1 00:00:11,440 --> 00:00:15,960 Speaker 1: Peter Franklin had been running a successful woodworking business on Lanai, Hawaii, 2 00:00:16,040 --> 00:00:18,880 Speaker 1: when Larry Ellison, one of the richest people on the planet, 3 00:00:19,400 --> 00:00:22,959 Speaker 1: but nearly the entire island for about three hundred million dollars. 4 00:00:23,560 --> 00:00:27,000 Speaker 1: This was back in There are feelings of both angst 5 00:00:27,240 --> 00:00:31,040 Speaker 1: and excitement as Lenite residents prepared to welcome new billionaire 6 00:00:31,080 --> 00:00:35,279 Speaker 1: owner Larry Ellison. Larry Ellison loves to go shopping for 7 00:00:35,400 --> 00:00:39,000 Speaker 1: big things seton bought a Hawaiian island recently. In his 8 00:00:39,080 --> 00:00:42,720 Speaker 1: first interview since buying three months ago, Larry Ellison shows 9 00:00:42,760 --> 00:00:47,040 Speaker 1: he's as ambitious as he is rich. The news meant 10 00:00:47,080 --> 00:00:50,360 Speaker 1: that Peter had a new landlord, and at first things 11 00:00:50,400 --> 00:00:54,000 Speaker 1: went relatively well. For one, he had a new spending client. 12 00:00:54,920 --> 00:00:57,920 Speaker 1: Ellison's people asked Peter to make some furniture and hired 13 00:00:57,960 --> 00:01:01,400 Speaker 1: his shop, Lanai Woodworkers, for one of his first projects 14 00:01:01,480 --> 00:01:05,160 Speaker 1: on the island, building a Nobu, you know, the Japanese 15 00:01:05,200 --> 00:01:09,320 Speaker 1: restaurant known for its celebrity sightings. Here's Peter remembering one 16 00:01:09,360 --> 00:01:12,800 Speaker 1: of the earlier projects he did for Ellison. Mr. Ellison 17 00:01:13,400 --> 00:01:17,279 Speaker 1: was starting to spend more time here and the story 18 00:01:17,440 --> 00:01:21,120 Speaker 1: was he didn't like rectangular square tables. He didn't like corners, 19 00:01:22,040 --> 00:01:26,240 Speaker 1: and so they wanted this massive round table and they're 20 00:01:26,240 --> 00:01:28,760 Speaker 1: like so many other jobs. We did it, We got 21 00:01:28,760 --> 00:01:32,039 Speaker 1: it done. It was a nice table. Massively. The Nobu 22 00:01:32,160 --> 00:01:35,319 Speaker 1: job was finished six months after Ellison bought the island. 23 00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:39,800 Speaker 1: Chris Andrews, one of Peter's employees, remembers meeting Ellison for 24 00:01:39,840 --> 00:01:42,600 Speaker 1: the first time during its opening in late December of 25 00:01:42,600 --> 00:01:47,560 Speaker 1: that year. We're down there for the soft opening. At 26 00:01:47,560 --> 00:01:48,920 Speaker 1: one point I had to go to the rest of us, 27 00:01:48,920 --> 00:01:51,280 Speaker 1: so I pushed my chair back and bumped into someone. 28 00:01:51,600 --> 00:01:54,720 Speaker 1: All I apologize, is so sorry, And I turned around. 29 00:01:54,840 --> 00:01:57,280 Speaker 1: Here's a scrubby looking guy. Couldn't he believe use their 30 00:01:57,360 --> 00:02:02,320 Speaker 1: flannel shirt head shape? He said, Oh, I'm Ellison And 31 00:02:02,320 --> 00:02:04,600 Speaker 1: I said, oh, Mr Ellison, Well we did these walls 32 00:02:04,600 --> 00:02:08,200 Speaker 1: were lynn I would workers. We did your hostess stand. 