Subscribe to this BlogHave pity on Ruth Madoff
Have some pity on Ruth Madoff. Really. I'm serious.
Her fate and her wealth are on my mind because of the auction, scheduled for today, at which the U.S. Marshals Service is slated to sell off hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of property seized from her and her husband, the infamous Bernie. The marshals intend to use that money to help reimburse the victims of Bernie's multi-billion-dollar Ponzi scheme.
Admittedly, looking over a list of Ruth's possessions on the auction block, it is a little tough to feel sorry for her. With her husband's ill-gotten gains — authorities haven't accused Ruth of participating in Bernie's scheme, or even being aware of it — Mrs. Madoff certainly lived the high life. Up for sale are such items as a pair of diamond earrings expected to sell for as much as $21,400, a $23,000 bracelet, six furs, and, by my count, 49 different purses and handbags from the likes of Louis Vuitton, Hermes and Chanel. New York hasn't seen such a public display of suspect wealth on the market since the Philippine government auctioned off the contents of Imelda Marcos's Upper East Side townhouse.
But here's where my sympathy comes in: Ruth Madoff has lost it all. (Or nearly all; she's got $2.5 million left, though a court-appointed bankruptcy trustee wants that, too.) She woke up one morning in the same boat as her now-jailed husband's victims: A lot poorer than she used to be. That's a shock to the system no matter who you are. And though she would appear to live on a different planet than most of us, she's going through the same things as a lot of other people have during the economic meltdown, whether victims of a financial crimes or just unlucky.
To get a sense of what might be going on in Ruth Madoff's mind, I spoke earlier this year with a woman named Susan Bradley, the founder of a firm called the Sudden Money Institute. Bradley, who works with both individuals and their financial advisers, helps people who are trying to adjust to financial change — mostly because they've gained wealth, but sometimes because they've lost it. In fact, Bradley, who lives in the Palm Beach area (not far from one of the Madoffs' homes) says she's done pro bono work for some of the Madoff victims.
One thing that Bradley points out is that you can't easily dismiss Ruth Madoff's plight. Yes, she did end up with $2.5 million, and yes, a lot of Ponzi victims (and the rest of us) would be wildly happy to have that kind of money. But given the Madoffs' previous standard of living, says Bradley, in which the two of them were burning through millions, $2.5 million isn't so much. "She looks at that as, 'I have one year of living left,'" says Bradley. "It's that shift that's very, very difficult for someone like her." Like her husband's victims, she's lost her peer group and her economic security; compounding her problem is the public shame and ostracism she's subjected to because of her closeness to Bernie and the economic rewards she received from him.
Bradley has some useful advice for Ruth — and for anyone who has undergone such a financial setback:
- Address the basics. The first thing Ruth (or someone else in her situation) has to do is figure out the mechanics of her new life — where she should live, how much she's able to reasonably spend, and how she can protect the money she has left. "It's just like stabilizing an accident in medical triage," says Bradley. The process can be difficult, she acknowledges: The stress of the situation usually translates into a short attention span and terrible follow-through for people who have undergone such financial trauma. "Their decisionmaking," she says, "is erratic." But as is the case with paramedics responding to an emergency, quick action is best. Most people in this situation, she says, live in denial, believing that something will happen that will magically restore their old lives. "The magic solution is to do it fast and make deep cuts," she says.
- Mind your health. Remember to exercise, says Bradley. Eat well. Keep a daily routine. Many people in this situation, she says, gain or lose dramatic amounts of weight.
- Find a purpose. You need something that makes your days worthwhile, she says. Volunteer. Help someone who is worse off than yourself. Get what Bradley calls a "helper's high."
- Feel gratitude. "You've got to switch your attention from what's wrong to what's right," says Bradley. "Even if only ten percent of your life is working well, that's where your attention needs to go." She adds, "It may sound impossible that Ruth Madoff can wake up in the morning and feel grateful, but more extraordinary things have happened in the world."
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yes george is an ass for worrying about "poor ruthie". So many have lost all their savings and retirement. Hey, her two lawyer 'honest' sons should have no problem housing and supporting her. the 2.5 mil should go to scammed investors. and many more should go to jail over this scheme.
