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Wow, that's depressing. I was in jail with a guy who was a total mess. Nice, but seemed pretty mentally-disabled. One day a new guy came on the block. "Wow, w

Wow, that's depressing. I was in jail with a guy who was a total mess. Nice, but seemed pretty mentally-disabled. One day a new guy came on the block. "Wow, what is George doing in here?" "You know him?" "Yeah, I know him. He is one of the greatest musicians I ever met. He can play any instrument like a savant. I knew him a few years ago, just after he inherited $4m when his father passed. He ended up getting in drugs and everyone would hang out at his house." "Wow, who was his dealer?" "Who was his dealer?! EVERYONE was his dealer!" I'd been keeping George in coffee, because he didn't have a single cent on his commissary account (which is rare in jail, even the worst criminals usually have someone out there). Poor George had snorted or injected $4m of drugs and everyone had sold them to him and partied with him until all the money was gone and George's brain was cooked and he went around shaking his fist at the sky until he was arrested. And not one of his hundreds of "friends" would put a cent on his account.

jacquesm 5y ago
Interesting: I knew a guy that came into a lot of money. A serious lot. And he found that he had a whole entourage of new friends. Fancy house, gurus, admirers, tons of interesting investment proposals most of which he accepted. And when he died and the accounts were made up it was all gone. Everything. Not a single person around him that did not in some way take advantage of him. I still have a hard time getting around people not being able to deal with their money, especially because in this case it was quite hard earned. Some of the hangers on still haven't recovered from the fact that their 'source of funds' has dried up.
- boeingUH60 5y ago
  Something similar happened to Tony Hsieh, founder of Zappos (acquired by Amazon for $1.2B), though he still left a considerable fortune after death. https://news.yahoo.com/zappos-founder-tony-hsieh-didnt-174104988.html https://news.yahoo.com/zappos-founder-tony-hsieh-didnt-17410...
  - jacquesm 5y ago
    That's on yet another level. But the parallels are eerie. I wonder how common this is.
nathanvanfleet 5y ago
A Jack Chick track right here in the middle of a comment thread.
sizzle 5y ago
I bet if he was allowed to pick up an instrument and play it would be therapeutic for him. Sad story, hope he bounces back.
- kingcharles 5y ago
  I wish he'd get a chance. The system just isn't set up to deal with cases like sad old George. I did see him get released, but then got re-arrested, which isn't uncommon for someone who's mental health issues are being untreated. I bumped into him at court and he told me that he'd been playing guitar and touring with Taylor Swift while he was briefly out, and I went along with it because it really cheered him up to have someone listen to his tale.

jacquesm 5y ago

Interesting: I knew a guy that came into a lot of money. A serious lot. And he found that he had a whole entourage of new friends. Fancy house, gurus, admirers, tons of interesting investment proposals most of which he accepted. And when he died and the accounts were made up it was all gone. Everything. Not a single person around him that did not in some way take advantage of him. I still have a hard time getting around people not being able to deal with their money, especially because in this case it was quite hard earned. Some of the hangers on still haven't recovered from the fact that their 'source of funds' has dried up.

boeingUH60 5y ago
Something similar happened to Tony Hsieh, founder of Zappos (acquired by Amazon for $1.2B), though he still left a considerable fortune after death. https://news.yahoo.com/zappos-founder-tony-hsieh-didnt-174104988.html https://news.yahoo.com/zappos-founder-tony-hsieh-didnt-17410...
- jacquesm 5y ago
  That's on yet another level. But the parallels are eerie. I wonder how common this is.

nathanvanfleet 5y ago

A Jack Chick track right here in the middle of a comment thread.

sizzle 5y ago

I bet if he was allowed to pick up an instrument and play it would be therapeutic for him. Sad story, hope he bounces back.

kingcharles 5y ago
I wish he'd get a chance. The system just isn't set up to deal with cases like sad old George. I did see him get released, but then got re-arrested, which isn't uncommon for someone who's mental health issues are being untreated. I bumped into him at court and he told me that he'd been playing guitar and touring with Taylor Swift while he was briefly out, and I went along with it because it really cheered him up to have someone listen to his tale.