33 00:02:08,480 --> 00:02:10,120 Speaker 1: He shakes my hand and says, we're going to do 34 00:02:10,160 --> 00:02:13,680 Speaker 1: great work together. January one. We had a distinction of 35 00:02:13,760 --> 00:02:17,000 Speaker 1: being the first company that he killed, the first company 36 00:02:17,040 --> 00:02:20,040 Speaker 1: he kills, but not the last, and it would be 37 00:02:20,040 --> 00:02:24,840 Speaker 1: a slow death. Ellison's management company, Palama Nai, which means 38 00:02:24,880 --> 00:02:29,400 Speaker 1: to cherish Lenai, first came to Peter with an ultimatum, 39 00:02:29,400 --> 00:02:33,000 Speaker 1: either he could sell his business to Polama or vacate 40 00:02:33,080 --> 00:02:37,080 Speaker 1: the building. When Mr Ellison bought the island, they came 41 00:02:37,120 --> 00:02:41,400 Speaker 1: to me and said, listen, we owned this building, we 42 00:02:41,440 --> 00:02:44,000 Speaker 1: want to use the building. You can work for us, 43 00:02:44,080 --> 00:02:46,840 Speaker 1: or you can go do something else. For Peter, the 44 00:02:46,919 --> 00:02:49,919 Speaker 1: choice was simple, keep doing what he'd been doing for years. 45 00:02:50,760 --> 00:02:53,240 Speaker 1: He sold the business and worked for Ellison for another 46 00:02:53,320 --> 00:02:58,840 Speaker 1: six years. Then not of nowhere again, Ellison's company decided 47 00:02:58,919 --> 00:03:03,639 Speaker 1: to shut down Lanai Woodworkers entirely. Masamoto called me into 48 00:03:03,720 --> 00:03:07,640 Speaker 1: his office and, as a surprise to me, called me 49 00:03:07,639 --> 00:03:10,720 Speaker 1: into his office and uh, well, me was closing a woodshop. 50 00:03:11,280 --> 00:03:15,200 Speaker 1: Kurt Matsumoto is the president of Ellison's management company. After that, 51 00:03:15,280 --> 00:03:17,680 Speaker 1: I asked her if we could buy any the equipment, 52 00:03:18,639 --> 00:03:22,520 Speaker 1: and he told me no. He recommended I leave the island, 53 00:03:23,160 --> 00:03:25,600 Speaker 1: and I was kind of shattered by that, kind of 54 00:03:25,600 --> 00:03:27,440 Speaker 1: made up my mind. Well, I guess I'm not leaving. 55 00:03:28,480 --> 00:03:31,120 Speaker 1: The problem for Peter is he might not have a 56 00:03:31,200 --> 00:03:35,080 Speaker 1: choice in the matter. Ellison also owns the apartment where 57 00:03:35,080 --> 00:03:38,800 Speaker 1: he lives, and there's a stipulation in the billionaires residential 58 00:03:38,880 --> 00:03:41,680 Speaker 1: leases that if you work for one of the landlords 59 00:03:41,720 --> 00:03:45,520 Speaker 1: companies and are fired. That's grounds to terminate your lease. 60 00:03:46,080 --> 00:03:48,600 Speaker 1: In other words, Ellison could kick him out of his 61 00:03:48,640 --> 00:03:52,400 Speaker 1: apartment at any time. So you're holding your bronake. It 62 00:03:52,440 --> 00:03:55,080 Speaker 1: easily say, well, listen you, you don't work for us anymore. 63 00:03:55,640 --> 00:03:57,960 Speaker 1: You have the vacate. And so it goes on an 64 00:03:57,960 --> 00:04:01,280 Speaker 1: island owned by a man who's so rich that if 65 00:04:01,320 --> 00:04:04,839 Speaker 1: he wanted to, he could afford to buy Lennai three 66 00:04:04,960 --> 00:04:08,960 Speaker 1: hundred times over. Jobless claims coming in, I mean really 67 00:04:09,040 --> 00:04:12,720 Speaker 1: jumping from the week before, pretty brutal. Three point to 68 00:04:13,120 --> 00:04:16,599 Speaker 1: a million records six point six