The Oppressed Rich

"I live my life paying my taxes and taking care of my responsibilities, and I’m a little..."

Tue, 03 Jul 2012 11:00:00 -0400

“I live my life paying my taxes and taking care of my responsibilities, and I’m a little surprised to find out that I’m an enemy of the state at this time in my life”

- Bradley Wayne Hughes, founder and chairman of Public Storage, personally worth $3.9 billion

"[The 1%] are not the scourge that they are too often made out to be"

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 16:40:00 -0500

“[The 1%] are not the scourge that they are too often made out to be”

- Bailed-out chairman and former CEO of Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s money-management unit, Leon Cooperman

"Acting like everyone who’s been successful is bad and because you’re rich you’re bad, I don’t..."

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 16:31:00 -0500

“Acting like everyone who’s been successful is bad and because you’re rich you’re bad, I don’t understand it. Sometimes there’s a bad apple, yet we denigrate the whole.”

- Bailed-Out Chase CEO and Chairman of the Board of the New York Fed, Jamie Dimon, to an audience member during an investment meeting who asked about hostility toward bankers

"Capitalism means private losses and private profits. It doesn’t mean private profits and..."

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 16:23:33 -0500

“Capitalism means private losses and private profits. It doesn’t mean private profits and socialized losses.”

- Peter Schiff, investment guru, radio show host, and defender of capitalism, in an interview with Occupy Wall Street protestors

"I am a fat cat, I’m not ashamed. If you mean by fat cat that I’ve succeeded, yeah, then I’m a fat..."

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 16:00:25 -0500

“I am a fat cat, I’m not ashamed. If you mean by fat cat that I’ve succeeded, yeah, then I’m a fat cat. I stand guilty of being a fat cat.”

- Tom Golisano, billionaire founder of payroll processer Paychex Inc. (PAYX)

"If I hear a politician use the term ‘paying your fair share’ one more time, I’m going to vomit"

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 15:59:56 -0500

“If I hear a politician use the term ‘paying your fair share’ one more time, I’m going to vomit”

- Tom Golisano, billionaire founder of payroll processer Paychex Inc. (PAYX)

"Instead of an attack on the 1 percent, let’s call it an attack on the very productive"

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 15:57:00 -0500

“Instead of an attack on the 1 percent, let’s call it an attack on the very productive”

- John A. Allison IV, a director of BB&T Corp. (BBT), the ninth-largest U.S. bank, and Staples Inc. co- founder discussing the Dodd-Frank Act, which requires public companies to disclose the ratio between the compensation of their CEOs and employee medians

"Who gives a crap about some imbecile? Are you kidding me?"

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 15:55:53 -0500

“Who gives a crap about some imbecile? Are you kidding me?”

- Home Depot co-founder, Bernard Marcus, explaining that the rich should defend themselves against Occupy Wall Street protestors

"I strived to be a good person"

Thu, 20 Oct 2011 11:56:00 -0400

““I strived to be a good person””

- Taylor, Bean & Whitaker chairman, Lee B. Farkas, reading a statement before being sentenced to 30 years in prison after cheating investors and the government out of billion of dollars

"Recession? Spare us the national economic pity party"

Mon, 17 Oct 2011 18:03:00 -0400

“Recession? Spare us the national economic pity party”

- Republican presidential candidate, Herman Cain, in the title of a 2008 article

"It’s like when Hitler invaded Poland in 1939."

Mon, 17 Oct 2011 17:35:00 -0400

“It’s like when Hitler invaded Poland in 1939.”

- Blackstone Group CEO, Stephen Schwarzman, on the struggle with the Obama administration over increasing taxes on private-equity firms

"We have to tolerate the inequality as a way to achieve greater prosperity and opportunity for all"

Mon, 17 Oct 2011 17:05:00 -0400

“We have to tolerate the inequality as a way to achieve greater prosperity and opportunity for all”

- Goldman Sachs International vice chairman, Brian Griffiths, describing why giant paychecks for bankers are an economic necessity

"What the hell did we do to deserve this?"

Mon, 17 Oct 2011 16:51:00 -0400

“What the hell did we do to deserve this?”

- BP CEO, Tony Hayward, in response to the backlash over the Gulf oil spill