60 Minutes: Bernie Madoff's wife and son

[LSN80]

http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/31/us/madoffs-interview/index.html?iref=allsearch

For those who didn't see the interview, it's a fantastic watch. I had no intent of watching myself, but didn't change the channel after watching my Steelers dismantle the Patriots. What I found interesting in the interview was the talk by both Maadoff's wife, Ruth, and his son, Andrew. Both recounted with great detail the life they spent with Bernie, but denied ny knowledge or culpibility in Madoff's Ponzi scheme. As Madoff's empire was collapsing around him, he called the family to a meeting in his penthouse to admit to the Ponzi scheme. Regarding Madoff's admission of guit, his wife Ruth said the following:

"He(Bernie) said, 'I have a confession to make. I've been running a Ponzi scheme." He said, '$50 billion dollars. I asked him:, 'What's a Ponzi scheme?

What I found to be significant and ultimately incredible here is Ruth's supposed lack of knowledge of what a Ponzi scheme even is, let alone her husbands misdealings. Even myself, with little to no knowledge of the business and financial world, understands what a Ponzi scheme is. if you saw the interview, you likely saw the way Ruth answered the questions. Deliberate and rehearsed would be the best way I could describe them. She then went into detail of how her son explained to her in detail what a Ponzi scheme is, and how she attended a party with her husband following, playing the role of the "good wife".

"I can't explain it, I mean I trusted him. Why would it ever occur to me that it wasn't legal? The business was -- his reputation, was almost legendary. Why would I ever think that there was something sinister going on?"

Unfortunately, it was sad enough for Madoff's investors, who were out some 50$ billion dollars. After gathering his wife and sons to explain, Madoff's oldest son, Mark, stormed off. MAdoff was arrested the next morning, and is serving 150 years in jail. Two years to the date of Madoff's arrest, eldest son Mark was discovered hanging from a ceiling pipe in his Manhattan apartment, while his 2-year-old son slept in another room. Ruth said the following regarding the suicide:

I blame myself for Mark's suicide. Had I cut off contact with Bernie as Mark wished, I just, I just wish, until my dying day, that I had done what he wanted. It's the most awful thing that could happen to anybody. Suicide of a child."

Madoff's younger son, Andrew, chimed in with the following:

"What he did to me, to my brother, and to my family is unforgivable. What he did to thousands of other people, destroyed their lives -- I'll never understand it. And, I'll never forgive him for it. And I'll never speak to him again."

So much more is contained within the interview, including Ruth's claims that she and her husband attempted suicide several times following his arrest due to the threats on their lives, people accusing the family of exploiting Madoff's arrest for interviews in order to profit, and more details surrounding Mark's suicide and the Ponzi scheme itself.

Do you believe Madoff's son and wife when they claim they knew nothing about the Ponzi scheme?

If Madoff was your father, would you be able to talk to him ever again?

Does Madoff hold any culpability for his son Mark's suicide? Why?

 

[dude_d_dude]

Do you believe Madoff's son and wife when they claim they knew nothing about the Ponzi scheme?

It's hard to believe they knew absolutely nothing. Did they know absolutely everything? Probably not, but I find it hard to believe they knew ABSOLUTELY nothing. They had to have known SOMETHING.

If Madoff was your father, would you be able to talk to him ever again?

Hard question indeed. Me personally I love my dad very much, he's a man among men and I have the utmost respect for him. I certainly wouldn't talk to him for a very long time, but I don't know if I'd say I'd never talk to him again. I'd certainly never trust him again though, that's for sure.

Does Madoff hold any culpability for his son Mark's suicide? Why?

Of course he does, overwhelmed with what was going on with his family, he decided to commit suicide. His father is the reasons his family is going through all this turmoil, so personally I'd place the blame solely on him. His father should feel like garbage and I sincerely hope he does.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Yes, Bernie Madoff knew the extent of his wrongdoing and managed to not only live with the knowledge......he lived like royalty for many years on what he knew to be a lie. That he dares to have an interview for the entire world to see shows how he was laughing under his hat at the rest of us all those years.

It put me away when Bernie apologized to small investors whom he cost their life savings, yet said: "I also made a lot of wealthy people wealthier."

Hell, that's supposed to be a good thing? It sounds more like the secret mantra of the Republican party, making the rich richer, leaving the rest of us in the gutter......all the while laughing their asses off at the middle-class wage earners who vote only Republican.

But the question of this topic is whether Madoff's wife and kids knew what he was doing. As much as I'd like to indict them too, I really can't say for sure. Yes, they enjoyed the life of luxury they led, but I've seen a lot of these guys in business who truly do keep their families ignorant of their wrongdoing. If the wives try to ask about hubby's business, these guys say: "Don't worry your pretty little head, dear. Leave business matters to me." And the bubble-brained wives are often happy to comply, as long as the fabulous lifestyle continues.

As for his sons, you would think that their being involved in business matters would pretty much insure they knew the score, but if some of the richest people in the world......and some of the best financial minds in American business......didn't know what Madoff was up to, I can imagine his sons might not have known either. Bernie ran his business like an emperor and may very well have kept the wrongdoing to himself.

That he says he's found peace in jail he never found in the outside world is a cruel joke on the rest of us. Take the widow who lost every penny of the money she worked her whole life to see her through retirement.....and ask her how she feels about Bernie Madoff finding inner peace.

The miserable bastard should burn in hell.