million Americans filed for 69 00:04:16,720 --> 00:04:21,600 Speaker 1: unemployment lost week. Indian booking reminable, the worst impacted by 70 00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:25,120 Speaker 1: the pandemic. Well, now to the billionaire boom. According to 71 00:04:25,160 --> 00:04:30,400 Speaker 1: Bloomberg's supriocht charters are up over three hundred and a 72 00:04:30,440 --> 00:04:34,760 Speaker 1: billionaire was created every twenty six hours during this condetic 73 00:04:34,880 --> 00:04:38,000 Speaker 1: Larry Ellison loves to go shopping for big things. You 74 00:04:38,240 --> 00:04:41,720 Speaker 1: bought a Hawaiian island recently. No one not waiting in 75 00:04:41,839 --> 00:04:45,760 Speaker 1: line for a COVID test with the public roads. It 76 00:04:45,960 --> 00:04:53,920 Speaker 1: is time for a wealth tax and America welcome back 77 00:04:53,960 --> 00:04:58,520 Speaker 1: to the paycheck I'm Rebecca Greenfield. The growth and wealth 78 00:04:58,520 --> 00:05:01,920 Speaker 1: inequality around the world in recent decades has been driven 79 00:05:02,120 --> 00:05:07,560 Speaker 1: by explosive wealth creation at the very top. Before the pandemic, 80 00:05:07,960 --> 00:05:12,760 Speaker 1: billionaire wealth was booming. The top twenty richest people in 81 00:05:12,760 --> 00:05:16,920 Speaker 1: the world held as much wealth as half of humanity, 82 00:05:17,080 --> 00:05:22,280 Speaker 1: that's almost four billion people. Then during the pandemic that 83 00:05:22,360 --> 00:05:26,200 Speaker 1: gap got much wider. Here's a bile Aghmed, a strategist 84 00:05:26,240 --> 00:05:30,480 Speaker 1: from ox MAM International. This pandemic, we're witnessing the biggest 85 00:05:30,839 --> 00:05:35,400 Speaker 1: increase in billionaire wealth since records began. In fact, billionaire 86 00:05:35,400 --> 00:05:38,320 Speaker 1: wealth has increased more during the pandemic than it has 87 00:05:38,320 --> 00:05:41,960 Speaker 1: in the fourteen years combined, and a billionaire was created 88 00:05:42,120 --> 00:05:45,839 Speaker 1: every twenty six hours a year into the pandemic. It 89 00:05:45,920 --> 00:05:49,359 Speaker 1: only took ten billionaires to get all the wealth held 90 00:05:49,440 --> 00:05:54,480 Speaker 1: by half of humanity. Wealth isn't inherently bad, and a 91 00:05:54,520 --> 00:05:59,040 Speaker 1: lot of people argue that billionaires have benefited society by innovating, 92 00:05:59,160 --> 00:06:03,720 Speaker 1: creating jaw new companies, and they were in part incentivized 93 00:06:03,760 --> 00:06:06,680 Speaker 1: to do that by the prospect of getting very wealthy. 94 00:06:07,640 --> 00:06:09,640 Speaker 1: Many of them also use their money to give back 95 00:06:09,680 --> 00:06:12,839 Speaker 1: in ways that better the world, by, for example, funding 96 00:06:12,880 --> 00:06:17,040 Speaker 1: research that creates things like vaccines. But money is power, 97 00:06:17,600 --> 00:06:20,960 Speaker 1: and increasingly one group of people is accumulating so much 98 00:06:21,040 --> 00:06:23,760 Speaker 1: wealth that in some ways, it can bend the world 99 00:06:23,839 --> 00:06:30,239 Speaker 1: to its whims at the expense of others. One such 100 00:06:30,279 --> 00:06:34,800 Speaker 1: billionaire is Larry Ellison. According to Bloomberg's Billionaires Index, which 101 00:06:34,920 --> 00:06:39,440 Speaker 1: tracks billionaire wealth, he's worth around ninety billion dollars depending 102 00:06:39,440 --> 00:06:42,440 Speaker 1: on the day. That's nearly double what he had before 103 00:06:42,520 --> 00:06:46,040 Speaker 1: the pandemic. Ellison made his money as the co founder 104 00:06:46,080 --> 00:06:49,400 Speaker 1: of Oracle, a software company. He's part of a new 105 00:06:49,440 --> 00:06:53,680 Speaker 1: generation of scions, wealthier and more powerful due to a 106 00:06:53,720 --> 00:06:58,640 Speaker 1: soaring stock market that has primarily benefited American technology giants. 107 00:06:59,360 --> 00:07:03,080 Speaker 1: They have an unfathomable amount of wealth to most people, 108 00:07:03,680 --> 00:07:08,520 Speaker 1: even probably themselves. Ellison may be best known for how 109 00:07:08,560 --> 00:07:13,360 Speaker 1: he spends his money, mansions, yachts, a tennis tournament, and 110 00:07:13,800 --> 00:07:17,640 Speaker 1: buying of the island of Lenai, the two Four Seasons 111 00:07:17,680 --> 00:07:20,440 Speaker 1: resorts there, around a third of its housing stock, and 112 00:07:20,480 --> 00:07:25,360 Speaker 1: practically all the commercial properties. Plenty of wealthy people own 113 00:07:25,440 --> 00:07:29,640 Speaker 1: private islands, but Lanai stands out. It's home to around 114 00:07:29,680 --> 00:07:35,160 Speaker 1: three thousand people, many whose families have lived there for generations. Overnight, 115 00:07:35,200 --> 00:07:38,160 Speaker 1: when he first bought it back in Most of those 116 00:07:38,160 --> 00:07:41,520 Speaker 1: people got a new boss, or a new landlord, or both. 117 00:07:42,720 --> 00:07:47,280 Speaker 1: Now they have a new neighbor. Like many office workers 118 00:07:47,280 --> 00:07:51,880 Speaker 1: stuck in their homes during lockdowns, Ellison relocated to one 119 00:07:51,880 --> 00:07:55,720 Speaker 1: of his many properties on Lanai. With the billionaire's attention 120 00:07:55,880 --> 00:08:00,000 Speaker 1: focused on the island now more than ever, residents are anxious. 121 00:08:00,600 --> 00:08:04,000 Speaker 1: None of them wants to become the next Lanaii woodworkers. 122 00:08:05,360 --> 00:08:09,000 Speaker 1: Sophia Alexander, a reporter on Bloomberg's Wealth Team, went to 123 00:08:09,040 --> 00:08:17,240 Speaker 1: Hawaii to see how things are playing out. There's a 124 00:08:17,280 --> 00:08:22,560 Speaker 1: reason people conjure images of Hawaii's sandy beaches, sunny blue skies, 125 00:08:23,000 --> 00:08:28,000 Speaker 1: and rolling green mountains when they think of paradise. Lanai 126 00:08:28,160 --> 00:08:31,560 Speaker 1: is no different. Approaching the island on the ferry from 127 00:08:31,560 --> 00:08:36,240 Speaker 1: Maui's Lahinah Harbor, It's hills look buttery soft. The Pacific 128 00:08:36,280 --> 00:08:39,160 Speaker 1: water that surrounds it is a deep blue, so clear. 