Chapter 226 Upper Class?

Barry Mayer counted for a moment, then looked up at the young man sitting on the sofa.

Lyman was still sitting casually, leaning on his back comfortably, looking at the layout of the office, as if thinking.

These are all not very polite actions, but it also shows that this person does not have a strong desire to cooperate with Warner.

Think about it too, whether it is Paramount Pictures or Europa, they will definitely not give up on a director who can make profits like him.

As for the words he said, the conditions seemed tough, as if he didn't take Warner seriously.

But Barry Mayer has come here for most of his life, and he has seen a lot of wind and waves. What kind of weird director has not dealt with?

James Cameron's strong and irritable temper, Peter Jackson's scruples, not giving an inch... Of course, there are also the two psychopathic Wachowski brothers, who speak and do things with a sense of The smell of a lady.

After a little thought, it is quite normal for Lehmann to be among these extremely talented directors.

Maybe someone who said that a genius and a lunatic are only one thought apart is right.

Moreover, the cooperation, or the cooperation that Warner actively invited, how can it be done without showing some sincerity. Even when negotiating, it doesn't matter if you suffer a little loss. Anyway, if Lehman has such a level of friendship with Warner, he may get more benefits from him in the future.

After making up their minds, several people started chatting about the movie project again.

After a while, Michael Clough had something to do, so he said goodbye.

Barry Mayer looked at his watch, it was almost five o'clock in the afternoon, so he said: "It's not too early, if Director Ryman appreciates his face, I will take you to a place, let's have a light meal, and then continue to talk. "

"Okay." Lyman laughed.

Barry Mayer took Lehmann out. After learning that the boss was going to invite Lehman to dinner, his assistant secretary was still a little curious. He didn't know why the director from France was so taken seriously-you know, as a Warner Chief Operating Officer, Barry Mayer rarely invites people to dinner in person.

The agent Johnson on the side was at a loss when he saw this situation - he didn't know whether to follow him or what.

Lyman saw it and waved his hand to let him go back.

After all, it is a personal friendship, and the real negotiation is not at this time.

In the underground garage, the assistant secretary drove out of the gate of Warner's headquarters in a Bentley luxury car, and then drove in the direction of Beverly Hills.

"Go to that club." Barry Mayer said, and explained to Lehman: "The scenery there is good. If there is time, Director Lehman can go there often to play."

After about 20 minutes, the car slowed down.

On both sides of the road are neatly trimmed oaks, standing like two rows of guards, giving a sense of solemnity.

After the doorman released it, you could see a huge lawn at a glance—this is Beverly Hills, and it is a luxury to have such a large piece of land for building a club, a racetrack, and a golf course.

Of course, what Lehmann didn't know very well was that the membership fees of this club were also terribly high, and not everyone could become a member, only the so-called upper class could.

As for what is the upper class.

Of course it is money and status.

As far as Lehman is concerned, as long as there is enough money, a more luxurious club can be established. Anyway, in such a capital-rich country, having enough money means having enough status. Don't you see, those powerful capitalists can even control the policies of the White House.

Speaking of which, I have to mention the Koch brothers. The two of them have always adhered to the ideas of the radical right, advocating a small government model (preferably small enough to be invisible); advocating tax cuts (preferably no tax); and advocating less market surveillance (preferably no surveillance).

And behind the two of them is the hard work of two generations of their family - Koch Industries, one of the most powerful companies in the world.

Then because it is not listed, there is no need to publish annual reports, and no one knows how much Koch Industries makes money.

The only thing that is clear, though, is that these two have both entered the top 20 of the Forbes Rich List by virtue of their net worth.

And what did they do, to control the White House?

1. Establish a large number of charitable foundations (in the United States, charity itself is a tax haven for the rich, and even a capitalist can operate it, because the money spent on charity does not need to be taxed, and there is no need to openly run the content, which means that these charitable donations, They can do whatever they want), invest in intellectual admissions, do research. - Trigger a change in people's perceptions.

2. Establish a large number of think tanks and research institutes. - Turning their right-wing ideas into actual policy studies.

3. Form social groups, package ideas as the voice of the masses, and put pressure on elected bureaucrats. - Turning the minds of individuals into the minds of the masses.

4. Participate in elections. - Start from the core. For example, their foundation once supported Ronald Reagan to be elected president, and that year the White House did what they wanted: tax cuts for the rich, tax increases for the middle class, tax cuts for their oil industry, and so on.

The Koch brothers famously said, "Government is not the solution, government is the problem."

Oh, by the way, the Tea Party movement also has a shadow of their contribution. The Tea Party Movement refers to demonstrations and demonstrations by a large number of people from the bottom of the United States. Their philosophy is, "Government intervention is the reason for the deterioration of the economy. In order for everyone to live a good life again, the government's supervision should be weakened. "

Someone once said sarcastically about this, "This is a grassroots movement to make the richest one percent pay less tax."

Even the later Secretary of State Pompeo was able to successfully enter the core management of the government, and it was also the Koch brothers who were single-handedly promoted.

You must know that this guy has become a doorman after graduating from college. Even at the beginning of accumulating social experience, he did it in Koch Industries’ investment companies. Later, in the election of the House of Representatives, he also took political donations from the Koch brothers. , relying on the National Rifle Association (this is the largest social group in the United States, the political wind is self-evident) to promote it all the way.

As for the political concept of this guy, of course, he is against the Democratic Party, against minorities, against Clinton, against Hillary, against ***, against climate change... Anyway, all those who are not good for the rich or thing, he is against it.

Okay, I'm a little off topic. All of the above is actually out of emotion, because when I was browsing Zhihu today, I was disgusted. *** Can't see the wall? Really blind.

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