Chapter 62: Law of Public Opinion

William White's behavior was somewhat unreasonable. They all dared to accuse him of plagiarism without any evidence. Well then, if you've got a bad record, you're likely to get caught in the crossfire. The ultimate beneficiary needs to provide proof; that was William White's principle. You could say he's being unreasonable, but who cares? That's how law works too. The prosecution needs enough evidence to prove the suspect is guilty. But public opinion law is different. You need to prove your innocence, or you're considered guilty. William White acted like this. He presumed the other side was guilty, and then he didn't care. You prove your innocence. If you can't find the mastermind behind it, you'll always be under suspicion. Okay, you might not be scared of suspicion since it doesn't require jail time. But you'd be mistaken to think that way. William White needed a good public image, and so did the Hollywood bigwigs. If one's image collapses publicly, one shouldn't stay in the entertainment circle. ... Those trying to make William White uneasy ended up feeling uneasy themselves. Some things aren't secrets, especially for certain powers; these little tricks are almost laughable. Media caught in the crossfire were naturally upset too. In those days, media often had some family or corporate backgrounds. Nobody wanted to take the fall for something inexplicable. For someone like William White, everyone avoided getting involved with him since they feared someone who didn't care about costs. Litigation was not a fear, but endless lawsuits became a headache. William White was clearly aiming to hurt with his financial resources, and that was just annoying. A few tabloids were lucky; they quickly apologized, and William White didn't bother with them. Tabloids are just for sensational headlines; at most, they won't write bad things about you next time. After this incident, William White decided to adjust his strategy. He was too weak in the media field, and this was a chance to set up something. It wasn't just about newspapers; he planned to acquire a few. ... Many people had animosity toward William White, but it was pointless. His biggest strength wasn't just his money; his age also intimidated many. His current actions spoke volumes; he was a vengeful person, not caring about costs. Such a person would eventually ruin himself, so there was no need for direct conflict. Better to watch from the sidelines. Being targeted by him wasn't pleasant. William White was indeed having a tough time. If he didn't act this way, who knew how many people would come after him? Playing the fool was actually quite nice. He'd argue if there was any disagreement, and if he wasn't happy, he'd start a fight. Dealing with such a person was a real headache. Nobody knew what went on in his world, so it was best to be discreet. ... "Young Master, we've sold off seventy percent of our silver, and the profits are delightful. When do we sell in London?" Fulton asked excitedly. "No rush. They can't stretch their hands that far. Selling by year-end is fine. We're making a guaranteed profit anyway," said William White with a smile. He understood Fulton's excitement; profits in the hundreds of millions of dollars sounded like a fairy tale. Luckily, this was the futures market; the securities commission wouldn't check it. With such inflation, buying silver was just a hedge, nothing more. If you did this with stocks, you'd be in trouble. Without a reasonable explanation, you'd face huge problems -- not only losing your earnings but gaining a heap of trouble. Buying stocks personally is possible, but it's best to invest long-term, like for several years. ... Currently, stocks were like free money to William White. However, his industrial setup wasn't finished, and he needed a lot of capital, so his plans for buying at the bottom were on hold. Talking about buying at the bottom was ridiculous now; the crash in the US market hadn't ended. 1979 was just cheap, but the worst for those guys was yet to come. Some said you just needed to buy Coca-Cola stock. If you threw 200 million dollars into it now, you'd be near the richest in the world. But it wasn't simple. You might buy a few million dollars without problem, but if you bought too much, someone would dilute your shares, and you might get kicked out. Why didn't Buffett have a problem? Do you think Berkshire Hathaway is his personal company? That's a joke; this guy is just a spokesperson for the Federal Reserve, so his interests are well protected. How many bad things has Soros done? many countries want to fuck him up, but have you seen him hide? He's the Federal Reserve's attack dog, and nobody would mess with him unless they wanted a war with the US. William White didn't have that kind of backing, nor did he want to be recruited. When he couldn't ensure the safety of his assets, some compromise was necessary. But compromise had limits. He wouldn't accept threats. This plagiarism saga was already peculiar, and the mastermind hadn't shown up. This situation explained a lot; there weren't many who dared act so boldly in the US. They ran into a roadblock this time. If they didn't want things to spiral out of control, the best option was to keep things quiet. As for the trouble-stirring newspapers, they served as scapegoats. This was the plight of small players, getting caught in things they didn't even understand. Regarding William White's security company, there were various interpretations, leaving the old folks a bit uneasy. "Dang, is this heading for a showdown? Texans are all damn troublemakers." The bad tempers of Texans were no joke. Otherwise, how did the last conglomerate come to be? Nobody wanted any new players in the game; US interests had already been divvied up. New conglomerate? Getting crushed was inevitable, but they underestimated the resilience of the Texas guys. If they didn't compromise, Texans didn't mind fighting another civil war. ***** https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.