129 00:08:39,160 --> 00:08:41,720 Speaker 1: In some parts you can see the ocean floor and 130 00:08:41,800 --> 00:08:44,679 Speaker 1: a ring of clouds hovering around the islands. Mountain Peak 131 00:08:45,080 --> 00:08:47,520 Speaker 1: is called Mount a Lay because it looks like the 132 00:08:47,559 --> 00:08:51,400 Speaker 1: island is wearing a lay the Polynesian flower garland. It's 133 00:08:51,440 --> 00:08:54,959 Speaker 1: idyllic so it's easy to see why someone would want 134 00:08:54,960 --> 00:08:57,560 Speaker 1: to buy a Hawaiian island if they could. We know 135 00:08:57,679 --> 00:09:00,760 Speaker 1: that you've made tons of headlines recently ying in island 136 00:09:00,760 --> 00:09:04,040 Speaker 1: in Hawaii, Lenna, buying tons of homes. How many homes 137 00:09:04,040 --> 00:09:08,760 Speaker 1: do you own right now? Um, well, let's see homes 138 00:09:08,760 --> 00:09:10,880 Speaker 1: that I live in? Or why do you buy the 139 00:09:10,880 --> 00:09:12,439 Speaker 1: home if you don't live in? Well, for example, I 140 00:09:12,640 --> 00:09:14,800 Speaker 1: bought a home in Newport, Rhode Island, which I'm converting 141 00:09:14,800 --> 00:09:18,480 Speaker 1: into a nineteenth century European art museum. Larry Ellison didn't 142 00:09:18,480 --> 00:09:20,840 Speaker 1: respond to my emails asking to talk to him for 143 00:09:20,880 --> 00:09:24,160 Speaker 1: this story, and his management company didn't make any of 144 00:09:24,200 --> 00:09:27,120 Speaker 1: its executives available to me. We did find this one 145 00:09:27,160 --> 00:09:30,240 Speaker 1: interview he did on CNBC back in two thousand twelve. 146 00:09:30,679 --> 00:09:33,400 Speaker 1: Back then, he said he wanted to make Lenai a 147 00:09:33,440 --> 00:09:38,839 Speaker 1: sustainable paradise and help local start small businesses. He also 148 00:09:38,920 --> 00:09:41,400 Speaker 1: goes on and on about his plans for his own 149 00:09:41,559 --> 00:09:44,360 Speaker 1: art museums and his desire as a kid to be 150 00:09:44,440 --> 00:09:46,720 Speaker 1: a pilot, which is why he now has his own 151 00:09:46,760 --> 00:09:50,920 Speaker 1: planes to fly. But Lenny isn't just a mansion or 152 00:09:50,960 --> 00:09:54,440 Speaker 1: a jet. It's a community and one small decision from 153 00:09:54,440 --> 00:09:58,520 Speaker 1: Ellison can change everything. It's like a real life version 154 00:09:58,520 --> 00:10:02,840 Speaker 1: of SIMS, the World Building video game. Now a decade 155 00:10:02,880 --> 00:10:06,640 Speaker 1: has passed and Ellison and his company have changed a lot. 156 00:10:06,679 --> 00:10:10,720 Speaker 1: On the Nai Lanai woodworkers closed, so did the family 157 00:10:10,720 --> 00:10:14,560 Speaker 1: owned pokey shop and the car rental business and more 158 00:10:14,600 --> 00:10:18,319 Speaker 1: recently the cafe down the street. Most day. They were 159 00:10:18,320 --> 00:10:21,600 Speaker 1: given no explanation for their demise in and of itself. 160 00:10:21,640 --> 00:10:24,640 Speaker 1: When they buy this business or take over this business 161 00:10:24,880 --> 00:10:28,640 Speaker 1: doesn't seem much but in totality that that is a 162 00:10:28,720 --> 00:10:32,800 Speaker 1: concern from an economic standpoint, and just from the I 163 00:10:32,840 --> 00:10:37,760 Speaker 1: think from the perception residents have of what they're doing 164 00:10:37,960 --> 00:10:41,319 Speaker 1: on much control they have. Was it a metaphorm looking 165 00:10:41,360 --> 00:10:43,800 Speaker 1: at is throwing a crab, you know, part of cold 166 00:10:43,840 --> 00:10:47,120 Speaker 1: water and turning on the stole and you know, realize 167 00:10:47,160 --> 00:10:51,439 Speaker 1: that they're being boiled to death. That's Bochema, a retired 168 00:10:51,480 --> 00:10:53,840 Speaker 1: