A History of Vice vs. Virtue

 Recently I came across this quote from Joseph Heller's Catch 22.  

"It was miraculous.  It was almost no trick at all, he saw to turn vice into virtue and slander into truth, impotence into abstinence, arrogance into humility, plunder into philanthropy, thievery into honor, blasphemy into wisdom, brutality into patriotism, and sadism into justice.  Anybody could do it:  it required no brains at all.  It merely required NO CHARACTER."  

The quote led me to consider the real-life temptations of misdeeds by those in power, and I found examples old and new that included politicians, Ponzi schemers, and others.  The temptation to cheat is not limited to petty thieves.     

The hope of Lady Justice

Last week's post reflected the positive side of President Ulysses S. Grant in seeking education for all American children.  He was also an admired war hero, but as president, he tended to trust the wrong people.  Although he retained his honorable reputation, his "thievery into honor' as Joseph Heller described in Catch 22, was more a neglect of duty by failing to oversee those he had appointed.  For example, his appointees speculated to corner the gold market, others cheated the Lakotas to allow mining for gold found in the Black hills, while in addition a whisky ring involved government officials who participated in a national tax evasion scam, as well as his neglectful oversight allowing a corrupt system to obtain lucrative postal contracts.  More directly, while his abuse of nepotism was not an exception, since Presidents Buchanan, Madison, Tyler, Monroe, and Jackson were also guilty of that abuse, it is estimated that during Grant's presidency, 40 relatives financially prospered directly or indirectly.  While Grant did not dip his own hand in the till, his lack of oversight allowed others to do so.  Questionable presidential appointments continue to this day.    

The temptations of power are not confined to Politicians.  Remember Ponzi-schemer Bernie Madoff, who orchestrated one of the largest Ponzi schemes in history, defrauding philanthropists, the elderly, and many famous people who trusted a man of 'No Character.'  Or, Michel Milken, who was lauded for his high-yield bond strategy for corporate mergers and acquisitions in the 1970s and 1980s, but in 1986 he was sent to prison and barred from the securities industry for life.  Perhaps in his case, a lesson was learned, and he is now known for launching the Prostate Cancer Foundation, his awareness of the need for which grew out of his own cancer.

Scammers include the former chairman of Sotheby's auction house, who was indicted for conspiring to fix auction commission rates.  He was sentenced to 1 year and 1 day, which he served, but his reputation was shattered.

Neither is the temptation of wealth acquired without honor limited to men.  Real estate mogul Leona Helmsley was sentenced to prison in 1992 by a judge who said in her sentencing, "Your conduct was the product of naked greed [and[ arrogant belief that you were above the law."  And, despite her fame and popularity, Martha Stewart was convicted of obstruction of justice and lying to investigators.  She served her time and managed to return to her television career.  

Recently, Elizabeth Holmes, known for her black turtle necks and blond hair, found that beauty and charm were no protection from being sentenced to 11 years in prison for fraud after persuading investors that she had developed a revolutionary medical device which was actually a sham.

Whether a brief lapse or a sustained deception, finding that "it was almost no trick at all...[to turn] plunder into philanthropy, thievery into honor, blasphemy into wisdom, brutality into patriotism...It merely required no character."  Sadly, Joseph Heller's themes in Catch 22 of the distortion of justice, the influence of greed, and the issue of personal integrity live on.

     F.N.  Joseph Heller, 1923-1999.  His 1961 novel, Catch-22, a satire on war and bureaucracy, was both initially very controversial but ultimately very popular.  Modern Library's list of the top 100 Novels of the Century places Catch-22 number 7 out of 100.  The novel became a movie in 1970, directed by Mike Nichols, staring Alan Arkin, Jon Voight, and Orson Wells.