Leona's Trustees Worse Than Queen of Mean!

I've actually been stewing over the recent news about Leona Helmsley's Estate being butchered by the Trustees for a few weeks now, but had to wait to to comment on it because I wasn't sure I could control my temper. If you don't know what happened, let me quote the New York Times April 22nd edition for you. A few short sentences will sum it up.

• In February, a Manhattan judge ruled that the trustees had sole discretion in disbursing her assets ($5 Billion) and that the entire estate did not have to go to the dogs.
• The disclosure that Trouble was the largest named beneficiary in the will prompted death threats against the dog. Another judge reduced Trouble’s trust fund to $2 million; the dog’s security costs the estate $100,000 a year. (WHAT IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE WHEN A DOG NEEDS A BODY GUARD???!!!)
• The judge also negotiated a $6 million settlement with two of Mrs. Helmsley’s grandchildren who were explicitly left out of her will.
• The $1 million for animal rights and welfare was divided equally among 10 charities, including the A.S.P.C.A. and Guide Dogs for the Blind.
• The first $136 million from the hotelier Leona Helmsley’s disputed multibillion-dollar estate has been distributed, trustees announced on Tuesday, but the bulk went to medical centers instead of dogs.

Now, I can already hear the shouting of legions of people who think that there is nothing wrong with ruling. And perhaps there are even animal lovers who feel that giving the entire $5 Billion to a dog is insane when there are needy people and organizations that are desperate for money all in the name of human rights and whatnot. We all are entitled to our opinion for sure. Moments like this are precisely why I've been a blogger for almost five years now.....so I can give my big, fat opinion to anyone who will read it. :-)

I agree that it's entirely bizarre to give $5 BILLION to a dog. BILLION, people. That's the number five followed by 9 zeros. I try to envision how much dog food you could by with $5B and I'm at a loss. However, it was Ms. Helmsley's legal will that determined that this should occur. When any judge is able to overturn a legal document set forth to determine where one's material and monetary assets should go after a person has passed, it makes me question what the point of the will was to begin with? To shut up Leona for the time being I suppose! And the importance of the people who witnessed it? Zero! The credibility of the individual who drafted it? Crap! It's true! The JUDGE said so.

My main concern is that if she wanted the money to go to a dog and this judge, fueled by the dispute of her family attesting the will, thinks that one dog shouldn't have $5B, why not give it to ALL of the dogs?? Can you imagine what $5B would do for animals just in the US? Stop for a moment and think about that.

If you didn't have time to stop and think, let me provide you with some ideas.... medical treatments for people's beloved pets would improve or become unnecessary because the illnesses may be cured. Shelters wouldn't have to put innocent animals to sleep because they couldn't afford to keep them under their roofs anymore. Animals would be spayed and neutered without worry of cost and the problem with the animal population would be reduced drastically. Perhaps we could hire some bigwigs to create some really groovy laws to scare the crap out of potential animal abusers, thus reducing occurrences of abuse. Michael Vick.....well, he's a whole other conversation for another time, but let's just say he'd be ruined and there wouldn't be talk about ANY NFL team taking him.... EVER. And maybe there would be a huge team of people beyond Cesar Milan and PETA and the ASPCA shutting down puppy mills and stopping the horrible cruelty that goes on in even our country!

Now, before I wrap this up (because I could really rant for awhile), I want to address all of the people who say, "Why should it go to ANIMALS when there are HUMANS in need???" To you, I say please consider that humans are not THE most important life form on this planet. If you want to know why I believe this, drop me a line and I'll share.

Next, I want you to know that this was the first time in charitable history that such an enormous amount of money was donated to an animal or animal related cause. First time EVER. And while Ms. Helmsley really went gangbusters with this and shot right to the top of the annual top 60 charity list, right behind her was Revlon's Ron Perelman, who donated $63.5 million to the Weill Medical Center for cancer research, education and patient care, in memory of his ex-wife.

And behind him? Not one other animal related cause made that list. Maybe there was another at Number 61? I doubt it.