For Sale: Obscene Monuments to Mammon

The uber-rich like to collect trophies as proof of their unsurpassed uberness. These aren’t like the tacky brass trophy you won in a bowling tournament. No, no — global ultra-billionaires compete ferociously with each other in their extreme wealth games to have the...
A Big Fat Radioactive Lie

A Big Fat Radioactive Lie

Not long ago, no billionaire worth his cufflinks would be caught dead without hurling bales of money at our nation’s educational system. They bankrolled charter schools, high-stakes testing, and the splintering of big high schools into smaller academies. Their failure...
Thirty Bucks to Take on the Billionaires

Thirty Bucks to Take on the Billionaires

For today’s report, I have a bunch of statistics for you. Where are you going? Come back here and sit still while I drill these stats into your head! I realize that numbers can numb the brain, but this is a good story, and I promise that these statistics are...
Running on Greed

Running on Greed

Donald Trump alienated millions of voters with his ugly attacks on Mexican immigrants and John McCain’s war record. But he rocketed to the top of GOP presidential polls anyway. Is Trump’s racism driving this surge? Maybe. But I’d argue it’s...
What’s the End Game?

What’s the End Game?

I was researching a billionaire who made a fortune in the pomegranate business when I came across an old New Yorker article that opened a window into her life. Every minute of her day is booked in a life devoted to the constant quest for more money. It made me wonder:...