Weep for the Enron Three

Sweet Martyrdom

It was so upsetting. The threat to three nice, white collared Englishmen was dire. The story was that these deeply wronged men  were about to be  ripped from the bosoms of their families, destined for servitude in a vile penitentiary beyond the reach of civilised law.

Shami Chakrabarti, director of Liberty, the human rights group, said Britain was “trading away the freedoms” of its citizens. Indignation was erupting throughout the nation at the possible fate of the Enron martyrs.

Lover of white human rights Boris Johnston led 140 MPs in demanding  the Government  "defer approval the extradition to the United States of any British subjects." Any  subjects ?

Two PR companies and the Daily Telegraph led the campaign for justice. The media became hysterical with anti-American propaganda. The Iraq war loving  Daily Telegraph wailed that Britain was becoming a 'vassal state of the USA'.

Smothered by more hysterical reporting today on Labour's troubles, the confessions of the Enron Three have hardly been noticed. I had to dig deep into the BBC website to find it.  Deeper in the Telegraph.

They have now, in essence, confessed to a corrupt deal with Andrew Fastow, CFO of Enron, whereby they persuaded Greenwich NatWest to sell its stake in a Cayman Islands investment company at a fraction of its real market value to a small company controlled by Fastow. The stake was then sold to Enron at its true value, and the difference was split between Fastow, Fastow's assistant Michael Kopper, and the Three.

The Gutless Royal Bank of Scotland decided not to prosecute after losing £7 million. No doubt, to avoid having their incompetence on public display. Without the persistence of the US Justice Department, the three would have got away with a mega-theft.

The three bankers allegedly netted £1.1m ($2.3m) each, while Fastow and Kopper made a considerably larger sum. Modern Martyrdom can be sweet.

Can we expect an act of contrition from the Telegraph, Boris and 140 MPs ?

Shrunken Dragon

Ian Lucas's plea for a Welsh presence on the Union Jack is an echo of a similar campaign of my childhood.

The Government agreed then to the reasonable point that Wales is underrepresented on all national flags - including the royal standard. It's not a problem because the injustice  inspires greater loyalty to our only flag, the splendid striking  greatly loved Red Dragon. It cannot be bettered.

It was 1948 when the establishment gave in to demands for an official Welsh flag. What they produced was an abomination. The dragon was shrunken to corgi proportions, trapped in a circle of words with the Crown of Empire firmly on top. That was meant to put us in our place. That flag remains unloved and forgotten.

Will we be conned again?


Botanic Bore

Surely it's obvious? The Eden Project entices, promising a taste of paradise. The National Botanic Gardens sounds like a science lesson. The place is in financial trouble again.

The televised pictures behind tonight's story were as flat and lame as always. Even skilled photographers cannot make it look attractive. A vast dome, concrete paths and a lot of monotonous green with hardly any other colours to excite the eye.

Is it for tourists or scientists? Is is gorgeous or educational?  Someone should decide.

Comments

[valleylad]

Regardless of whether some bankers get their just desserts, the extradition treaty is one sided, unfair and wrong. Once the US have used it to get Abu Hamza it needs to be either ratified by the US congress or better still repealed here.

Equally, why is the UK so bad at successfully prosecuting white collar crime, and then imposing appropriate sentences? Frankly this case shows the total incompetence of the SFO & CPS more than anything else.

[Paul Flynn]

For very rich crooks, the PR company exploited this anomaly to elicir sympathy for the majority of the country. The issues are separate. Many innocent people were husr by the Enron con. This was a deliberate theft and I rejoice that they have been punished.
Agree we are bad at prosecuting white collar crime.

[Paul Flynn]

For very rich crooks, the PR company exploited this anomaly to elicir sympathy for the majority of the country. The issues are separate. Many innocent people were husr by the Enron con. This was a deliberate theft and I rejoice that they have been punished.
Agree we are bad at prosecuting white collar crime.

[Chris Gale]

If the enron3 had been black immigrants would the Daily Mail and the Tories have mounted a campaign in their defence? And would the Telegraph and right wing moronic press been full of indignation?

Err no

[Paul Flynn]

Quite, Chris. Still the Telegraph is belly aching about "rough Justice i the land of the Free."!