Everyday I read The New York Times, and everyday I ask myself why? This paper, run by billionaire Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr., whose family owns more than 19 percent of the company, comes up with new ways to attack his friends—the rich—everyday. And, what I find most surprising is that his rich friends are still prepared to talk to him.If you didn’t see the story about how the rich are getting richer and the poor are digging themselves into a bigger whole, don’t worry— Mr. Sulzberger buried in the International Herald Tribune—a wholly owned subsidiary—which doesn’t play by the rules all rich owners play by.
According to the IHT, the top 1 percent of Americans received a bigger pay increase than the bottom 20 percent of Americans. Big deal! Everybody knows that the rich spend more than the poor, and as a result, they need to earn more money to maintain their standard of living.
Not that it matters, but the top 1 percent of people received a $524.8 billion increase, while the bottom 20 percent of the country got a mere $383.4 billion. Even $383 billion is a lot of money to me. My grandmother told me that if you complain about how small your pay increase is—you’re already earning too much. If the poor don’t want this extra money, they can give it to a charity that will distribute it to those who NEED it.
The IHT points out that the top 3 million Americans earned as much as the bottom 166 million Americans. I don’t get the point. If poor people want to earn more money, all they have to do is get another job.
And while I’m talking about the rich, Rupert Murdoch, the new editor of The Wall Street Journal, is using his newly found journalist prowess to predict future economic trends—and the news is not good.
Speaking on Fox News, Mr. Murdoch said the U.S. faces a recession that could undermine real estate for the next five or six years. He told Neil Cavuto: “I think we are in for a recession, probably. How bad it will be, I don't know. But I think there's a lot more bad news to come...”
He also told people not to worry about the banks because they’ll be handing out money willy-nilly in a year or so. “The problem at the moment is, there is plenty of money everywhere, but the banks are frightened to lend it,” Mr. Murdoch said. “And, therefore, it is harder for small-business men to get started. That's what have to watch, and the price of money. The banks are being so sort of super careful. They have had a big fright.”
He said that not all businesses were suffering and those companies that need capital should simply improve their credit rating. “We just borrowed some money the other day," he said. "We're an investment grade company. And it was done on the telephone for $1 billion dollars. It was no trouble.”
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