Back to Gideon RachmanThe United States is meant to be a country that celebrates wealth. Making millions is part of the American dream, and only Europeans are meant to succumb to mean-minded envy.
I have often suspected, however, that Americans are much less relaxed about the "filthy rich" than they think. Conrad Black - who has just been found guilty of fraud in Chicago - may be about to feel the brunt of all that pent-up rage about huge salaries and perks for the super rich. Even though he was not convicted on all charges, he seems likely to get a long sentence - which could be a life sentence, for a man of 62.
The prosecution in the Black case certainly laid on the details of his opulent lifestyle with a trowel. This may have been because opulence is easier for a jury to grasp than the complicated technical details of a fraud. A colleague who reported on the trial says that two of the jurors were asleep for large
parts of the case. But everyone sat up and paid attention when the details of lavish Black parties and extravagant homes were laid out.
Ideologically, I think America does remain committed to the idea that super riches for some are a cause for celebration for everybody. That creed is reflected in low taxes and very high salaries for chief executives. Some billionaires are genuinely admired figures - think of Warren Buffet, the sage of Omaha; or even Bill Gates. They have made their money through their own hard work and intelligence; they have given lots of it away; and they are not flashy. So they remain popular.
But step out of line - and all that suppressed anger about the super rich bursts out. Just look at the sentences handed out to Bernie Ebbers, the disgraced chief executive of WorldCom - who got 25 years; and to Jeffrey Skilling, the former chief executive of Enron, who got 24 years. Those terms are vindictive for non-violent crimes. But listen to talk radio in America or look at internet chatter, and you will find plenty of people who think the death sentence would have been appropriate.
What accounts for all this rage? I am sure that some of it has to do with rising income inequality in America. At a time when the middle-classes are worried about soaring costs for healthcare and college, the sight of CEOs and hedge-fund managers squirreling away vast fortunes is bound to be faintly irritating.
But, actually, the anger existed long before the real boom in CEO pay. I was living in the US in 1989 and well remember the glee when Leona Helmsley - a famously bitchy hotel owner - was jailed for tax evasion. She had - perhaps - tempted fate, by remarking that "only the little people pay taxes." But there was not only no sympathy for Helmsley; there was real delight at her fate. Radio hosts were calling up her jail to get the full, glorious details of the humiliating work she had been set. I would not be surprised if the same thing happens with Conrad Black.
This blog covers a variety of topics from US foreign policy to European politics and the Middle East - and whatever else happens to be in the news or catch my attention. I joined the FT as chief foreign affairs commentator in 2006, after a 15-year career at The Economist which included stints as a correspondent in Brussels, Bangkok and Washington. I write a weekly column on foreign affairs, which appears in the paper on Tuesdays. Occasionally my FT colleagues contribute posts to this blog.
Geoff Dyer is the FT's China bureau chief. He has been a correspondent in Shanghai and in Brazil and has also covered the pharmaceuticals and biotechnology industries from London.
Roula Khalaf is the FT's Middle East editor. She has worked for the FT since 1995, first as North Africa correspondent, then Middle East correspondent and most recently as Middle East editor. Before joining the FT, she was a staff writer for Forbes magazine in New York. 
James Blitz is the FT's defence and diplomatic editor. He has been the FT's political editor, based in London, and Rome bureau chief. James is a former Moscow bureau chief for the Sunday Times.
Alan Beattie is the FT's world trade editor. He has previously been economics leader writer and spent two years in Washington DC as chief US economics correspondent. Before joining the FT, Alan was an economist at the Bank of England. 
Victor Mallet is the FT's Madrid correspondent. He is a former Asia editor of the FT, and, in more than 20 years at the organisation, has also worked in Africa, Europe and the Middle East. In 1990 he escaped from Kuwait after being one of the few foreign correspondents there when Iraq invaded. 
Stefan Wagstyl is the FT's eastern Europe editor, co-ordinating coverage of the region. He has also been the FT's bureau chief in Tokyo and New Delhi.
