BNE-02-85 years in jail for ex-WorldCom CEO

85 years in jail for ex-WorldCom CEO

It’s tough at the top for some. Bernie Ebbers, the former CEO of telecommunications giant WorldCom, was found guilty today for his part in the $11bn accounting scandal that forced the company into bankruptcy. It was the largest financial collapse in US corporate history. Mr. Ebbers, 63, failed to convince the jury he knew nothing of the financial side of WorldCom’s operations and was thus convicted for fraud, conspiracy and falsifying documents. He could face up to 85 years in prison. He accused his CFO Scott Sullivan of cooking the books, telling the court he had been kept in the dark about WorldCom’s accounts. US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said the decision was an important one as it showed fraud was found to extend “from the middle management levels of this company all the way to its top executive.” Ebbers is protesting his innocence and has been released on bail until the final sentencing on June 13th, during which time his lawyers will be appealing the verdict.

Ebbers started his career as a milkman, basketball coach and nightclub bouncer, before investing in a small telecom company called Long Distance Discount Service (LDDS). In 1985 the company changed its name to WorldCom and grew to become the second largest provider of long distance telephone calls in the USA. The dot-com bubble helped WorldCom and Ebbers become high profile corporate players. In 1998 the company’s stock hit a record $64 per share high. Unfortunately for Ebbers, the technology bubble burst and at the same time the energy giant Enron collapsed, also due to fraudulent mismanagement. This brought the Securities and Exchange Commission to his doorstep. They began examining WorldCom's accounts and a $400m personal loan to Ebbers himself. From then on Ebbers was on the slippery slope to ruin and was no longer a Wall Street darling.

OPINIONS: Discuss whether you agree or disagree with the following opinions:

• 85 years is too short – 20,000 people lost their jobs and livelihoods.
• It’s great to see the guys at the top being sent to prison for a long time.
• What he did is normal in many companies. Why single him out for punishment?
• It is very possible he wasn’t aware of the complicated accounting techniques. The jury has made a mistake.
• His rags-to-riches story is an inspiration to us all. He should not be punished so severely.
• The bigger they are, the harder they fall.
• Justice is justice.
• Why give such a huge sentence because money is involved? Murderers and rapists can get away with five years in prison. Something is wrong here.

 

 Source: http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/0503/050317-worldcom.html

BNE-01-Virgin Millionaire

Virgin Millionaire

Why would billionaires want to do reality television? Why would Sir Richard Branson, one of Britain’s richest people want to produce shows on mainstream American TV? You can find the answers in “The Rebel Billionaire: Branson’s Quest for the Best”, a full-on, non-stop mixture of thrills, adventure and business. The series started last night with a 2-hour premiere on America’s Fox TV.

 

Branson is an enigmatic character. He is the 54-year-old founder of the Virgin Group, which has under its umbrella everything from cola, rail companies and airlines to condoms, CDs and space travel. He is also somewhat of an adventurer, attempting and succeeding in numerous daredevil challenges. In 1986 he crossed the Atlantic Ocean in the fastest ever recorded time. He also crossed the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans in a hot-air balloon. He’s going to send his elderly father into space for his 90th birthday! 

Branson combines his two passions of risk-loving adventurer and entrepreneur extraordinaire in his first TV show, in which sixteen young hopefuls embark on a physically and mentally challenging, globe-trotting competition. The carrot is $1,000,000 plus the presidency of the Virgin Group for six months, just the kind of prize any gung-ho twenty something would risk their high teeth for.

It is all nail-biting entertainment of the highest order. The challenges on the first show include a heart-stopping walk between two balloons 3,000 metres up, with a picnic on top of one balloon. Another challenge entails going over Africa’s Victoria Falls in a barrel. Branson eliminates two contestants each week. It is definitely not for the faint-hearted, for TV viewers and participants alike.

It seems like a tortuous way to pick a corporate boss. Branson’s rationale is that “having the courage to know when to say no and when to say yes, to calculate the downside, to decide when adventures are just too risky” is necessary to make it to the top. However, make no mistake – the show is a marketing tool for Richard Branson and his latest venture: launching Virgin Airways in the United States.

 
About the Article : Agree or disagree with these statements about Richard
Branson and justify your choices:

Richard Branson sounds…
- like my kind of guy.
- like he has a death wish.
- a bit of a weirdo.
- as though he has a screw loose.
- a perfect role model for would-be entrepreneurs.
- he has more money than sense.

QUESTIONS: 

1. What do you think of Richard Branson?
2. Would you stop / retire if you were a billionaire?
3. What does it take to become a top executive? Do you have what it takes?

Source:  http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/0411/12.richardBranson.html

“We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts, we make our world.
-Buddha-”

EVERYTHING HAPPENS FOR A REASON.. LET'S ALL HAVE A BROAD MIND AND THINK POSITIVE..

Experience is the best teacher. I always believe in this. We wouldn't know how we handle things our way after we encounter problems. Well, I've got to say that I'm so poor with this. I often feel betrayed after I do something good for others. Instead of keeping their mouth shut I feel like they want to pull me down where they are standing..Well, that's reality. There are people who don't know the word gratitude.. Sad but true..

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