Thanking Mr. Madoff
As the world focuses on the misdeeds of Bernard Madoff, who pleaded guilty Thursday to operating a multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme, at least one person — granted, not one of his defrauded investors — is singing his praises. Writing on The Big Money, Chadwick Matlin has gone so far as to pen an open letter of appreciation to Madoff.
What has the disgraced businessman done to warrant such a gracious gesture? Well, according to Matlin, Madoff:
• Forced the government to acknowledge “just how crappy the SEC is at doing its job.”
• Giving Americans a villian — a wealthy, white, Jewish villain who defrauded Holocaust survivors, at that — at whom they could direct their anger about the economy’s nosedive.
• Inspired the creation of a whistleblower’s office at the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority to keep track of and investigate fraud-related tips.
Matlin concludes: “Without you Bernie, we would have stewed in our internal anger. And we would have had nobody to catalyze change for the future. Know that while you spend the rest of your life in jail, I’ll be thinking of these noble contributions. And I’ll be thankful.”
Why I became the Forward’s editor-in-chief
You are surely a friend of the Forward if you’re reading this. And so it’s with excitement and awe — of all that the Forward is, was, and will be — that I introduce myself to you as the Forward’s newest editor-in-chief.
And what a time to step into the leadership of this storied Jewish institution! For 129 years, the Forward has shaped and told the American Jewish story. I’m stepping in at an intense time for Jews the world over. We urgently need the Forward’s courageous, unflinching journalism — not only as a source of reliable information, but to provide inspiration, healing and hope.
— Alyssa Katz, editor-in-chief
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