Tell me, if a drug dealer was caught with 6 mil, the feds would take ALL the money, period. They would not hesitate, and wife unaware or not of the illegal crime and their ill gotten gains would git zip, and probably jailed as well for conspiracy to commit fraud.
$2.5 million will not buy her friends, and she will die a lonely, sad woman so maybe we could have some compassion. She may have had blinders on while her husband was committing fraud, but so did the investors who were content earning suspiciously good returns, year after year, in a fund they did not understand.
She's lucky to get anything at all. She should have been left on a street curb like most people would have been. Wheather she knew or not stupidity is not an excuse. Just because your not aware of a law doesn't mean that your free to break that law and have to pay the price for breaking that law. Ruthie should give up all her money because it was all criminally gained by her husband. If someone buys something from a thief and the police are aware you have them item you have to return the property and you lose all your investment. So why not Miss Ruthie!
Bernard Madoff – what an ass. He only copped to his crime because of his mis-guided attempt to 'protect' those that he loved. There is another real problem in this modern world of ours. Simply put… Lawyers and Government.
Between the lawyers, and the Government I truly do not know who is the bigger crook. Personally – I have lost over a quarter million dollars in my lifetime thanks to son-of-a-bitch lawyers who prey wherever the money trail leads. When American children can now sue their parents for being spanked… I ask you just what in the hell is America coming to? How come Bernie's lawyer(s) aren't in jail? For example – the Government (i.e. prosecutors) will let criminals continue to run amok while the Government builds the case against the crook. Fine! I have no qualms about that method of 'giving a crook enuf rope' to hang themselves with in order for the Government to build an iron-clad case against the crooks. The HUGE issue I have is this – from the moment the Government (i.e. the prosecutors) has this crook in their sights, by continuing to let the crooks run amok… the Government is equally culpable. But do they ever go back and make the later investors whole? No, Never! Bastards! For that matter – the 'investors' must share an equal share of the blame. Unfortunately – they almost never do.
Wait a min.. Ruth Madoff has lost it all (or nearly… )? If George has some sense – either humanity or just simple logic, he may be better to use his effort to report on how some of the victims (who had truly LOST IT ALL) are trying to cope with this tragic incident. To say the least, this is just another piece of baloney. I am surprised this get posted on the net.
Had Bernie been convicted in China, he likely would have been executed already & Ruthie would have had to pay for the cost of the bullets. She should be thankful that her husband is a white collar criminal brought to justice in the U.S. rather than a less tolerant jurisdiction.
To Richard who wrote: "Come on folks. This article was obviously written tongue in cheek. Its author is having a little fun with his audience."
This is not a "funny" subject! If George wrote it tongue in cheek he is even dumber that I first thought. To elicit the responses he's getting shows that honest law abiding people find this is no laughing matter. The fact that she even gets to keep $2,500,000 STOLEN dollars after she has lived the high life for 30-40 years and likely spent way more STOLEN dollars than a few MILLION along the way… she belongs in jail with him! George belongs in a soup line just for stirring up the emotions of us who have not been crooks and now see one continue to profit from their ill gotten gains!
Those sneaky *ucking clowns took decepton to whole new heights. I wonder how those compassionate gentlemen think about paying for my otherwise affordable and independent mother, who is now in a nursing home with the expectation of being paid from income which Mr. Big was supposed to provide. Wall Street Boys – watch your back. It's a Stephen King novel – you pick the Title and take care of grandma.
If you are looking for sympathy and tears…wait, I'll pull a hair out of my nose!Anyone connected to Bernie Madoff or his enterprise should be wearing prison issue clothing, bartering for cigarettes and fending off Prison Rump-Rangers. To produce a scam operation such as this requires back-office support people…they should all be following in Bernie's footsteps…or at least working to get a plea-deal. Sympathy for Ruth? Get Real!
Poor little me !! How could she and the golden children not have known !! Poor little me with only 2.5 million retained from those greedy investors who believed in their financial advisors. Incredible.
Come on folks. This article was obviously written tongue in cheek. Its author is having a little fun with his audience.
