AIG, the company that casts a long, dark shadow of avarice and greed across the entire world's economy; the company whose fat cat owners took billions of the dollars we could not afford from our pockets and turned them into personal bonuses; the company whose very name is now included in the dictionary under both the words "graft" and "corruption," has sunk to a new lower low [warning: NY Post link, feel free not to give Murdoch any more audience than necessary]:
Bids To Claw Back Grants To Pay Bonuses
Insurance giant AIG is trying to seize a $490 million charitable endowment -- and claw back $27 million it already awarded to New York charities -- to pay executive bonuses, The Post has learned. The endowment, called Starr International Foundation, is run by former AIG chairman Hank Greenberg, and has given millions to the Sept. 11 Memorial and Museum, Citymeals and other local groups.
That's right - these dirty scoundrels are trying to PAY THEMSELVES BONUSES WITH MONEY THEY ALREADY DONATED TO CHARITY. They are SUING to TAKE THE MONEY BACK.
[Update: changed to clearer title]
Citymeals is a "meals on wheels" charity that provides food for those who cannot get it themselves:
Evelyn is alone with no family nearby to care for her. She can neither cook for herself nor maintain her own home as she once did. "I don’t go anyplace," she said. "I don’t do anything."
Despite her infirmities, Evelyn is grateful. Always trying to remain positive, she says, "I thank God every day for every day."
For an older woman who can neither shop or cook for herself, let alone entertain as she once did, Citymeals is a blessing. The nutritious meals and friendly visitors she receives each day nourish her fragile body and soul.
Even though Evelyn can no longer host parties , Citymeals still gives her something to look forward to each day. "Citymeals is just a godsend. You don’t have to worry. They give you everything. For the holidays they always send a package, so thoughtful."
It makes a difference every single day, to people whose physical challenges threaten to leave them hungry and alone:
Five minutes alone with Sarah and you’re hooked. With lively blue eyes and an infectious energy level, she instantly makes you feel welcome in her Lower East Side apartment.
When she was younger she traveled all over the world, but now Sarah is homebound.
...
She has brothers in Queens and Brooklyn, but they are older and unable to travel. For someone who can barely make it out of their apartment, Queens may as well be at the end of the Earth. When she feels well, she sits in the gardens connected to her building. She has friends in neighboring Stuyvesant Town, but she is an elderly woman, living alone, and even getting the few blocks to Stuyvesant Town is a challenge. She relies on a shopping cart for balance, even to get around her apartment. Citymeals is her source of food. She traveled around the world when she could. Now she needs Citymeals to bring the world to her.
Citymeals brings healthful food, and a friendly face, to those mourning the loss of lifetime loves:
Ben lives alone, but he still sets his kitchen table — complete with tablecloth and neatly folded napkins — the way his wife, Rose, did for more than six decades. Although it has been two years since Rose passed away, there is still a lingering sadness in his eyes.
... "I can remember the chicken stew with cabbage that my Rose often prepared for our evening meal."
...
Today, Ben lives a lonely existence, his home filled with a palpable sense of loss and melancholy. His two children live far away, and are rarely able to visit him. To fill his days, Ben relies on memories.
It's hard for me to even begin to grasp the level of avarice that must possess these cruel, greedy, SOBs. Really. It's beyond my ability to comprehend.
Talk about poster children for the lack of empathy - which really, beneath it all, is a self-centered lack of humanity.
The word "depraved" keeps leaping into the forefront of my mind, wanting to bash its way out through my skull, and to implant itself, in blinking neon on the faces of these monsters, as a warning to all who might fall prey to their insatiable appetites for every last penny ever minted in the history of the world.