Ken Lay Dies of Massive Heart Attack

Ken Lay passed away this morning from what is being called a massive coranary. Below are links to several news sources that have reported the story

Houston Chronicle
CNN Money
Newsday.com
KFDM - Dallas
Ludwig von Mises institute
Political Gateway
UK Telegraph
KTRK Ch 13- Houston

Now some quotes from those articles

It was even anticipated that when Lay went on trial, he could charm the jury into believing he was innocent of all the charges. He had been known in Houston business circles for his folksy, homespun ways.But on the witness stand, Lay came off as irritable, combative, and defensive.He defended a luxurious lifestyle. He had given his wife, Linda, a $200,000 yacht for her birthday, even though he had personal debts of some $100 million.After the trial, one juror remarked that she felt Lay's character was "questionable."Lay maintained at his trial that Andrew Fastow, Enron's former chief financial officer, and others were responsible for any false information about the company and that they had put together a complex web of investments that defrauded investors.Jeffrey Skilling, who was Lay's co-defendant in the fraud trial, was also convicted.Fastow was convicted and is serving a 10-year jail sentence.The damage left in the wake of the Enron scandal was massive.More than 5,000 jobs were wiped out after the company's bankruptcy, as well as $1 billion in employee pensions. Investors have claimed in lawsuits losses of $25 billion.

Here is a man who was described as one of "the smartest men in the room" yet at his trial claimed that he knew nothing of what was going on in his own business. That may have been true, as his profile increased he spent more time in Washington and abroad than he did in his office.

Community lay at the centre of his life. He belonged to enough civic and philanthropic associations to fill three pages on his website, and is widely credited with Houston's downtown revival. He and his wife, Linda, donated millions to various causes and they played key role in several civic issues, including passage of a referendum that brought a new ballpark for the Houston Astros.
"I thought Ken was visionary for Enron, visionary for the city," former Houston Mayor Bob Lanier testified at the trial.
Depite being one of America's highest paid bosses, he was revered by the Enron employees before the scandal. They saw him as the father figure in the corporate family - a friendly face who never forgot a name.

Yes Ken did contribute to the community significantly, however when it comes down to brass tacks, he should have spend less time being the social, and political darling for the press and more time running his company.

Prosecutors made much of the extravagant lifestyle Lay continued to lead as Enron neared collapse. Lay was unapologetic, saying he had worked hard, was generous to the community with what he had earned, and was living the "American dream".
As he testified: "I've not only pursued the American dream, I've achieved it. I suppose we could say the last few years, I've also achieved the American nightmare."
To the end, he remained a fiercely family man. During the trial, he always held hands with his wife.

More of his arrogance and pride speaking. He never learned or remembered the lessons that his church and family, taught him growing up.

He called Enron's fall that left thousands jobless and, in many cases penniless, "the most devastating and heartbreaking tragedy of my life."

He was heartbroken and yet at the same time he and his wife kept living the same life style, and on top of that had the arrogance to claim that they were on the verge of bankruptcy.

But most people who had been in the courtroom throughout the trial were not so shocked. While Lay's conviction seemed unlikely at the start of the trial, the surprising weakness of his defense, the surprising strength of the prosecution, and a surprisingly hostile performance by Lay himself on the stand increased the odds of a conviction considerably.
In an odd parallel to today's events, some observers blamed Lay's defense problems on the heart problems suffered by his lead lawyer, Mike Ramsey, who was absent from most of the trial after having surgery.
There is also no question that Enron's collapse, the trial and the conviction were all enormously stressful and painful for Lay.
"You are twisting in the wind and it consumes your every waking moment," says a former energy trader who also faced criminal charges from the industry scandals following Enron's collapse.
In the weeks since the end of the trial, a strange question has been rumbling in the background: Was it conceivable that Ken Lay wouldn't appeal? An appeal is standard operating procedure after a criminal conviction, but there were whispers that Lay would not do so.

The true Ken Lay came out when he was on the stand. He demanded a certain level of behavior, and if he did not get it you were out. A perfect example of their results driven culture at Enron was the annual employee evaluation. The bottom 20% of rank and file employees were release each year no matter what. That sort of cut throat mind set could only lead to people overstating results. Which in turn results in false numbers up and down the line.

I am glad that Enron is gone, it was the poster child for the greed and arrogance of the late 90's that flowed through this country, all the way to the president of the USA.

My sympathies go out to the Lay family for thier loss, however the US Tax payers win on this one because there will be no more $$$ spent on him, in any way or form.