If you want a cool US$100,000 per year, all you have to do is invest the money at an annual 4% and the job is done. Admittedly, interest rates are rock bottom these days, but I'm sure Mrs. Madoff can manage to find something suitable.
If Mr. Mannes wants a really interesting topic related to this subject, he might research exactly how Mrs. Madoff shoehornes her old lifestyle into the new budget. It would interest me to know, or if, the woman manages it.
Mother Teresa used to say "the poorest of the poor are the wealthy in America" and after reading these comments and article, I can certainly see why.
Yea, we should feel sorry for her after all, how is a person going to live with only a couple of million dollars.
Estranged from an incarcerated, philandering husband as well as her own children and despised by former friends and service workers, Ruth Madoff will publicly wear a scarlet letter for the rest of her earthly existence. May she find redemption and purpose. There is hope for her and for the many who were defrauded.
I wish someone would screw me over with $2.5 million of someone else's money. Ruth Madoff deserves nobody's sympathy.
George you need to get a new line of work if you actually believe your own article.
Author wrote "how she can protect the money she has left"
Best way to protect it is not to invest in someone like her husband.
2.5 million. Over 100,000 off interest in conservative investments. I have worked my whole life and may never see this money. How can I feel sorry for her when her parasitic lifestyle was financed by others?
Have some pity on Ruth Madoff? First, I thought you were being sarcastic. No, you were not. George, you must have lost your mind.
Hey, as far as I'm concerned, two peas in a pot. I could make the same argument by saying she should have never deserve that kind of life style to begin with. Hope her husband can feel her pain also.
You should be fired for writing an article so stupid as this … more people have been ruined by Bernie (and his wife) than will ever have smpathy for her. And rightly so!
Excuse me. There is no way that this woman's "plight" can be anyway compared to those who were scammed out of hard earned savings and left with virtually nothing. How about the millions of Americans who have lost their homes due to capture of the government by the corrupt financial and real estate industries? How about the millions of Americans, and millions more around the world, who have lost jobs and face financial insecurity due to a fraudulent banking industry? Mrs. Madoff is lucky to not be eating out of a soup kitchen or sleeping in the back of her car.
Please George, you will not get an exclusive from Ruth if that is what you had hoped from this piece of garbage. She'll be hawking her book (she's probably already begun) and boo-hooing to Oprah about how she's been deceived and misunderstood. The whole Madoff clan makes me want to vomit.
Reading that article was a waste of time. I could have spent that 2 minutes spacing out and at least I would not have been reminded that many people are very dumb and many of those dumb people earn a living as journalist.
This is the worst article on CNN.com I have ever read. What a waste of time and what a joke this is. I think its time to hire someone to replace George Mannes.
Idiotic piece of journalism – feeling sorry for Ruth because she fell from a standard of living at the top of heaven with ill-gotten money to a level that is still far high above the rest of us and is still financed by ill-gotten money. Go back to journalism school (or to the real world) and learn some basic lesson about what constitutes true human plights. I lost no money to the Madoffs but I still feel deeply for all of their victims.
Some of the comments seem to be the product of a very small mind. Apparently some seem to sit around and moan because they have so little, and want to take all away from those who have a lot or even anyone who has a smaller amount. Get some brains and get to work!
George,
I would pity you before I pity ruth. In fact, if there is a line of people that stretches from the East coast to the West Coast and back, ruth madoff would still not be in that line.
And George, you are a complete tool.
I pity you for your lack of knowledge for things to write about.
I pity you for you for your lack of understanding about the human condition.
I pity you for making a total ass of yourself.
What ever was in the Madoff household was a part of the crimes perpetrated by him. None of the wealth was earned by her, so she deserves nothing. How can you miss a simple logic like this. On the contrary, she she should do community work to pay for the "rich and famous" lifestyle that she enjoyed for all these years. Having said that this old man is smart..he has protected his family and "trusted followers" rather well.
Dr. K Kumar
Ann Arbor, MI
Ruth madoff knew about the ponzi and as far as i am concern, the bankputcy should take the 2.5 million too. she deserves it and triee to spin like she is a victim. her crook family knows about the scam and that is that. nice try.
