The 5 mansions of the billionaire who wants America to live a 'smaller' existence

[KamaAina]

https://homes.yahoo.com/news/own-five-mansions-guy-wants-150056064.html

Jeff Greene is a billionaire who made most of his fortune shorting subprime mortgages ahead of the last recession. Greene took a private jet to this year's World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, along with his wife, children and two nannies, and then told Bloomberg that "America's lifestyle expectations are far too high and need to be adjusted so we have less things and a smaller, better existence. We need to reinvent our whole system of life."

Green (sic) owns a $195-million palace in Beverly Hills with 23 bathrooms and a rotating dance floor, two other Los Angeles mansions, a mansion in Palm Beach, a mansion in the Hamptons, and a 145-foot party yacht called Summerwind that once severely damaged a protected coral reef off Belize. Here's a look:.

Greene paid $35 million for Beverly Hills's Palazzo di Amore in 2007, when it was still only partly built. He finished the job and today the property has a 35,000-square-foot main house with 12 bedrooms, a 3,000-bottle wine cellar and tasting room, a separate 10,000-bottle cellar, a kitchen with walk-in fridge, a staff wing, and a Turkish spa; a 15,000-square-foot entertainment center with bowling alley, 50-seat theater, "a dressing room for live stage shows," and a disco/ballroom with "state-of-the-art laser light system and revolving dance floor"; a vineyard that produces 400 to 500 cases a year; a total of 23 bathrooms; a quarter-mile driveway; and the aforementioned rotating dance floor. He put it up for sale last fall for $195 million, the most expensive home on the market in America by far....

In 2009, Greene decided to leave California (possibly for tax purposes) and move back to Palm Beach, Florida, where he grew up. He paid $24 million for La Bellucia, a 1920 estate with a nine-bedroom, 12,000-square-foot main house designed by Addison Mizner and 234 feet of oceanfront. During an extensive renovation of the house, he shacked up with his family in six suites at his own Omphoy Ocean Resort hotel, where he reportedly converted a banquet-equipment storage room into "a playroom with a photo booth, juke box and movie theater" and a meditation garden into a playground for his children.

[Curmudgeoness]

1. The most incredible part of this story

is that this asshat does not see how stupid he is. He really would not understand why anyone would think he was a hypocrite.

[appalachiablue]

21. You mean the 'lack of empathy'? It's common, has to be as part of the obliviousness, indifference,

denial and/or sociopathy to behave and live this way. Unbelievable.

[Curmudgeoness]

36. There is definitely a lack of empathy,

but the hypocrisy comes from his comments that we should learn to live with less. He who has much more than his share and doesn't seem to be paring down himself.

[appalachiablue]

45. I get what you mean by the hypocrisy. But unfortunately I've seen and heard this kind of thing on

all levels and from people who I wouldn't deem psychologically impaired as in narcissist, sociopath, etc. And that's very concerning. My uncle reamed out and told his wife she had to watch it over a $40 grocery bill once in the '70s, while he had an expensive boat for deep sea fishing, collected all kinds memorabilia, had many toys and more. And the man was worth hundreds of thousands then at least. So that's greed, selfishness, fear, hypocrisy, whatever.

[Locrian]

59. warped

I don't know - it's like they don't have a concept of value/worth. I guess when you make billions for doing practically nothing you don't know what *anything* is worth. So they can justify in their minds paying a measly 100 million for a luxury house, but $50 for food its highway robbery.

Truly astounding.

[world wide wally]

67. And if he was running for some political office, about half of the working stiffs would

vote for him....because all he would say is "yes guns, yes tax breaks, no abortions.

[KamaAina]

83. Believe it or not, he's a Dem!

I'll bet he's ready for... somebody.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

90. Or, maybe just an opportunist:

"Greene lived in Southern California in the 1980s and 90s and ran in the 1982 Republican primary for the 23rd Congressional District race."

[nikto]

37. This guy isn't just missing perspective and self-reflection ...

He seems to be missing half a frontal lobe.




So these are our esteemed Oligarchs?


Puh-leeeeeeze.

[Auggie]

2. It will all be rubble after the revolution

[starroute]

19. Where's my knitting...

[Jesus Malverde]

50. DUZY...nt

[linuxman]

35. Doubtful.

The revolutionary elites will want somewhere to live, no doubt.

[Jesus Malverde]

3. most disgusting part...

