# Ken Langone on CNBC



## Immolatus (Feb 20, 2011)

Ken Langone (co founder of HD, former chair of the NYSE) was just on CNBC, and was asked about the 99%ers of OWS.
His first comment was about his doorman, who is also the concierge at Jack Welch's building ('We were going to lunch') and how hard he works. He said "He works 16 hours a ..." and then cut himself off, continuing with "This is the kind of spirit we need". I thought this was very telling, especially since after this rant he went on to talk about the breakdown of the family and family values.
My take on what he meant, and really feels about it.
He expects a 16 hour work day out of the people that serve him. Thats what it takes to make something of yourself. Does he not see a correlation between someone (he said he was a 'young man') who has (wants/needs) to work 16 hour days to make something of himself to become a 'contributor' to society and not a parasite (not the word he used, but he did go on to talk about the quintissential boogeyman, the welfare recipient)? So this 'young man' is supposed to have a family working a 16 hour day? While this may be honorable, and shows this guy has what it takes to make something of himself, how does this bode for his family, or future prosepects of a family? I'll assume that at least some on this forum grew up in this kind of circumstance, and I am not belittling it at all. My own father worked 10 hour days for most of his life. I think he was harkening back to the 'good ole days' when a person (yes, I almost said "man", but I aint the breadwinner even in my own family) could work all day and live the Cleaver life.
The fact that he cut himself off in the middle of his statement spoke volumes to me. He realized what he was about to say, and its implications. Sacrifice yourself for your betters for 16 hours a day and you can be like me. Serve your master, serf, and maybe one day we will make you a knight, or at least some kind of lower court official.
I am ready for the ensuing discussion of me bemoaning this uber rich dude and his views. 
He (along with the other guy who was with him) did go on to bring up some valid points about welfare disincentives and problems with schools and teacher unions ('bad teachers in NYC who make 100k and cant get fired'), but his view of the little guy was stated perfectly in his moment of hesitation.


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## BillS (May 30, 2011)

I think you're way off into the deep end here. You take one comment and assassinate the guy's character. That's what class hatred is about. Somebody with money is the evil enemy. That kind of hatred is what makes the "occupiers" so dangerous.


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## BlueShoe (Aug 7, 2010)

An area of my town is a microcosm of the two classes in America. The elitist butt in the world looks down on EVERYbody else. I live in an area very near a big time state university where all the high paid admin live alongside the lawyers, doctors and pretend blue-bloods. I say pretend, because this isn't the Battery in Charleston SC or NYC. When I walk thru the grocery store in that neighborhood or even drive thru the parking lot they try to run you right over if you might hinder the direction they want to go. _Don't you know who I am?!_ is the message they send as they speed thru. Yeah, you're the guy that's going to stop or I'm going to collect when you hit my Chevy with your Land Rover. I don't know if it's the type A personality or what?

It's a big club, and you ain't in it.--George Carlin


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## Padre (Oct 7, 2011)

Immolatus said:


> Ken Langone (co founder of HD, former chair of the NYSE) Sacrifice yourself for your betters for 16 hours a day and you can be like me. Serve your master, serf, and maybe one day we will make you a knight, or at least some kind of lower court official.


Yeah, that's exactly it!!! That is the American dream. Sacrifice yourself for your family, work your but off, and no matter where you start in life you could end up in the penthouse. The problem is not that rich folk can pay poor folk to be their doormen, the problem is they can buy politicians and make it impossible for poor folk to be rich folk.

80 years ago my great uncle started working at age 16. He walked 3 hours to and from work and work 10-12 hour days on a farm (a lot harder than being a doorman for a lot less pay I would guess). 20 years latter he owned his own business. A few months ago when he died he was part of the 1% and employed over a dozen people. That is America.


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## Immolatus (Feb 20, 2011)

Bill:
I wouldnt necessarily say that he had contempt in the way he said it, but more the fact that he KNEW how what he was about to say would come across. What he left out, and yes, this was my take on it, how do I know what he was actually going to say before he swallowed his words, was much more telling than what he actually said. He knew damned well that its exactly how he was going to come across, because thats how he felt. Its this kind of thinking that leads to crowds with pitchforks. To him, his doorman working two jobs for whatever reason, is exactly the way he wants it.
This is all just my opinion, obviously. Thats great for him to be rich, more power to him. To me, it enforces what the 99%ers, which includes I assume all of us whether you agree with the OWSers or not that the 'rest' are only fit to be serfs unless you sacrifice yourself to bow down (or open the doors) for the elites.


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## BlueShoe (Aug 7, 2010)

Immolatus said:


> Thats great for him to be rich, more power to him.


Agreed. I'm glad he's rich. I'm not jealous of rich people. I envy them when I get a chance to live in their world for a time. It's an eye-opener just how much money there is in the world.


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## goshengirl (Dec 18, 2010)

Padre said:


> 80 years ago my great uncle started working at age 16. He walked 3 hours to and from work and work 10-12 hour days on a farm (a lot harder than being a doorman for a lot less pay I would guess). 20 years latter he owned his own business. A few months ago when he died he was part of the 1% and employed over a dozen people. That is America.


Awesome! :2thumb:


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