The woman had to know something wasn't right! I have no sympathy nor do I care if she has to sleep on a park bench tonight, my sympathy goes to those who her husband scammed. Just like when you default on a loan, both of you are guilty or at least your credit report shows it that way. NO hse does not deserve even the 2.5 million, who's pocket did that come out of. I hope the bankruptcy trustee gets that too. The boys who were involved deserve the same, OH YES they know!!!!!!
George, You certainly made yourself a fool with misplaced sympathies that are out of touch with the general public and "old-fashioned" personal responsibility. This article is quite disgusting when so many victims of this Ponzi scheme are the ones who truly deserve our sympathy and are trying to sort out the rest of their lives, and sometimes, simply survive. Your editors need to pull this article for its offensiveness and insensitivity to the real victims in this fraud. Whether you believe it or not, Hell hath a place most special for the Madoff family.
What a joke…feel sorry for her and her $2.5 million. You know damn well that she knew what was going on with her husband, hence all the checks being written by her as the Feds closed in.
2.5 million…oh poor baby…please. I also find it hard to believe that she was ignorant of what was going. I could live a long time off of 2.5 million. Tell that to someone who hasn't lost their job and isn't dealing with 0 dollars. Give me the 2.5 million and I will throw a party.
I have no idea as whether Ruth Madoff was a willing participant, an unwitting dupe, or somewhere in between. If Ruth Madoff is as clueless about her husband's Ponzi Scheme as she claims to be, then she is in fact a victim. If she's allowed to keep the 2.5 million, she'll be head and shoulders above those who lost everything. If that money is "clawed back", she'll be in deep trouble.
I agree with Ben, San Francisco. This woman has 2.5 million, and if she does it right, she'll still have money for the rest of her life. Using Ruth Madoff as an example to make an otherwise very valid point was a mistake. Here's why I don't feel sorry for her – if her husband had played by the rules and obeyed the laws, she might never have known this level of disappointment. (A comment which speaks volumes on other levels.) If he was legitimate the first 20 years then became essentially a thief to avert financial disaster, Ruth Madoff's 'fall from grace' is nothing more than timing. Lots of people have recently experienced the financial 'fall from grace'. They're homeless. No, no sympathy here.
Are you nuts? 2.5 million dollars. As another reader pointed out, just on the interest of that she can live work-free in a nice paid up house.
So she can't buy her toys anymore, is someone working 45-50 hours to support a family supposed to commiserate her loss of earrings and the social whirl? How about saving the pity for one of the guys who worked until they were 50 or 60, then discovered there's no pension, no money left? How about the families who lost their hard-earned homes and their lifestyles that included maybe music lessons for the kids or a college fund? Decent people's goals and EARNED comforts went out the window to finance their greed and over the top lifestyle.
Mrs. Madoff won't be starving, taking the bus to work, or keeping the thermostat on 55 in December. I doubt she'll be hitting the pawnshop for $2 DVDs as presents, either. I'll save my sympathy for the people who lost an honest life savings, or never had the chance to have such.
This has to be one of the worst articles, I have ever read my entire life! You should stop writing now, you are an insult to the trade.
Sanjay
For as long as Ruth worked and lived with her husband, she KNEW. I wish they could somehow feel the pain they've caused so many people, but a person would have to have a soul to feel for someone else.
The Madoffs were trusted people. Now, they must live with the shame and the consequences. Ruth should have a matching cell. Don't whine about have to live on 2.5M, try doing it on 35K.
I have little sympathy for greed.
pity on Madoff and his family? In the old time, he should be shot and his family should be sent to a remote area working as labours. His crime is more serious than robery or murder. His guy has brought so much pain to Americans. Part of his scam is to shift some money he stole to his family members such as his sun and wife becuase the money he stolen was to much that he couldn't consume all. That's why he smartly transfered the money to his family by "hiring" his sun coluted with his friends to allocate the future he cheated. If his wife or family want to live decently, then they should go out to make money on their own, not by receiving money or any assets from his criminal.
Hey Mannes, your belief that all of us should feel sorry for a woman worth 7 figures has managed to make me vomit. Way to go MONEY for employing a clown like this!!!!
