When I Was Floyd Rodgers

I will uncover the secrets of organized crime cited by History.com, the book Al Capone and the Roaring Twenties, and the book The Great Gatsby as a primary source. I have collected information about how organized crime was a lifestyle for some people using

They have secured a loyal customer base as well as made a name for themselves in the downtown Raleigh area. Furthermore, there is value in the fact that they are a family owned business. Many consumers are supportive of family owned businesses and therefore Westlake Lanes should definitely exploit this capability. Their location is also very valuable due to the fact that they are the only bowling alley in the downtown area. Furthermore, their introduction of bowling leagues has been a very valuable asset to them because it ensures a steady flow of business. Givens has also managed to make this asset more valuable to them by greatly reducing the time frame of the leagues and pitching the concept to firms and students. Finally, Westlake Lanes’ long-standing and loyal staff has also proven to be very valuable. Although Givens has made changes to the staff team, three of the four full-time employees have proven themselves of high value to her in terms of maintenance of the building, business knowledge and supplier research.

"His family were enormously wealthy – even in college his freedom with money was a matter for reproach – but now he’d left Chicago and come East in a fashion that rather took your breath away: for instance, he’d brought down a string of polo ponies from Lake Forest. It was hard to realize that a man in my own generation was wealthy enough to do that."

“The man who committed this horrible fraud is not the man whom I have known for all these years”. This quote is from Ruth Madoff, the ex-wife of Bernie Madoff. Bernie Madoff is notoriously known for being charged with eleven felonies and stealing over $65 billion from investors. In the end, the rest of his days were restricted by spending life in prison. When money became a priority within the lives of Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry, and The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the characters became victims of a vile crime, the theft of identity. All three pieces comparatively display the bankruptcy of identity in which money was desired to acquire a certain dream. This cost of identity, for

Tim Simson, a man that Oakhurst took money from in gambling, showed up with his fiance Piney at the outcasts’ camp. Oakhurst “won the entire fortune . . . then handed [Tim] his money back” (3). This represents Oakhurst as a hypocrite himself because a gambler’s purpose is typically to earn as much money as possible, and instead he gives the money back. This transaction of money between a good gambler and a careless gambler reveal John Oakhurst’s true identity as a kind, caring man.

Today in the world there are several men and women who once thought they had everything going for them. They had the money, the fame, and the fortune. Of course being caught up in the moment means no worry, no stress, and no problems. However, that doesn’t work out for everyone. One of those people are Alphonse Gabriel Capone or as you may know Al Capone.

T’was 1979, we were running a large robbery, about to shoots up some people. I was with some fellows from the gang, you know? Thought it'd go real smooth-like. We had just infiltrated the biggest bank in Italy, we were all so eager to get our hand on the goods, there was just so much of it. But then, in an instant

Tom’s parents always flaunted their wealth; as did Tom’s grandparents. Their family was old money at its finest. It was the summer of 1903 in Chicago, a blinding day, the sun was beating down on the faces of the Buchanan family, who were sat in their 7-Sedan Rolls-Royce. For the Buchanan family this was less than a splurge, $12,900 was nothing to the Buchanan’s as they were old money. Tom sat in the back with his mother, breathing in the hot, muggy air. The chauffeur was sitting in the front on the brown leather seats driving. The chauffeur never talked in fear of being reprimanded by Mrs Buchanan.

Lewis shows his connection to the finance world through his writing in Moneyball. Before Michael lewis ventured into the world of literature, he was a Salomon Brothers bond salesman selling stocks and bonds to investors. He saw the opportunity to venture away from his background in finance to cover a topic he found both interesting and enjoyable. Moneyball takes the fun of sports and couples them with the complexity of statistics, which is why Lewis was so successful at conveying such an interesting story. When Lewis, a trained economist, was asked in an interview why he wrote about sports, he answered, “Both of my last two books, "Moneyball" and "The Blind Side," are, at bottom, about how people get valued.” By writing about sports teams and trading players Lewis was able to apply his knowledge of the economy to that of the sports industry. A key responsibility that many economists have is task of evaluating a company or stock. Essentially, Michael Lewis applied his knowledge of the economy to sports in order to write

The need among Americans to be diverted in ever more imaginative ways -- through high-thrill parks, virtual reality arcades, and theme restaurants, plays right into the hands of Dave Corriveau and Buster Corley, co-founders and CEO’s of Dave and Busters. The duo’s 50,000 square foot complexes include pool hall, an eye popping, cutting edge midway arcade, a formal restaurant, a casual diner, a sports bar and a nightclub rolled into one sprawling complex. In business since 1990, this is a high energy, highly efficient operation that’s comparable to a Vegas extravaganza. As a matter of fact there are even “for fun” cashless blackjack tables, with fake $10,000 chips. Pricey, but not outrageous, and you get value for your money.

“Everybody calls me a racketeer. I call myself a businessman. When I sell liquor, it’s bootlegging. When my patrons serve it on Lake Shore Drive, it’s hospitality.” This was Al Capone, the most notorious gangster of the 1920’s, comparing himself to the upper class.

     Walter Lee’s investment dream also stunk “like rotten meat.” Like meat, the dream was very appetizing. In Walter Lee’s eyes, nothing could go wrong, it was a smart investment that would definitely be profitable. Not once did the thought that Willy Harris might run away with the money ever cross his mind. “Walter: Yeah. You see, this little liquor store we got in mind cost seventy-five thousand and we figured the initial investment on the place be 'bout thirty thousand, see. That be ten thousand each. Course, there's a couple of hundred you got to pay so's you don't spend your life just waiting for them clowns to let your license get approved...” But the dream began to rot, and lose composure. He wasted all the money and his dream became impossible.

“In the midst of the calm, he was the storm... but more so, among his peers, he was looked upon as an underground icon...” - K. Thompson, 7/2014

I wanna do all I can for our clients” (Wolf of Wall Street), he had society’s best interest in mind and not surrender to his desires, but as he transgressed boundaries by breaking social norms, his intentions changed for his greater benefit. In effect, it developed his inner id to be freed, where he let his impulses and desires surmount morality to become his double, which turned him into this inner monster we all have inside of us that’s waiting to be triggered. There was a drastic change in his personality as he aged, “Jordan, 18, smiles as he holds an Amway sales brochure. The year I turned 26, I made 49 million dollars as the head of my own brokerage firm” (Wolf of Wall Street) that are a result of recalling his repressed

Jordan later quit the Wall Street Stock Market because he believed he has learned enough to make money on his own. Using the tips he’s learned from Mark Hanna, both the beneficial and detrimental, he goes on to open up his own penny stock broking business, Stratton Oakmont.