There is stealing, and then there is stealing the “human spirit”. Every year we hear stories of charities being burglarized. That annual bit of news tends to affect me in two ways.
- I feel sad that people simply don’t care about each other.
- I start thinking that the person who stole the things from the charity obviously needed the things, thus the charity served its purpose.
Clearly my second though is ridiculous. But interesting nonetheless. But how do we try to classify the world’s biggest swindler, Bernard Madoff? Madoff, 70, recently was busted for defrauding investors out of over $50 billion. He was a former chairman of NASDAQ, and was (and I do mean WAS) one of the most well respected money managers in the world.
Cue the helicopter (you know the helicopter that flies over tornado ravaged ares.) Madoff has caused a massive (un)natural disaster. Many charities that trusted him with their money, have shutdown. Entire countries have lost millions of dollars. This is the lowest of the low. He wasn’t just stealing from charities, but his acts caused them to shutdown. He is preventing others from being functional members of this society. Enjoy your stay in the pokey, Bernard. Oh, and Merry Christmas.
Peter Dunn a.k.a. Pete the Planner® is an award-winning financial mind and a former comedian. He’s a USA TODAY columnist, author of ten books, and is the host of the popular radio show and podcast, The Pete the Planner Show. Pete is considered one of the foremost experts on financial wellness in the world, but he’s just as likely to talk your ear off about bass fishing.