Get real let her kids support her like most of America today. Sorry but I don't fell the slighest bit of pity for her or anyone else who benefited from her husband's schemes.
Mr Mannes,
I cannot believe you would have us take pity on this woman. Even if she was totally innocent, so were the people who had their life savings wiped out. I'm talking about the very senior citizens that only had around a million, maybe less and that's all they had. Now they are left with social security of they are lucky. Shame on you!
Having read these articles on cnn.com for years this by far the most ignorant piece of trash I have seen. George stay the hell off the internet please.. Thank You
It is so sad that Ruth Madoff will not be stressed with choosing which of the 49 handbags or 6 furs to wear… until she gets some of the wealth bag from the gifts given to family. NOT!
To suggest that we feel pity for this woman, or compare her situation to the real victims, as a means to suggest actions to be taken in case of financial misfortune by real people, is ludicrous.
At least the absurd title brings readers!
Just doing a bit of arithmetic: 49 (!) handbags at an average cost of $2,000 per bag (which is on the LOW side for such bags; a Hermes bag can easily be more than 10K) is $98,000 on handbags alone, MINIMUM. I don't care how much money she had when she bought them, this is ridiculous, and shows a poverty of imagination, to say the least. No,
I don't feel in the least sorry for her. She has her freedom (which people far less gulity than she do not), a family to help her, 2.5 million which is enough to live on (and even lunch out occasionally) and an opportunity to make something of herself other than an overdressed parasite grotesquely festooned with a new overpriced outfit
(with matching bag and shoes — tacky!) every day. So, pick yourself up, Ruthie, and stop being such a bore.
Mrs. Madoff's billionaire lifestyle was built on stolen money and the misery of hundreds of other families and women just like her, whom her husband didn't leave with 2.5 million. That 2.5 million should go to those people and Ms Madoff should get use to living on a Social Security check like millions of other people who worked hard their entire lives rather than living the Elite life stealing from others.
It was STOLEN money that she was enjoying all these years. He did'nt lose the money in bad investements, he never made any investments in the first place.
And to the jerk who commented that they did have 20 years of legit income before the Ponzi scheme, that they should'nt "lose" that. Don't you think they were spending that legit income as fast as it was coming in, and it was'nt enought for their lifestyle.
Hence the Ponzi scheme. What idiot thinks there's a dime of legit income mixed in with what they owned? And so what if there was. They burned though millions of stolen money that needs to be repaid.
This article is emblematic of all that's wrong with today's world: misplaced pity for the crooks rather than the victims. She should be grateful that she lived the high life as long as she did. Time to get a job as a greeter at Walmart now, Ruth.
George, Why are you wasting your time and ours with your misplaced sympathies? I am surprised authorities have not charged her and rest of her family with anything. She is not aware of what the her crook husband was doing, give me a break!
If the single parent working 2 jobs to keep their young children sheltered and fed while losing most of their time together can't be pitied than neither can Ruth.
I do feel bad to a certain extent for her. First of all Bernie ran his company since the early 1960's and the ponzi scheme started in the late 1980's according to himself and investigators. So I do not find it fair for either of them to lose 2 decades of legitimate income because of Bernies scam. You all talk about how if a bank robber gets caught we would take the stolen money back, and we shouldn't feel bad, I agree with that, but we also wouldn't take the money the robber made legitimately. I personally do not feel bad for the "victims" they too let greed get the best of them. The returns they were receiving were consistently higher then the rest of the market, when the market overall loses 5% but you made 15%, something is fishy about that situation. I am sure they had their suspicions but would rather be ignorant and make money then to question the gains and possibly look foolish. I am not saying that she too did not know about the scam or atleast have her suspicions, but the government has said she didn't and aren't prosecuting based on that. Maybe people should lose the mob mentality and allow the justice system to work. How you feel about her and Bernie are your opinions our justice system works on facts. Basically greed/pride got the best of Bernie, and greed got the best of the investors.
What tripe. "Mind your health, Find a purpose",etc. Does Mr.Mannes write those moronic "self help" books in his spare time? Leaving aside the question of her guilt or innocence,she has $2,500,000. Put it all into 3xtax free NY muni bonds, collect 5% and for $125,000 a year tax free, she can live well anyplace in the city. Poor thing.