He is a member of the Democratic Party and was a candidate in the 2010 Senate election primaries in Florida.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Greene

The party is top heavy with these billionaires with a "social" consciousness. They are the reason the democrats often ignore the issues that matter to working people.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

17. I sure wasn't expecting that.

Ugh.

[Ken Burch]

26. Don't remind me...Biden insisted on recruiting people like that

When he was running the DSCC. They virtually ALWAYS lost to the 'pugs in the fall. Yet he kept recruiting them, knowing how unelectable they were.

[Depaysement]

32. +1

Well said and so true.

[MisterP]

42. Greene-McCulloch 2016! motto: "What other choice do you have?"

and his money's all from betting that McMansions were being overvalued--who couldn't see that coming?!

[JeffHead]

4. This guy is just begging for us to go all French Revolution on his ass isn't he.

Break out the guillotines.

[Initech]

9. I think we know whose house we will be occupying during the revolution.

[JeffHead]

13. Great...

I have a big pile of dirty undies just waiting to be cleansed in that pretty cement pond of his.

[PADemD]

58. Not the house so close to the beach.

When the oceans start rising, that house will be under water.

[Ken Burch]

27. We don't need to actually behead him.

Just get a righteous set of hackers to transfer his assets to the people.

For someone like him, that would be WORSE than decapitation.

[hifiguy]

80. Ooh, I like this idea almost as much

as the guillotine. It has style.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

89. Can I be "the people"? Pretty please??

[nikto]

38. Re: Guillotines

Don't sharpen 'em too much.



Nothing wrong with an occasional, "double-drop".

Could be a real crowd-pleaser.

[Wellstone ruled]

5. Don't forget John McCain and his nine houses.

[ND-Dem]

6. except i don't think mccain's said anything this stupid and hypocritical yet about his wealth.

[appalachiablue]

24. But that's mostly from his wife's family, the father at Anh. Busch I think. It's a proud

tradition in the McCain family, the men marry up, heiresses like his father who married the twin daughter of a western oil man. (John's no fool, or Kerry for that matter even though he had means of his own I believe).
Whatever-

[ND-Dem]

7. "made his fortune shorting subprime mortgages" = now there's a guy who deserves it!

"austerity for thee, but not for me"

Oh, he signed Bill Gates' "Giving Pledge". Hmm. I guess we know what they're going to give us.



In February 2011 Greene became a signatory of The Giving Pledge.[18]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Greene

[Initech]

8. Holy crap - is that a real life Wayne Manor?

[MohRokTah]

10. Everybody else needs to do with less so this asshole can have more?

[ND-Dem]

12. that's about it. same as the last 40 years, why the big surprise?

[MohRokTah]

14. At least the assholes for the past 40 years tried to keep it all quiet.

Now the assholes are blatantly bragging about being aristocracy.

I have a pitchfork in my garden section of the garage.

[99th_Monkey]

15. +10 ~nt~

[MohRokTah]

16. Everybody who is austensibly middle class should own a pitchfork.

I use it for my compost pile. Accidentally jabbed my foot with a tine once. The infection was horrid.

[99th_Monkey]

20. or a gillotine

I relate to --> "At least the[se] assholes for the past 40 years tried to keep it all quiet."

Noteworthy, how these present-day usurpers of democracy are so quick to show their asses. ,

I'm old enough to remember Ike and JFK, who had a sufficient sense of humanity & decorum as
to not goat publicly about their vast wealth & privileged status, but rather to rightly apologize for it.

[KingCharlemagne]

30. I do not remember Ike being inordinately wealthy. He was certainly well off, but not

obscenely so. Could you perhaps be thinking instead of FDR, who came from wealth but turned traitor to the wealthy class (thank God)?

[99th_Monkey]

44. FDR for sure

Thanks for the addition.

Ike was so very well connected with the wealthy & elite class, war hero and all;
so I don't think it was far off.

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

52. I don't have one.

But I've got the sorta similarly-shaped potato-digging fork. Rather than being round with needle-sharp ends, the tines are flattened rectangles with a duller triangular point, so they're less likely to damage the potatoes as you turn the ground, and, as an added bonus, you'd really have to put a lot of force behind it to pierce a shoe and a foot with it.

[Jackpine Radical]

60. You rediscovered the magic of the punji stake.

[ctsnowman]

55. Exactly!

[progressoid]

11. Good people like Paul Wellstone die and assholes like this still walk the earth.

I need a drink.

