Oliver Stone in his film Wall Street had Michael Douglas repeat some of the speech that Ivan Boesky once made. Boesky told a group of students that greed is good as it can create wealth. Boesky in real life and Douglas in the movie rely on inside information to make their money, ever ready to trash a company and its employees for their own good.
The latest stock option backdating scandal (aka fishing in the company barrel to get rich quick) has taken Bruce Karatz out of the CEO seat at KB Homes. But what does he care. Here is another article about greed at market tops and the real estate business in particular.
Note that this bull run in real estate has brought back a name from another era, the Donald er rather Donald Trump. A tv show, new developments, and now a new book. But Donald’s greed is such that he can’t stand to have anyone in the limelight with him. Carolyn Kepcher barely got her book out before she too was fired. Not only are these guys greedy at the top, they don’t like to share the money or the limelight.
Professor Elam 
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