A prosecutor at the trial of three construction supervisors charged in the deaths of two firefighters at the former Deutsche Bank building told the jury on Monday that the defendants had “put profit over people,” a decision that led to the deaths and put the lives of hundreds of firefighters, inspectors and workers at risk.
The prosecutor, Assistant District Attorney Brian J. Fields, laid out the government’s case in his opening statement on the first day of the trial, saying that it was “all about money” and that “the evidence will establish that defendants took that risk for money — they gambled with lives for money.”
The three men, and the demolition contractor for which two of them worked, the John Galt Corporation, are charged with manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide.
No one could have predicted. Up next, Dr. Payne Phil Malpractice charged with an excruciating botched surgery.
(via)
Valdivia
OMG.
Valdivia
OMG.
Valdivia
Ooops. double comment and can’t edit.
ErikdaRed
I guess the question, “Who is John Galt” will be answered for a lot of the public and the answer won’t be a good one.
Poopyman
Oh, it’s better than that, John:
Just Some Fuckhead
Seriously? The John Galt Corporation?
Janet Strange
Isn’t this exactly how it’s supposed to work for Libertarians? Corporations can do whateverthefucktheywant to make money and if that, say, kills your kid, you just sue!
When you win your lawsuit that makes everything okay!
BGinCHI
Is their lawyer Seymour Butz?
Zifnab
But in the books, it was the evil unions that busted up the project. Surely – I mean, SURELY – the John Galt Company can’t be responsible for the flaws in construction. This has to be the work of those incompetent, malicious, unionized workers that the developers were forced to hire.
Judas Escargot
Those firefighters were gubbmint employees, and probably unionized. And therefore, by definition, parasites and second-handers. This furthermore defines them as irrational, evil and expendable.
See? Objectivist Epistemology makes it all so simple!
El Cid
Too bad they aren’t kidnappers and child dismemberers too, as then they would really attract Ayn Rand’s admiration.
Stooleo
Are they being represented by the law firm of Dewey Cheatham and Howe?
Roger Moore
@BGinCHI:
No, but the firm is Dewey, Cheatham, and Howe.
BGinCHI
It’s nice to know that one of the most powerful lobbyists in DC is named Rich Gold.
Via Benen:
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_04/029061.php
joeyess
That damn 1st Amendment is such a fickle lover.
joeyess
@Valdivia: That’s ok. this story is double OMG worthy.
Maude
@Valdivia:
The DoJ also got a fraud conviction for a mortgage company cheater this week. Not a mortgage holder, but the lender.
It was in the NYT and I forgot the name of the cheater.
Are things looking up?
Edit: spelling, still have on my training wheels.
kdaug
@BGinCHI: No, it’s Dewey, Cheatem,and Howe.
BGinCHI
@Roger Moore: I would like to introduce these guys to I. P. Freeley.
ruemara
even Mr. Mara thinks this is an Onion bit.
Lysana
And that is what the late, great Herb Caen would’ve called a namephreak.
Brilliant.
opie jeanne
The possible penalty is far too light. A $10k fine for the company?
opie jeanne
@Janet Strange: Only after limited liability laws are firmly in place.
Joe Lisboa
Is their lawyer Seymour Butz?
Nah, Lionel Hutz.
Belafon (formerly anonevent)
I believe you are only supposed to trust John Galt if he comes offering a perpetual energy machine.
Don
Also related: Dr Babychew.
MikeJ
@joeyess: I get the idea you think you just had a zinger of some sort but I can’t for the life of me understand what you think it could be.
AAA Bonds
Obama’s sending Predator drones into Libya.
AAA Bonds
Maybe they’re the Arab League’s robot planes, like the robot planes that carried out all those airstrikes in Yemen that the Yemeni government took credit for.
John - A Motley Moose
I would be surprised if the CEO doesn’t get a bonus. It shows he was looking out for the stockholders.
Massey is another good example. According to them, it wasn’t their greed that caused the mining deaths. It was the fault of the regulators.
From the WSJ
Jay in Oregon
I’m almost positive that BJ has talked about the John Galt corporation before.
Here’s an old NY Times article about them:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/23/nyregion/23company.html
AAA Bonds
Even the liberal David Ignatius:
So are these still not airstrikes? What are we allowed to call them and still be down with all those Ivy Leaguers in the White House who like to chill and drink beers with average Democrats like you and me?
shortstop
Is there a Hugh Jass here?
BGinCHI
@shortstop: Let’s leave Cole’s posterior out of this.
burnspbesq
@Just Some Fuckhead:
Oh, yes. IIRC, it was established a couple of years ago that the John Galt Corporation is a judgment-proof shell.
agorabum
I think the Galt Co. has also “gone Galt” in that it is bankrupt / no longer in business.
Firefighters in Galt’s Gulch better look out.
BARRASSO
It won’t be Dewey Cheatam and Howe it will probably be Hackey Joke and Doneit.
Cris (without an H)
It will be interesting to see if the defendants express any remorse in court. If they’re really on board with this John Galt business, the allegation of “putting profit over people” should be a badge of honor.
Kyle
Speaking of truth in advertising, have we completely made the loop to anticipating the lack of truth in advertising when Canada Dry GINGER ale has commercials that extol the fact that their GINGER ale has real GINGER in it?
Fucen Pneumatic Fuck Wrench Tarmal
Justice A. Nicholas Fivepenny, presiding.
Odie Hugh Manatee
Mike Hunt headed their safety advisory committee and Ben Dover headed employee relations.
alwhite
I just want to cry. its not like this is unpredictable. Its not like human nature would not predict exactly this outcome. I hate humanity, we do not deserve to survive any longer if we as a group are so fucking stupid as to not understand this. And yet here we are – I just want to cry.
WaterGirl
@Kyle: LIke taco bell meat, that’s not actually meat?
quaint irene
Hey, “Rational selfishness,” y’all.
Wolfdaughter
@BGinCHI:
No, BG, this guy is one of the one percent, whose taxes we can’t raise because we’ll ruin the trickle down economy.
Mike G
But if we raise taxes he might Go Galt, and we’d be bereft without the societal benefit of his homicidal negligence.
lou
Michael Gerson just came out with an anti-Ayn Rand column!
Can lightning strike in the same place twice?