Pro-Black Philippic With Neglected Facts

In Maclean's, Mark Steyn has written a polemical defense of Conrad Black, with a few facts that may get lost in the ensuing tumult:

1. Mr. Breeden isn't exactly anchoritic with respect to money himself;

2. Almost all of the recent wipe-out of the share price of Hollinger International (now Sun-Times Media) occurred after Conrad Black was removed from its CEOship [details can be found through using this stock chart and in this item, which attributes the downturn to bad industry conditions, although this item details inflated circulation at the Sun-Times from 1998 to 2004];

3. The "squeaky-clean" directors brought into Hollinger Inc., after Mr. Black was ousted from it, were sued by a minority shareholder, the Catalyst Fund, to oust them and, later, to make them to disgorge some of their own "disproportionate" directors' fees and bonuses.

There seem to be few candidates for heroship in this case, with the possible exception of Patrick Fitzgerald and the assistant D.A.s. - if you put aside the fact that even career public servants are not averse to turning a buck with their newfound fame.

One interesting aspect of this article was Mr. Steyn playing the nationalist card in it, with the point that the American celebrity directors haven't exactly been hauled to the docket. He attributes it to the U.S. Department of Justice deciding to have a go at the malevolent Canadians. Normally in Canada, it's the left-Liberals who pull out the "unfair to Canadian" flag and use it as a drape cape - ostensibly, for the sake of...you guessed it, "public service."

Also: A briefer, humourful and somewhat ribald (in spots) piece by Ian Brown, about Conrad Black's recent near-silence, has been posted at the Globe and Mail's Website.