Monday, June 6, 2011

Does Theo Caldwell Add Up?

Exitus acta probat. (The ends justify the means.)
Publius Ovidius Naso, Heroides, (The Heroines), II, 85.

Who is Theo Caldwell? The Great Man has a near flagship gig on Sun News TV. Each day the ranting is more animated, the subject being discussed more obscure, the hands and arms flapping about in darn near as elegant a fashion as that of the Great Canadian Margie Gillis! Could all that "Swan Hands" flap have been caused about Mr. Caldwell having discovered his inner Margie? Sometimes discoveries of ourselves are not always welcomed. Examples abound in history.

Donkey...

The Oracle of Ottawa has provided a link to the Wikipedia article of Mr. Caldwell. "He is president of Caldwell Asset Management, and serves on the board of directors of Caldwell Financial, a diversified investment firm with operations throughout North America and around the globe. Caldwell Financial and its subsidiaries provide investment management, brokerage and insurance services to private clients, municipalities, charities and foundations, as well as private and public corporations." My goodness, that is pretty impressive! Why in heavens name does he bother to show up on a third-rate news network, that has ratings of a channel test pattern? The article gets better! (Did you ever hear of, say, a cabinet minister slinging beer in Hull after cabinet meetings?..me neither...)

  

                                        What in heavens name are these guys going on about??


It seems that Mr. Caldwell is a dual American-Canadian citizen? But the article does not state his place of birth or his parentage. And for good measure he also holds an Irish passport. Mr.Caldwell was educated at Upper Canada College, he also has a B.A. in English from Trinity College, University of Toronto. And for icing on the cake, he also claims a Masters of Science degree in Public Policy and Management from the University of London, United Kingdom. Excuse me dear reader but all this sounds pretty elite to me! And isn't one of the main Sun News TV tag-lines - The elites have always set the agenda? - To the best of my knowledge, even Pierre Elliot Trudeau, didn't have a shopping bag full of passports! 

One wonders with all the listed duties and doings of the many boards and all, how Mr. Caldwell can justify the wasted time at the Desk of "The Caldwell Account" ? I am sorry to be so cynical and all, but does this add up to you? The real shaky part of the article is the claim that Mr. Caldwell " Has been a member of ", The New York Stock Exchange (!),  The American Stock Exchange, (!) The Kansas City Board of Trade, (!)and for good measure The Chicago Board Options Exchange! To the best of my knowledge, to be a "member of an American Exchange you must own a seat on that Exchange! A seat on the New York Stock Exchange is worth at present tens of millions of dollars at least! Costs of seats on the other exchanges mentioned are roughly valued in the seven to eight figure range... Yet he decides to come to preach to us peasants? Does this add up to you?

Maybe he is a "Great Man" and has decided to give of his wealth and genius to show us mere mortal peasants the true way... But yet, at the closing this missive, one more thing does not add up...isn't it for the elites that the performing arts exist? And if Mr. Caldwell is an elite...why is it that he goes ballistic over the far fringe of Canadian Performing Arts? 

                                                I mean, really, who would you rather watch?

1 comment:

  1. Those who can.. do...those who can..t criticize..he was a ray of sunshine on TV..we lost when he left.mary

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