George Mannes…you are a blind and bigoted fool ! I cannot believe this article even made print! Your editors and the hierarchy at CNN fall into the same DNA pool. For this reason I only watch Fox News, where I can get fair and BALANCED reporting. The logic you try to spin can only come from someone whose financial status has come from the very same methods that Bernie used to fleece thousands of trusting individuals. Criminals defend the actions of other criminals. I am sick and disgusted that you actually got paid for this article. George Mannes and CNN. I hope you both fall. No society needs this type of propaganda.
Oh the snooty litte princess gets no pity from me…Ruthie,where have all of your purchased friends gone to? They dropped you like a bad habit! Good luck buying new friends without and $$…
The 'ol wench Ruthie can go get a real job, say, as a greeter a local Wal-Mart. There she can multi-task passing out smiley stickers, bag stuff and pick up and return shopping carts. It's tough eeking out a living on only $2.5 mil…
You've got to be kidding!!!! I'd rather feel sorry for the down-fallen in our Armed Services or the UN-SOCIOPATHIC people who work hard for a living and wouldn't dream of destroying so many people's lives like "Bernie" & "Ruthie" or shall I say Bonnie and Clyde!!!!!
My faith in the human factor just went up a notch after reading these comments…The word "Pity" is reserved for the helpless not the greedy.
Max
PLEASE!!!Do you really think people like me,hard working and save what little I can,could ever have pitty for this N.Y. crook?
M
George,please get real. The woman deserves nothing more than her monthly social security check, if she qualifies. Prison is too good for her. Oh, go to work at Walmart, now thats justice.
"The rich are different from the rest of us." — F. Scott Fitzgerald
"Yes, they have more money." —- Ernest Hemingway.
Amusing article here, but hopefully written tongue-in-cheek. Ruth's only "plight" is trying to live down the shame – which she can never do, thanks to her husband.
But economically, she has no "plight" that anyone except another member of the super-rich class could possibly sympathize with, much less pity.
George Mannes may be super-rich himself(though I doubt that) or else is so involved with the super-rich that he identifies with them, just as F. Scott Fitzgerald did.
I can't think of any other reason for this extremely bizarre article.
umm hello. there no WAY they dont have a least 100 million stashed away. They are waiting for this all to settle, and i bet she will be living off that money they have stashed in the middle east somewhere.
Hopefully, she'll live long and be a GREAT BURDEN to her children…who also PROFITED from everyones' LOSSES. But then again, only an IDIOT gives ALL their money to 1 9YES, ONE!) man.
Would you feel sorry for a drug dealer's wife, when they take all of his belonging's, leaving her with nothing {NO}, you need to get in the real world working people are sick of this
[NO} you must have gotten good pay for writing this article, but where did it come from
Ruth , her sons,close family all were involved in cheating people for decades and now we are suposed to feel sorry for her? Too bad that there's no justice and ruth and her sons got away with this since they all knew and were involved in the business.
I bet Ruth's "knowledge" of the situation will improve, when it comes time to write the necessary details for her $20MM BOOK DEAL….
Ruth should be in prison with her husband…I cant believe this article is so slanted and bias…Dont tell me she didnt know…the feds are not doing their job by not prosecuting her just like him…get real with your articles..you are not fooling anyone…
Neil
Daytona Beach
Fl
Shame on you for writing this insanity. Have you lost your minds? I will hesitate to read cnn any more if this is what they try to foist on us. Ruth Madoff is still financially better off than the vast majority of us. And her innocence is questionable.
Boo Hoo for Ruth! She only has 2.5 million. So she has to sell some of her ill gotten gains. I'm sure she has much more squirlled away some where. She needs to come down from her high and mighty station. Give everything back to help the people that they scammed. Get a job Ruth.
Perhaps it would be Bernie's ultimate punishment to know that his wife has to work for a living!!!
What she, her husband, sons and co-conspiritors have done to many, many people is worse than murder because the vistims are still alive to suffer. IF I had been fleeced by those criminals and was at a later point in my life where rebuilding any wealth was impossible I would go "looking" for everyone involved. They should be grateful to be BREATHING.