[appalachiablue]

25. I need a double, with a side. When I come to, the F&Fs will receive an email blitz of this &

print versions go out in the mail tomorrow.

[oldandhappy]

22. Hmmmm

Yep. The old 'them not me' thing. You are to live a more simple life and be less demanding. I am OK the way I am.

[Alkene]

23. Revolution is the festival of the oppressed.

[47of74]

39. Those who ignore history...

....aw fuck it, these rich people never pay attention no matter what others say.

[byronius]

28. Hold up -- I think he's talking about himself, and the other one percent.

"America's lifestyle expectations are far too high and need to be adjusted so we have less things and a smaller, better existence. We need to reinvent our whole system of life."

"We", see? He's a Leveller, calling for equitable distribution, especially of ill-gotten gains. That's what it reads like to me.

He's offering to start the reinvention with his own lifestyle expectations. Efficiency apartment, public transit -- because we're all in this together.

How am I reading this wrong? It's great!

[kcr]

62. I think he means "we" as an American.

He doesn't say 1 percenter lifestyle. He says "America's lifestyle". It isn't great, because the middle class is already shrinking as it is and too many are cutting everything to the bone. Why should Americans cut even further while he and his kind still enjoy the lifestyle they do. It's especially galling considering that lifestyle is possible on the backs of all those Americans.

[SammyWinstonJack]

63. HA!

[appalachiablue]

29. The Key to the Bastille is displayed in the Center Hall of Mount Vernon, George Washington's Va.

home. In 1790 Lafayette sent it to the President from the Revolution in France via Thomas Paine in London and John Rutledge of South Carolina.

The Bastille Prison in Paris was the symbol of the Ancien Regime, the royal authority and power of the monarchy. When the Revolutionaries attacked the old fortress there were only a few prisoners inside.

The young Marquis de Lafayette assisted the American Revolution and was fond of General Washington with whom he served. Lafayette named a son after the first American President and sent him to school in the USA. In 1824 Lafayette returned to America, making a wide tour of major cities and homes that hosted the celebrated Frenchman.

[treestar]

70. Interesting

I have been to Mount Vernon, but somehow missed that. Must have been because I was accompanied by two kids!

[appalachiablue]

75. The Bastille Key weighs about 3lbs. and is dark iron. It's displayed on a wall, in a glass,

lantern style case. I don't think there's a label for it, so not so hard to miss. GW was pleased to have it and exhibited it in Phila. when the early govt. met there. The Mount Vernon shop sells a couple reproductions online in gold or black for $10. If I don't find mine soon I'll get one there next time I visit, and have a closer look at the original. In 1989 my sister brought me a 1789 Anniv. shirt from Paris; she was unable to get both of us the popular guillotine earrings that sold out that summer. She has great taste, I know they would have been nice.

[NaturalHigh]

31. I despise hypocrites.

The "do as I say, not as I do" philosophy disgusts me as much as anything. If he will downsize to a 1500 square foot house, give away his wealth to charity, get a blue-collar job, and live on $25,000 a year, I will be willing to listen to what he has to say about "living smaller."

[KingCharlemagne]

34. I originally posted Simon & Garfunkel's "Richard Cory" but then

I decided this was more appropriate:

[SleeplessinSoCal]

40. Seen "Tiny House Hunters" on HGTV?

I thought about Green and his ilk when these programs turned up. They promote Americam lifestyle choices.

http://www.hgtv.com/shows/tiny-house-hunters

[ashling]

41. Did someone say "guillotine"?

Be sure to set it up on the revolving dance floor

[appalachiablue]

46. Good one. See you at the Palace!

[MisterP]

73. does he have any sinister, ambitious cousins to lead us?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Philippe_II,_Duke_of_Orl%C3%A9ans

[appalachiablue]

85. Most anyone at that level of business might have Orleanists around, you never know-

[Cha]

43. "Backatcha Jeff Greene "America's lifestyle expectations are far too high and need to be adjusted

we have less things and a smaller, better existence."

Tone it down and then you can talk to America about your little problem with it.

[appalachiablue]

47. Seems someone let the 800 lb. gorilla that's been around 40 years out of the bag.

[Tsiyu]

48. I know I'm punchy from writing all day but dayum

after taking a look at those pictures, reading the descriptions and then juxtaposing them with his words, I started belly laughing so hard at the absurdity of this man.

