Where the Red Beard Grows: Capitalism = Art

Well My Red Beard Bourgeois,

Welcome back to the best Red Beard Blog on the whole internets!

I write to you today from the grand township of Greencastle, IN

Yeah... This is a GreenCastle in France or someplace, not Indiana

Well, I wanted to blog alot more this past month, but didnt get around to it. You know, less is more. "Always leave em wanting more" as my ole uncle Phineas used to say...

Folks I thought I would tell you a brief tale. A tale of capitalism at its best. How a young, poor farmboy grew the be one of the richest men who has ever lived.(most boys are young..)

He was voted "Most Versatile Boy" in high-school. Basically, MacGyver

Samuel Moore Walton was born in Oklahoma but grew up in Missouri, when his dad decided that farming in Indiana territory couldn't cut it. He was a dedicated, disciplined, hard worker, doing whatever chores and spare jobs he could to help his family during the great depression. He was the youngest Eagle Scout in the states history. He went to the University of Missouri with some scholarships from the ROTC. He got a job with JC Penny 3 days after graduation, but with WWII on the doorstep he quit a few months later, knowing he would be enlisted in the armed forces. He worked at a DuPont arms plant in Tulsa till he joined up. Walton joined the military in the U.S. Army Intelligence Corps, supervising security at aircraft plants and prisoner of war camps. So he was basically a anti-spy that would stop spies from stealing our airplane secrets and stop Nazi defectors from leaving prison. Who know, he might have even interrogated some evil Nazi zombies?!

From the military to the business world he went with cash he had saved from the army, a loan from his father in law, an economics degree in his pocket, and a hard work and gristle in his bones! Dominating the competition with genius ideas and employee motivation he quickly became a owner of a successful expanding business. Fast forward a few decades and he has one the Presidents Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor an American can obtain, has expanded his corporation worldwide, and IS LOADED!! Sam Walton was the richest man in the United States from 1982 to 1988!

In 2011 6 members of the Walton family have the same net worth as the bottom 30% of American families combined. That's money folks. Mad Money! How did get obtain it? Hard work and determination. As far as his family goes now, the Waltons control over 48% of the company, and are worth a combined total of $93 billion. That is more than the GDP of Sri Lanka...

What did they do with their vast billions? Invest it, help others, and give it away. I mean, they are still loaded, but have given it to tons of great endeavors, such as Education Reform, Camp War Eagle, And Crystal Bridges...

Let me tell ya folks. I have traveled around this nation for a while now, and been to a ton of neat places. I have been to art museums in Kansas City, St. Louis, Georgia, Los Angles, and even the Art Institute of Chicago, and none of them come close. Now hold on before you start throwing bows! As far as the prestige of the pieces, in most cases, they have Crystal Bridges beat. However, none can beat its design and setting. Also, admission is FREE!!! Can you believe it? Its such a cool place. You really should go, like now! GO! GO NOW!

Still reading this? Well, here are some of my favorite pieces that photo'd: