I asked ChatGPT, “Would you kindly create an image of a big orange bully extorting money from lawyers, corporations, countries, or TV networks, or all of them?” This is what we finally landed on.

“Where is all the money going?”

That’s a great point. My buddy Bill and I were yapping on the phone this morning and he asked that rather simple question. We were both perplexed about how the Big Bully was getting away with extorting millions and billions from seemingly everybody; corporate America and Academia; law firms and TV networks; foreign countries and even other big billionaires.

And more importantly, where was all that money being stored, used, spent?

“Where is all the money going?” my wife also asked as I related our conversation.

First it was the law firms bending over backwards to the Big Bully, offering him free legal services so he wouldn’t, what, sue them? You’d think a law firm would be kinda/sorta immune to worrying about lawsuits.

Then the Academia nuts tied themselves in knots saying, “please don’t cut our funding; we’ll stop doing important stuff just because you don’t like it, Mr. Bully.”

TV networks wanted in on the fun and thought it’d be great to cancel their best-rated, most popular show or give the Big Bully money because he didn’t like the way they produced one of their news programs.

It was almost comical when a frightened foreign country gave him a used jet for half a billion bucks. But the thing that somehow seems surpassingly silly was when the head of a global company worth three-and-a-half TRILLION dollars gave him a 24-karat gold plaque.

“Where is all the money going?”

What would a criminal do with his money? Most people don’t seem to remember that the Big Bully was convicted of 34 felonies and has been charged with 88 or more criminal counts. Think of all the keys on a piano, each one of them representing a different indictment. It’s a felony symphony, a crook’s concert.

Why are all these institutions contorting themselves to pay off a convicted felon AND sexual assaulter? What are they afraid of?

“Where is all the money going?”

In politics, we’ve been told for decades to just follow the money, ever since Watergate. Why are people actively acquiescing to get the bully’s best blessings. There must be a reason. Is there something I’m missing?

What’s your take on the take?

 

Rodney Curtis is a recovering journalist and author of four books.

Check out Rodney’s books here.