Free The Power of Twelve by William Gladstone Page B

diversity?
    â€œOh, Jean-Pierre,” Arnold assured him, “I have studied this nonsense about biological diversity. The writers are just a bunch of egghead scientists and tree huggers who have no better cause to promote. Our planet is here for us to use, and there is no substitute for our improved genetically engineered crops. We are doing the world a service. You have nothing to feel guilty about.”
    He paused briefly to pour two glasses of champagne from the bottle in the ice bucket. “Let’s have another glass of your fine champagne to celebrate. We should drink to our partnership and the total control of the market that we will soon enjoy. Life is wonderful, Jean-Pierre, truly wonderful.” Looking out once again at the dramatic shapes overhead, Arnold reaffirmed his enthusiasm for all he had accomplished that day. “Indeed, Jean-Pierre, not even God can make such shapes and colors. Not even God.”
    ONCE ARNOLD RETURNED home after dropping off Jean-Pierre, he relaxed on his multi-section couch and looked out over the sunset tinged waves washing up on the beach just below his living room window. He mulled over the advances he had made over the course of the day. He liked to make advances every day. That’s because he believed in taking care of business. It was not for nothing that his friends called him Arnie Wheeler-Dealer. Even as a young boy, he reflected, he had exhibited an extraordinary talent for deal making. It had started with the board game of Monopoly. When properties were purchased, he would immediately start talking with his opponents, convincing them to do trades that always resulted in him winning the game. His most common ploy was to exchange a higher-valued property for a less-valuable property, but, in the process, obtain all the properties of a certain color and be able to begin adding housesand hotels at once while those with the more valuable property had to wait to acquire the missing properties to complete their own set.
    Arnie pretty much used his Monopoly game strategy in real life. His family had owned the worst tracts of land surrounding New York City, with much of the land being swampland in neighboring New Jersey. Through expert manipulation of zoning laws and political connections, his father had much of the swampland filled in and then leased to become the football stadium for the New York Giants. Arnie observed what his father had done and created a real estate company that specialized in acquiring land in undesirable, out-of-the-way locations within fifty miles of major urban centers throughout the world, and then arranging for major sports stadiums and convention centers to be built in each location. His latest exploits were in China and India, and he was generating billions of dollars in profit annually.
    In addition to making billions for himself and his investors, Arnie enjoyed the acclaim he received for his business acumen. He was treated as a saint and savior by local governments who gave him proclamations and keys to their cities for creating jobs and ongoing revenue streams wherever he built. Even world leaders considered Arnie an extraordinary man, and his large monetary donations to the United Way, Habitat for Humanity, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and other high-profile not-for-profit organizations led everyone to believe, including Arnie himself, that he was a truly good and generous man.
    One side of Arnie that others did not always see was that he was extremely competitive and ruthless. Once he set his sights on obtaining a property or lobbying a politician for specific favors, he was unstoppable. He felt that he had a special relationship with God and that any means necessary to obtain his goals were justified. After all, he really did know what was best for others, or so he thought, and he never questioned or doubted himself or his tactics.
    Part of the reason Arnie never doubted himself was his role as the leader of the