“Les Leopold’s latest masterpiece . . . is necessary, alarming and really funny. His talent for deconstructing complex financial terms and topics constitutes a public service. What he reveals in How to Make a Million Dollars an Hour, in a sardonic and appropriately irreverent tone, is something more ominous.” –Nomi Prins, Truthdig.com
How long would it take you to make a million dollars? If your answer is “More than an hour,” you’re in the wrong line of work. In “How to Make a Million Dollars an Hour,” you’ll discover how to make it to the top of the Forbes list without founding a major corporation, making People’s most beautiful list, or even playing for the New York Yankees. All you have to do is become a hedge-fund manager.
In no time, with the help of this ultimate guide, you can understand how these lucky Americans started making more money than Oprah, A-Rod, and Rupert Murdoch combined. After three decades of increasing productivity, stagnating wages, and soaring profits, not to mention all those jobs that disappeared in the financial meltdown of 2008, there is plenty of money floating around with no place to go but into your pocket. All it takes is convincing a few very rich people that you can make them even richer.
You’ll learn how to play the game like these masters of speculation: Create something they can pretend is low risk and high returnPlace risky bets using other people’s moneyBet on the race after they know who wonRip off entire countries (because that’s where the really big money is)Milk millions more in special tax breaksClaim that limits on speculation will kill jobs
Yes, some of this might sound a bit unsavory, perhaps even immoral, but would you care if you were making a million dollars an hour doing it?
On the other hand, you might suspect that hedge funds do nothing but siphon off money that could be put to better use, and that they may actually undermine our economy and our democracy. Perhaps you fear that some hedge funds may be investing in illegal activities, such as arms smuggling, or that they may drive up energy and food prices through speculation. If so, “How to Make a Million Dollars an Hour “answers all of your questions and many more that you hadn’t thought to ask. It offers a rare glimpse behind the golden veil, where you’ll discover hedge-fund secrets that make it possible to pull down astounding sums in the space of minutes–as long as you’re willing to bankrupt your morality for the cash.
From the Back Cover
Praise for “The Looting of America”
“A cogent, clear, and compelling explanation of how Wall Street’s Big Casino wrecked the economy. I might not agree with all of his provocative proposals, but so what? This book is a fun read, despite the sickening scenario it describes.”
–Jonathan Alter, senior editor and columnist at “Newsweek”
“An insightful analysis of how we got ‘hit.’ It is packed with data and background information and explores the pros and cons of the options before us, from those ‘Wall Street won’t like’ to those ‘Wall Street really won’t like.'”
–John Perkins, author of “Confessions of an Economic Hit Man”
“Les Leopold has performed a virtuoso service by explaining the economic mess in terms that ordinary people can grasp, in this wonderful and terrifying book.”
–Robert Kuttner, coeditor of “The American Prospect”
“A welcome parry to the mass media refrain that only the most highly trained Wall Street professionals can comprehend these financial instruments.”
“–Library Journal”
“Les Leopold’s account of the economic crisis is the clearest and most accessible that I have seen. It gives a reader with little economics or financial background a riveting description of how Wall Street tore down our economy and what we can do about it. It’s a page-turner we all should read.”
–Leo Gerard, international president of the United Steelworkers
“I loved this book. A worm’s-eye dissection of the Wall Street crisis from a very sharp and very knowledgeable labor economist. Here’s hoping that before the Washington consensus gets set in stone, policymakers will read it and reflect on the havoc the masters of the universe have wreaked on ordinary people.”
–Charles Morris, author of “The Trillion Dollar Meltdown”
“Les Leopold tells the story of our economic collapse so clearly, so broadly, so stylishly I didn’t get lost; in fact, to my great surprise, I kept going and going like Hansel and Gretel through the thick forest of mortgage finance, credit swaps, bubbles, and bailouts. The Looting of America is a guided tour for people who wonder if the ups and downs of a free market are inevitable, or if we can’t make a few changes for a smoother ride.”
–Robert Krulwich, cohost of NPR’s “Radio Lab”
About the Author
LES LEOPOLD is the executive director of the Labor Institute and Public Health Institute in New York and one of the most popular writers for the progressive website AlterNet. He is also the author of “The Looting of America: How Wall Street’s Game of Fantasy Finance Destroyed Our Jobs, Pensions, and Prosperity–and What We Can Do about It.”
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