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Meetings in the Back Room
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: People
- Hits: 1643
Now for the first couple of days there were the meetings in the back room, groups of people defrauded in the Luxury Car Scam, the Owner, the door would be closed and none of the waiters would dare to enter.
There is a cloud above the restaurant.
They're not the most sympathetic group of victims by a long shot, people who thought they could by next-to-new Ferrari's and Lamborghini's at a fraction of their value are not exactly widows and orphans. And some of them have too generously shared their pain by reducing their tips.
It's taken it's toll at home as well - we can only speculate, but the Boss has been unshaven, there's a blanket on the sofa downstairs, his wife calls and has staff relay messages to him, he's shouted himself hoarse and the frequent shouting fits in the kitchen are sounding more and more exhausted, he's worn himself out.
They've caught Franco or Santo or John or however he styles himself, the police seem confident they can recover most of the money, me, I'm not so confident, seldom do victims of fraud ever see their money again. But what else can they say?
And there are more of the private meetings, the Italians sitting round the table and discussing in quiet voices the probabilities of whether they'll ever see their money again.
Unlikely.
Cars out of control on a snowy road
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: Dreams
- Hits: 1868
It's dark, early evening on a snowy road somewhere (downtonwn?) - a side street off a steep hill. And cars are going past, hitting some icy patch and spinning out of control, flipping over, smashing into parked cars, no one seems to be getting hurt but it's like a scene out of the movies.
I'm wishing I'd brought a Camera.
One - looks to be municipal vehicle, flips and rolls before landing upright in facing the opposite direction. I go to see if the driver's alright - it's Fabrizio - the bosses' nephew's friends brother. He seems a little annoyed, on the back of the truck there's all these road signs - hand painted with neon highlighters, I can't read what they say. He's worried about his load, and I get off the street, it's just not safe, too many maniac drivers...
I step into a shopping mall, it's rotating, and I try to take a shortcut through but it's a series of slides who's angle change, I get into one and am somersaulted as it turns....I get off just in time, with a little sliding of my own, at the right door, a walkway into a parkade....
Money & Power
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: People
- Hits: 1741
Money and Power came into the restaurant the other night.
Now Money, he's a legend amongst restaurant folk, came to the country some 30 or 40 years ago, started as a dishwasher, soon opened his own restaurant. Fancy. And his reputation from here drops off the map, countless reports from people I've known who've worked for him describe him as a sexually obsessed tyrant, strange perversions, lawsuits, bizarre things hushed up. This is the report from the underbelly, those people (un)lucky enough to have held employ with him - from discussions with our customers he's well known in the business community as well, for much the same sort of activities, shady dealings and non-payment, despite all this, or perhaps because of it, he's done well.
Power, well, Power wouldn't be anywhere without Money. Somewhere along the way they met and became friends and Money, perhaps realizing that his reputation wouldn't bear the scrutiny that a career in politics necessarily entails, or perhaps he just realized that Money forever has Power in it's pocket, propped up Power, became his invisible banker and supporter on the Campaign trail and so Power did a few terms at the Municipal level.
It was a classic win-win situation. Power came into money, and Money came into more money, diversified into real estate, development, together they organized municipal strategies that saw both of them become very rich, and now there's no untangling where their dirty little fingers have been.
They're pleasant enough, if you play their game, they have a guest they're trying to impress - Priviledge, perhaps, or maybe just more Money? It's uncertain. But things when they don't go Power's way have him whining, he's a bully, first trying to steamroll through his objectives and then meekly backing off with apologies and "you misunderstood", he frustrates easily, a short temper, the fact that he ever became Power, even with Money, especially with Money, is proof of the failure of democracy.
In this restaurant he's aware that Money is king, you see glimpses of his temper and evil disposition, he is, together with Money, guilty by acquaintance, Money, this Money, is someone no politician should ever be seen with, but he doesn't care, and I'm reminded of the Pig Farmer in British Columbia who murdered countless prostitutes upon his farm, forever having parties for Bikers and Politicians, apart from the dress code and general sense of style there's really no difference.
And I wonder if Power really understands that Power, real Power, doesn't need Money. Probably not.
Cargo Cults - John Frum
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: Ideas & Questions
- Hits: 2230
And these are fascinating (probably you're already aware) - the religions that sprouted all over the South Pacific following the interactions of primitive indigenous peoples with Allied Servicemen.
Links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cargo_cult
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,892609,00.html
http://www.damninteresting.com/john-frum-and-the-cargo-cults/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A2267426
Quoting Time Magazine: "Imitation radio antennas made of rope and bamboo were set up to receive news of the millennium, when black skins would turn white and all the harsh demands of life would miraculously disappear." & "All of them share the belief that black men will acquire the white man's magic to materialize goods from overseas without doing a lick of work.
John Frum: Probably a corruption or pidgin version of "Hi I'm John from /OHIO/NEBRASKA/IOWA/WISCONSIN" - reduced to John Frum.
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