For real, Dude? Lowered expectations? You've got a disco and a vineyard and a bowling alley in one of your five estates and you're asking me to cut where? Stop paying the light bill? Only eat five days a week instead of seven? Give away my beloved pets? Sell my kidneys? Is it too high of an expectation to not want to sell my kidneys to keep a very, very humble and leaky roof over my head?

Greene, are you even human?

I hope if we reinstate the guillotine, he goes first. They can have jumbotrons on either side showing dude's mansions and blasting his words for all to hear. The whole crowd will be laughing as hard as I am at this blatant, crass HOG.

[Kennah]

49. Shhhhh, Jeff. The blade is heavy, and you won't feel a thing.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

51. He's going to end up like this guy, who was once the richest man in the world:

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=521

I told my husband when we were dating, "sic transit gloria mundi" and said "I am going to show you something". I explained that "sic transit gloria mundi" means "Thus passes the glory of the world". And I led him up to this man's grave, the one time richest man in the world. He looked down at the name (as seen in the photo at the link) and knew exactly who he was.

This was before they put a fence around the plot, because so many people were visiting it.

Just as we all are going to end up.

[hobbit709]

53. The great shortening is coming.

And he's definitely on the list of those that need to be shortened.

[Hubert Flottz]

54. America needs to foreclose on him.

ASAP.

[DinahMoeHum]

56. Nah, don't "eat the rich". Eat their children.

[hifiguy]

81. Nah. Sell the families of assholes like this

into slavery in Dubai. Then they will have something to fucking cry about.

[DinahMoeHum]

82. Touche!

[Fantastic Anarchist]

84. Why not have both?

[nilesobek]

57. I want to pitch a reality show in which

billionaires like Greene are tossed into the street with no money, no cellphone, no friends to call, no church to help them out. Drop them off downtown at the Port Authority in NYC or the bus station in St. Louis. Keep the cameras rolling as we watch those homeless, "paragons of the business community," work their magic. The cream will rise to the top as we well know, pretty soon they will be ruling their own homeless empire, just like they did in business. Somehow winners are just winners...

[QED]

61. Or he has a minimum wage job

with irregular hours, no health insurance or sick leave, and a boss from hell.

[SammyWinstonJack]

65. + a billion!

[treestar]

71. none of them would volunteer for it

because they know it's just not true

my jerk uncle often claims that if all wealth were redistributed evenly, in one year it would be back where it was (because of course he and the others would make the "good choices' that would allow them to get it back from everyone else).

[Omaha Steve]

64. decided to leave California (possibly for tax purposes)

Donate the $195-million palace in Beverly Hills with 23 bathrooms to a non-profit homeless shelter group for a write off.

[packman]

66. I think all you liberals are just sour graping it

think of the "trickle down" effect here - untold number of gardeners, maintenance people, house staff, taxes he pays which keep shelters open. Why the man is a modern day Christ in his concern for the poor. After all, those houses just didn't build themselves. I think its great that those houses are now occupied than just sitting there deserted and empty.

[wolfie001]

68. Greedy, heartless bastard. nt

[treestar]

69. He means us as a country silly, not him personally!

[Tom Ripley]

72. Five mansions, three children...he's virtually a Shaker!

[Vinca]

74. I'm sorry, but unless you're a hotel you don't need 23 bathrooms.

Fools and their money . . .

[Fantastic Anarchist]

76. Images won't load for me. n/t

[City Lights]

77. Fuck these greedy, hypocritical assholes!

[rocktivity]

78. Physician, heal thyself.

rocktivity

[hifiguy]

79. This worthless piece of shit should be

marched to the goddam guillotine TOMORROW. Sooner if possible.

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

86. Why doesn't he just trade in his 5 homes for a medieval castle with ramparts, a moat

and vast farmlands all around it occupied by his serfs?

[Buns_of_Fire]

87. If nothing else, I can see why he needs so many bathrooms. nt

[JonLP24]

88. So many are so greedy & corrupt, they manipulate or outright violate the regulations

(specifically the oil industries)

push things like how many poor people own a TV or a refrigerators and constantly point out food stamp & welfare recipients "gaming the system"

I'm always reminded of that study that was posted her where the wealthy cheated more for that extra $100 than lower income people did even though that $100 represents a significant change in lifestyle options for the poor person. A lot of people don't think they think like that because they apply their own "What's another $100 when you have a million?" much less billionaires but it is very clear there isn't enough money in the world to satisfy a lot of these guys.