PEN-L message, [Fwd: small world of big war profiteers]

At Hollinger, Big Perks in A Small World
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A59784-2003Nov18.html

Steven Pearlstein, WASHINGTON POST - It's amazing the coincidences you find
digging into Hollinger International, the publishing empire that includes
Chicago's Sun-Times and London's Daily Telegraph and is quickly slipping
from Conrad Black's control. Let's start with the board of directors, which
includes Barbara Amiel, Conrad's wife, whose right-wing rants have managed
to find an outlet in Hollinger publications. And there's Washington super
hawk Richard Perle, who heads Hollinger Digital, the company's venture
capital arm. Seems that Hollinger Digital put $2.5 million in a company
called Trireme Partners, which aims to cash in on the big military and
homeland security buildup. As luck would have it, Trireme's managing partner
is none other than . . . Richard Perle.

Perle, of course, has been pushing hard for just such a military buildup
from his other perch at the Pentagon's secretive and influential Defense
Policy Board, where there are a number of other Friends of Hollinger.

There's Gerald Hillman, managing partner of Hillman Capital, which also got
a $14 million investment from Hollinger, according to the Financial Times.
Hillman is also a partner at Trireme.

And then there's Henry Kissinger, another longtime Hollinger director,
though it must be said that Henry is very busy and was only able to make one
board meeting last year.

Rounding out the Hollinger director-hawks is Richard Burt, the former arms
negotiator and ambassador to Germany. Burt is also on the board of Archer
Daniels Midland, whose former chairman, Dwayne Andreas, and director Robert
Strauss, were also Hollinger directors until last year. Small world, huh?

Some might consider Andreas a somewhat risky choice for corporate director,
inasmuch as ADM had to pay a $100 million fine for price-fixing during his
watch. But Andreas probably felt right at home at Hollinger, alongside A.
Alfred Taubman, who as head of Sotheby's was nabbed for fixing art auction
prices. Taubman gave up his Hollinger seat last year, around the time he
checked into prison.