Here is an example of one of Canada's most successful businessmen being totally destroyed by an overzealous US prosecutor and according to the media anyway it seems that most in Canada hate the man's guts. The bullshit is flying fast and thick.
For a start, look at the images the press is showing -most of them show Lord Black in an unflattering light -now why is that. Everyone takes a bad picture but when that's all you show it would indicate a bit of bias and that's exactly what is happening here.
Lets look at some of the facts. Black made millions for himself true -but he also made billions for his shareholders. He holds three University degrees, has written several books, and was known for demanding quality in the newspapers he owned. Up until this point he managed to conduct business all his life without being charged for anything in the courts. Then he runs afoul of the infamous US justice system which is hypersensitive due to the Enron and WorldCom fiascos and is looking for blood -any blood-so that they can make an example of him.
Of the 13 trumped up charges -the jury only convicted him on four and one of those -unfortunately the most serious one in the eyes of the law -was removing 13 boxes of records that belonged to him from his own office -big deal! In the scheme of things Conrad Black is an angel compared to the corporate crooks in banks and food companies that are robbing and poisoning our citizens. And yes the man does have an ego but why not- he sure earned it. He is not Joe Average and why should he act like it?
By way of comparison of "sins" lets look at the moguls in the fast food industry and the crap that they are serving up to the public resulting in widespread obesity, poor health, type 2 diabetes and reduced life spans. They serve up unhealthy portions of fats, salt, trans fats, sugars and they absolutely know what it is doing to their customers and do it anyway to make a buck. These people are out and out criminals even murders. Do they get charged? Nope. But Conrad Black the media mogul gets nailed to the cross. Bullshit!
I hope he fights back and wins. Its criminal that an intelligent, articulate, hard working and successful man like him at age 64 faces a remaining life in jail and the destruction of all his assets just because people don't like him. The irony of it all is that he is supposed to be quite a decent fellow when you know him and so the perceptions are apparently all wrong too. And the incident about giving up his Canadian citizenship for the title of Lord in the UK -yes there was just a little more to the story than the press is admitting specifically that French Canadian PM Chrétien was acting vindictive (as he often did) when he personally refused Conrad to have theBritish title -Conrad fought it in court and lost- he never wanted to loose his Canadian citizenship but also felt strongly that the UK title was honestly earned and that he should be able to accept it.
For the record, Chrétien's Liberal government then got caught on one of the most disgraceful and illegal incidents in Canada's history the sponsorship scandal. Oh and the press doesn't talk much about the Canadian war memorial Conrad helped build and fund in central London -one of his several good deeds. It seems that in Canada and other places for that matter the public delights in kicking a former tycoon- fallen from on high -when he is down. Perhaps its because they never accomplished anything themselves. But what forever reason I think Lord Black is being treated entirely unfairly both by the media, the public and the courts. Hang in there Conrad! Hope you beat the Bullshit artists!
Update December 14/2007
Conrad was given 78 months in the big house. The prosecutors who obviously have gone insane wanted 20 years! 78months is still a travesty. I look at this by comparing the total lack of ethics by too many CEO's in the North American food industry and the crap they are feeding consumers and the harm that crap is doing vs the so called misdeeds of Conrad Black. In comparison, the man is a saint! When you look at Conrad's life and the wealth he has added to society one wonders how this could have happened. The American justice system the same one that let OJ Simpson walk after he murdered two people has come down very hard on Conrad Black. I don't think this is fair at all. But what do you do...when you live in a shoe!
Update March 3/2008 There was finally some good coverage the other day on the Canadian networks about Lord Black basically confirming some of the points that I have previously said here. The reality is that one of Canada's brightest, most articulate and most successful businessmen is now sitting in a Florida Jail which represents to me at least a travesty of justice and a completely inappropriate way to treat what is in reality a Canadian national treasure. What a waste of a human being of stature and ability! Yes the fellow did look like he had a big ego. So what! Look what he did! He should have a big ego! In fact speaking of egos the Judge who put him away certainly seemed to have a big ego too. She seemed quite pleased with herself and a person who felt they were really going places in the American judicial system. Lord Black was a feather in her cap. So to speak. Not impressed. The main reason that he seems to be in the slammer is the "Obstruction of Justice" charge involved when he went to his office and removed several boxes of his files. Big deal! Yet in the American system that is enough to get him 6 1/2 years in the big house. It's ridiculous!
Anyway there he is in a cruddy little cell with a cell mate in a space smaller than one of his walk in closets sharing a toilet with 12 others and earning between 17 cents and $1.20 an hour. Its stupid beyond words.
Update May 29/2009 The US Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal of Conrad Black's case. Black has of course requested that he receive release on bail. His co accused John Boltbee just received release on an bail of $500,000. The logic here is that if the action is successful then Mr. Black will have had to spend several more months in jail as opposed to having to return to jail and complete his sentence. That is logical when you think about it as a ruling on the appeal is not expected until 2010. The Globe and mail has a good report on the action here. Also I am pleased to report that the Globe actually used a picture of Mr. Black where he wasn't scowling or it didn't look like the man was sinister.
I hope Mr. Black gets release on bail. It would be only fair in my opinion. And if time served -over a year now- were applied to the obstruction charge and a release was obtained then there would be some fairness in the American Justice System.
What I find interesting is the vindictive, hateful, ill-informed comments by fellow Canadians about this case. They deeply resent Lord Black's success and are totally convinced he is a vile, despicable, criminal without out basis on any factual information. I suspect that anyone in the public eye feels this pressure from a certain percentage of our population who always seem to act in a whiny resentful way. Canadian politicians have alluded to this problem one calling it "noise" that you just need to ignore. In this website we have tried to identify the factor that causes this and you may wish to review this page which makes a strong case for the fact that a minimum of 25% of the population are just plain stupid.
And you might enjoy this article in the Star.com about Conrad Black and his membership in the Toronto Club. Pay attention to the picture they used of Mr. Black and you will see right away what I mean about the media using images to portray the man in the worst light. It is a very interesting article. It raises more questions about the Toronto Club than it does about Conrad Black. You decide.
And here are some books related to Conrad Black:
Take me back to the index with all the great stuff there eh!