Categories: Current Events

Greed, the most prevalent of the Seven Deadly Sins, especially in the corporate world. In their relentless pursuit of wealth, some CEO’s violate the very same ethics they expect their employees to uphold. There are very few examples of corporate greed than that involving Enron, once the world’s largest energy trader. The perpetrators, Jeff Skilling and Ken Lay, were awaiting conviction after a May 25 guilty verdict.

But Lay died last week of a heart attack, effectively escaping the clutches of Johnny Law. And as much as this is a loss for the Lay family, this could work to Skilling’s advantage. Lay’s death may void his conviction, as the evidence against him comes from a now non-existent case. Lay’s family may also benefit, as the feds are now unable to pursue the seizure of Lay’s assets. His memorial was held on Sunday. He was praised as a philanthropist, father and husband. No surprise, because people always find something good to say when you’re dead, even if you’re a low-down, dirty crook.

But as the corporate world mourns Lay’s death, I can’t shake the feeling that this is some sort of conspiracy. It seems a little fishy that he would die right before his conviction and that his death would work so well in favour of Skilling and his family. He could be sipping pina coladas on an island he bought with his ill-gotten gains for all we know. And why not? It’s not like it’s beneath him or anything. Some of you may be angry at me, for using his death to indulge in a conspiracy theory. But if you’re gonna pass judgment on me, there’s a few thousand people you missed, as many in the blogosphere felt the same way. To silence the naysayers, Linda Lay has released photos of her husband’s body. Big deal. Anyone can play dead. But I digress. Rest in peace Mr. Lay (if you really are dead anyway).