The real value of education
One would expect that a young man just convicted of multiple charges hanging from the ceiling of his jail cell would be perhaps a high school drop out, a drug dealer or some other misfit that had fallen through Societies cracks. You would not expect him to be a graduate of Harvard's Kennedy School of Government and who was president of his own Investment fund.
Kirk Wright obtained his masters from Harvard and immediately went to work for a corporate consulting firm as a Vice President. He then founded Investment firm International Management Associates, a fledgling hedge fund, in the basement of a home he shared with his wife Kassandra. Hedge funds are lightly regulated investment funds that cater to wealthy investors. With his Harvard credentials and connections within Atlanta social circles he managed to procure hundreds of investors including doctors and retired NFL players. Mr. Wright's firm eventually grew to assets of over $180,000,000! The only problem was Wright had absolutely no investment expertise and his "hedge fund" was bleeding cash. Most of that cash was fueling Wright's lavish lifestyle which included several luxury cars and a multi- million dollar home in a swanky Atlanta Suburb.
Wright's investors soon became suspicious but not before he squandered nearly the entire fund. He was arrested -after going on the lam for four months- and was eventually convicted of multiple counts of fraud and money laundering. Facing a sentence of more that 100 years and millions of dollars in fines and restitution, Wright chose to end his life. He was found hanging by bedsheets in his cell-dead at the age of 37.
The real tragedy is that Kirk Wright is but one of 8 million stories of fraud, greed and corruption- particularly in recent years. Many of these individuals are well educated and come from some of our country's elite universities. I have long held the belief that education without a value system breeds corruption. Simply obtaining a degree in the absence of ethics and moral instruction will produce many more Kirk Wrights. Often these pedigrees cause otherwise intelligent people to suspend skepticism. A Harvard degree was all that it took to convince other elitist of his aptitude in spite of the fact his undergraduate degree was in Public Policy!
This case illustrates the narrow view of success held by many of our young people. Success has become a purely a materialistic pursuit with no regard for principle or virtue. Wright became so consumed by his largess, he failed to realize one glaring opportunity: that even without financial acumen,with over $100,000,000 he could have simply hired some one who did have it-like from....Harvard perhaps? A college education is indeed expensive, however as demonstrated here a lack of character can be far more costly.
Kirk Wright obtained his masters from Harvard and immediately went to work for a corporate consulting firm as a Vice President. He then founded Investment firm International Management Associates, a fledgling hedge fund, in the basement of a home he shared with his wife Kassandra. Hedge funds are lightly regulated investment funds that cater to wealthy investors. With his Harvard credentials and connections within Atlanta social circles he managed to procure hundreds of investors including doctors and retired NFL players. Mr. Wright's firm eventually grew to assets of over $180,000,000! The only problem was Wright had absolutely no investment expertise and his "hedge fund" was bleeding cash. Most of that cash was fueling Wright's lavish lifestyle which included several luxury cars and a multi- million dollar home in a swanky Atlanta Suburb.
Wright's investors soon became suspicious but not before he squandered nearly the entire fund. He was arrested -after going on the lam for four months- and was eventually convicted of multiple counts of fraud and money laundering. Facing a sentence of more that 100 years and millions of dollars in fines and restitution, Wright chose to end his life. He was found hanging by bedsheets in his cell-dead at the age of 37.
The real tragedy is that Kirk Wright is but one of 8 million stories of fraud, greed and corruption- particularly in recent years. Many of these individuals are well educated and come from some of our country's elite universities. I have long held the belief that education without a value system breeds corruption. Simply obtaining a degree in the absence of ethics and moral instruction will produce many more Kirk Wrights. Often these pedigrees cause otherwise intelligent people to suspend skepticism. A Harvard degree was all that it took to convince other elitist of his aptitude in spite of the fact his undergraduate degree was in Public Policy!
This case illustrates the narrow view of success held by many of our young people. Success has become a purely a materialistic pursuit with no regard for principle or virtue. Wright became so consumed by his largess, he failed to realize one glaring opportunity: that even without financial acumen,with over $100,000,000 he could have simply hired some one who did have it-like from....Harvard perhaps? A college education is indeed expensive, however as demonstrated here a lack of character can be far more costly.
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