I’ve spent the past few nights riveted by Bernie Madoff. I can certainly say that it wasn’t his boyish good looks, charisma or honesty that drew me into the documentary of his life, now defined solely by his historically proportioned Ponzi scheme. Rather, it was the lies that he perpetuated over the span of 40 years. He didn’t discriminate. He lied to widows, royals, those who had much and those who had little. I was glued to the television screen, dumbfounded by his ability to do what he did: win people over, gain their trust and lead them nowhere, ultimately to their demise without them even knowing what was happening.
Sadly, the personification of this monster on Wall Street doesn’t dwell only in the financial district. There are two-faced people everywhere, on every corner. Some are willing to tell you whatever you want to hear and others tell you only what you need to know. Some things are too good to be true. And those that seem so … just may be. Too good to be true.
Take Pop Tarts, for instance. These are considered delicious and tantalizingly colorful in some circles (especially circles of those under 10). The majority of ingredients are human-made or human-tainted and have been proven to lead to health problems and chronic disease. Still, they’re marketed to us as plausible breakfast options and are placed on shelves right…
