passing laws to facilitate the rape of "we, the people" with regulations and laws ALLOWING tax evasion, zero corporate taxes, evisceration of stock funds and 401(k)'s and shell game movement of TRILLIONS of dollars. Facts. Information. Not for everyone. Some wouldn't believe facts even if they were tattooed on their ass.....or had numbers tattooed on their arms. Well, SOME did, but it was too late by then....another FACT. Wolves EAT sheep.... another FACT.
ReplyDeleteWow, a tad cynical at first but upon closer examination, can't find a disputable point, depressing. So I guess the next question from a concerned citizen is the plan for "Stop giving"?
ReplyDeleteA moral government that takes seriously it's oversight responsibilities is somewhat of a correcting balance to evils occuring in the business world. When the government has been corrupted by those same people through special interest lobbies there is no protection and even greater corruption. The US government is rotten to the core and in need of replacement. A good idea for a replacement government is a small limited power constitutionally based democratic replublic with functions not having to do with national defense and national emergancies overseen by the states. NAAAAaa...too radical!
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