The Nelson Mandela of Billionaires
As we prepare tonight to coronate our friend George W. before a roaring crowd of the rich and the privileged, let us take a moment to remember a man for whom politics has not been so kind. A man whose reputation has been senselessly tarnished by groundless, politically motivated charges.

We speak, of course, of Ken Lay.

This week, Lay, Enron's former commander-in-chief, boldly claimed that the 11-count indictment against him is a cynical ploy. In his own words, to the Washington Post: "The legal case against me, standing alone, is a flimsy, hollow shell and reeks of politics."

Amen to that, brother Ken. If a man of your standing -- a business pioneer on a par with Andrew Carnegie, Henry Ford, and Al Capone - can be persecuted for such trivial, victimless "crimes" as "securities fraud," "bank fraud," "wire fraud," and "making false statements," then none of us is safe.

Lay maintains that Bush's Justice department underlings are indicting him now, and delaying his trial, in order to distance themselves from Enron's extensive ties to the Bush administration. With so much anti-Billionaire prejudice in our nation, it's hard to blame them. And while we're confident that Ken will eventually get away unscathed, does he really deserve to spend the entire fall unable to schedule his next trip to the Caymans, just because he doesn't know his trial date?

So tonight, as George lays out his plan for making America's billionaires even richer and more powerful, we hope he will put in a good word for Kenny Boy. To paraphrase W's favorite philosopher, Jesus Christ, "Whatsoever you do to the wealthiest and most successful of My brothers, you do to Me."



- posted by Colin A. Faver