This article is what's wrong with the rich in America…they are out of touch with reality. As is this writer. How much did you get paid to write this biased article?
I do have pity on a person who can go throughout life so focused on their own wealth and image that they lack morals and compassion for their fellow human being, to the point of being cirminal. Have pity on her soul folks and pray you'll never be as selfish, humanless as the predatory Madoff family.
No pity from this side either. Some of us have to work like donkeys for all our lifes to get a fraction of the $2.5M when retiring. In contrast, she lived a lavish life, ate caviar and wasted other people's money.
She should get a job to and (even in a small scale at least) begin to repay all the money she used that belonged to other people. In my opinion, she is as big a crook as her husband; I do not buy her claim of "ignorance".
I understand Ruth was regularly involved at the office, in the "business". She should be in prison. There are very few people I pity because I believe in personal responsibility. So a rich woman has to change – oh the shame of it all!! Please. This article is ridiculous.
Welcome to the working class Ruth! I hope you have an updated resume. Jobs are tough to find these days.
I agree if she was unaware of her husbands scheme she would be in shock and find it very difficult to the adjust to the significant difference in her lifestyle, From what I read she has not really had any contact with her husband which shows that she too did not know. Like all the rest of the victims she has my thoughts as she adjusts in her life.
Oh you have got to be kidding me!! She should be grateful she isn't in jail herself. Namely, co-conspirator in his fraud. Do you think she had absolutely no clue whatsoever in her husband's acts? Or, how about the fact that she received all of that stolen property: the money. She spent it. She lost "nearly all"? Having left TWO AND HALF MILLION!! That's over 18 years of the average american family's income. She benefited directly from his acts. I would say most of his family is gulity. But most especially her.
If she were to be forced to live on $300/week like the untold numbers of direct and indirect now unemployed victims, that would start to be justice.
This author is as out of touch from reality as the rest of those seduced by Wall Street's greed for suggesting her innocence. Maybe he would make a better defence lawyer than writer.
Let her live off of the $30 Million + her sons "borrowed" from Bernie and never repaid. I don't think you will find her in the soup kitchen anytime soon.
That's like asking us to feel sorry for a bank robber's wife because the bank wants the money back that the robber gave his wife.
You, sir, are seriously ethically challenged.
You've got to be kidding!
This is the kind of "rationale" that has the AMERICAN value system being flushed down the toilet…Try the same "justification" for the millions of unemployed, the millions of street people, the millions of underfed…when you take care of "them", then you might be able to garner some "sympathy" for ANY of the "family" of Madoff or any of his ilk. Madoff's "plight" is just a shining example of the wealth disparity and "perception" of wealth that is destroying what OUR forebearers fought so hard to escape as they fled their homelands to begin anew. "We, the people" need to take the "robber barons" to task and return much more of their societal plunder to the taxman and break-up their maniacal hold on power, wealth and politics in this country, period!
CNNmoney, I'm an avid reader, I check the website daily. Please, in the future, don't ever write this type of drivel…ever…ever. If you want to use an example of someone who needs to change their financial reality, look to any of the millions of people who have lost their jobs, homes, and dignity through the fault of others. Not a social debutante who, along with her husband, fleeced others of their life savings.
Really!!! Are you going to try to sell us that she did not know and/or that we should feel bad that she has next to nothing now?
Sorry no pity from this woman in SD!
Oh, I forgot! When poor 'ol Ruthie runs out of her ill-gotten $2.5 million in scammed loot, we have a tent she can pitch in my spacious yard. It's near a Dairy Queen, numerous pizza joints and has a scenic view of Lake Erie too!She can work off the rental fee by cleaning up the yard after our doggie, Brandy…
I wish to submit a bid on a piece of Madoff property…the Madoff toilet seat in the family 'throne' room…that's where he made all of his top executive decisions…
I don't feel sorry for the victims either. If you put all your money in the same place, you're a moron. The rare exception is the person who only had savings equal to the million dollar minimum required to play. That person probably did work for it. For the numbskulls who inherited their money, lived like the Madoffs and were too stupid to diversify, go cry to someone else.