Rebirth as an American Tycoon

[Chapter 820: Environmental Saint]

William White hadn't anticipated that this relatively low-profile charity party would attract many prominent guests.

The public was baffled by his recent behavior. If he planned on entering politics, he clearly shouldn't be gallivanting around like this.

Americans were still quite traditional; it didn't matter how many wives you had. During any given period, you couldn't be too outrageous.

Dating without the intent of marriage was essentially just playing the field. William White was clearly a certified player.

Alright then, since you weren't planning to clean up your image, why go to such lengths to inflate your character?

It was quite perplexing. Other than William White himself, no one could quite figure it out.

Today was even stranger; the concept of clean energy was front and center.

Seeing a spendthrift promoting environmentalism was laughable. Your carbon footprint for a single day might equal someone else's for an entire year.

How much water does he waste in those swimming pools annually? That was just too absurd.

When a crow stands on a pile of coals, it sees others as black; that was the state William White was in.

"Warren, what do you think?" In response to Greenspan's questions, the crafty Buffett didn't quite know what to say.

"Ha! Alan, he's a marketing expert."

"Ha! I was asking if this might be a Ponzi scheme. Who doesn't know he's a marketing expert?" Greenspan seemed somewhat dissatisfied with Buffett's answer.

"Old buddy, do you know what I saw in William White's eyes just now?

Sincerity!

Good grief; if this is a scam, I wager it has to be a flawless one. Besides, it seems he hasn't accepted outside funding, right?"

"Sincerity? That's a rather absurd answer. He mentioned in his speech at USC that if you lack a specialty, you could try learning deception. This has the lowest cost and quickest results.

For instance, if you're trying to sell a product that's frankly terrible and you yourself believe it's trash, there's a dilemma. Do you abandon the job or continue?

If you wish to persist, the first person you must deceive is yourself. As a salesman, if you don't believe you're the best, then you should quit immediately."

"Cough, I've heard that phrase before. Many schools teaching sales are bound to reference that case."

The two old men exchanged bitter smiles, observing the environmental warriors getting overly excited.

A super oil baron loudly claims not to use fossil fuels; this scene was just plain absurd.

...

"Environmentalism? Andy, do you genuinely believe his spiel?"

After being force-fed motivational talk all night, the head of Morgan Stanley appeared rather discontent.

The most ridiculous part was that tonight's theme revolved around famine in Africa. Black folks are struggling to find food, and you guys are saying we shouldn't use oil; we need to use resources judiciously.

Alright, fertilizers are indeed bad; pesticides are certainly undesirable. Everything extracted from oil is bad; however, without these, the number of starving people wouldn't be just in the millions.

"Sir, is there a possibility? With the current low oil prices, he's scaling back production. In that case, White Oil's losses would be inevitable.

If this is the case, he might as well buck the trend. Aren't you suppressing the oil prices? He might as well increase the stakes. Sir, those environmentalists are quite troublesome; if they get funding, a slew of oil companies will be in trouble."

"Cough, cough, cough, it can't be that way, can it? Dragging everyone into the ocean together."

Andy, who usually looked a bit simple-minded, had figured it out almost correctly. William White certainly thought in this manner. In fact, many people would soon come to realize. If they didn't get it instantly, it was likely they'd become muddled.

What some called an open conspiracy didn't care whether you knew or not. White Oil was cutting its own knees, what else could you say? If you were capable, you should follow suit.

"Geez, Andy, shouldn't the old Rockefeller be really troubled right now? Hahaha, that little bastard is determined to shake things up."

"That should be the case. I've heard White Oil hasn't abandoned its acquisition plans.

The strangest thing is, Rockefeller is in the same boat. Who knows how long the big eight can hold out."

"Interesting, interesting; the smallest oil company has launched an offensive first. Is he really planning to swallow Rockefeller?"

Andy shrugged, saying nothing. Times had long changed; although Rockefeller was a huge entity, William White wasn't easy to mess with either.

The game William White was playing wasn't entirely new. ExxonMobil and BP engaged in similar tactics; it was just a way to attack competitors.

Of course, William White played it more boldly. They sponsored efforts through trusts and funds, while he played from both sides.

He didn't have those family traditions. When you looked at Rockefeller and Morgan, families like that were everywhere in America. Many things that seemed unrelated actually had these families supporting them from behind.

William White didn't have that; he relied solely on his blatant audacity.

So let's not point fingers. If things got ugly, it wouldn't end well for any of us.

...

"Damn it! What's this lunatic trying to do?"

"Sir, I think we shouldn't meddle with that oil field in the North Sea. BP genuinely wants to sell, and our offer is lower than White Oil."

"Damn it! How many times have I told you? Problems that can be solved with money aren't real problems. If it's that crucial, just raise the bid. Why get tangled up in all this nonsense?

Damn it, national energy security -- aren't you putting the noose around your own neck?

What's his goal?"

"To upgrade oil product quality. That bill has to be passed."

"Look! For what ridiculous acquisition are you incurring such massive losses?"

The old man was really mad. William White was a thorn in their side, and a wholly uncontrollable one at that.

Sigh! I just wanted to live a few more years, can't you all just simmer down? The Rockefeller family wasn't afraid of challenges, but they wouldn't get involved in disputes for no reason.

Look at you all stirring up their acquisition right out of their hands. Even a pampered second generation knows when to walk away; you guys, at your age, can't you ever be reasonable?

"Find a middleman to negotiate. For heaven's sake, can you all just let me be? I've told you time and again that business competition should be resolved by business means.

By the way, let's show our support for the rocket project and solar energy. Don't keep bringing me more trouble."

"Sure, sir, I'll go do that right away."

The old man seemed confused. After investing so much in building a network of relations, if he never used it, wouldn't that be quite foolish?

Social connections need to be used continuously; once you reach a certain point, many people will naturally choose sides. They'll help you without needing prompts, doing it all efficiently.

Everyone pretty much understood why oil prices were being pushed down.

Yet, there remained divisions in the current wave. The Soviets were already gone, and no substantial threat remained.

Oil was their primary source of income, so this wasn't a laughing matter. A fragmented Soviet Union would naturally point towards being a good Soviet Union. However, there needed to be a limit -- if you went too far, Europe would be thrown into chaos.

*****

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