social worker who grew up on the island and is 169 00:10:53,880 --> 00:10:57,200 Speaker 1: one of the most vocal members of the community. We're 170 00:10:57,240 --> 00:11:01,040 Speaker 1: in Dole Park, the quasi town square of Nay City, 171 00:11:01,080 --> 00:11:03,640 Speaker 1: which got its name from James Dole, who bought the 172 00:11:03,640 --> 00:11:08,840 Speaker 1: island in one years ago. Dole decided to turn the 173 00:11:08,880 --> 00:11:13,400 Speaker 1: island into the world's largest pineapple plantation. So yeah, I 174 00:11:13,400 --> 00:11:17,080 Speaker 1: mean the Pineapple dictated how life went, you know here 175 00:11:17,080 --> 00:11:21,880 Speaker 1: in our community. And the old Pineapple, I mean they 176 00:11:21,920 --> 00:11:24,880 Speaker 1: basically took care of everything. They ran the barge to 177 00:11:25,000 --> 00:11:28,320 Speaker 1: and from Oahu. You kind of ran the clinic, they 178 00:11:28,400 --> 00:11:31,520 Speaker 1: ran the hospital. I mean, you know, they ran everything. 179 00:11:31,600 --> 00:11:36,520 Speaker 1: So they had a lot of control over what happened 180 00:11:36,559 --> 00:11:39,880 Speaker 1: in town. Butch grew up on the island during plantation days, 181 00:11:40,320 --> 00:11:45,320 Speaker 1: when everything was regulated by the company. Whistles marched the 182 00:11:45,360 --> 00:11:47,800 Speaker 1: start of our work day and whistles marked the a 183 00:11:47,920 --> 00:11:51,400 Speaker 1: p m. Curfew. The control over seemingly every aspect of 184 00:11:51,480 --> 00:11:54,480 Speaker 1: life and the dependence on the company for family's well 185 00:11:54,520 --> 00:11:59,199 Speaker 1: being created what locals still referred to as a plantation mentality. 186 00:11:59,559 --> 00:12:03,040 Speaker 1: What's this in the plantation? Is this idea that if 187 00:12:03,080 --> 00:12:05,720 Speaker 1: you work for the plantation, you don't speak out against them, 188 00:12:06,040 --> 00:12:09,360 Speaker 1: and that holds true no matter what to this day. 189 00:12:09,400 --> 00:12:13,680 Speaker 1: That's Solomon pele Halla Halla, a seventh generation Lenian who 190 00:12:13,679 --> 00:12:16,560 Speaker 1: goes by Saul. He also grew up during the plantation days. 191 00:12:17,240 --> 00:12:21,920 Speaker 1: My parents then, we're both the workers of the pineapple plantation. 192 00:12:22,400 --> 00:12:26,600 Speaker 1: My mother was a pineapple picker and my father became 193 00:12:26,760 --> 00:12:31,080 Speaker 1: a heavy equipment operator and a truck driver irrigating the 194 00:12:31,120 --> 00:12:34,479 Speaker 1: pineapple fields. First all, there was one instance in particular 195 00:12:34,760 --> 00:12:37,760 Speaker 1: that crystallized the wealth gap between the Nays residents and 196 00:12:37,840 --> 00:12:41,720 Speaker 1: Lenie owners, a divide that's only grown bigger With Ellison. 197 00:12:42,160 --> 00:12:44,520 Speaker 1: I took a part time job. In the evening, I 198 00:12:44,559 --> 00:12:48,520 Speaker 1: did bartending as our part time, you know, And on 199 00:12:48,520 --> 00:12:51,960 Speaker 1: one day a group of people came in to have lunch, 200 00:12:52,840 --> 00:12:55,520 Speaker 1: and they are unusual group of people because the women 201 00:12:55,600 --> 00:12:59,880 Speaker 1: had Mike strolls on and I was serving their drinks. 202 00:13:00,240 --> 00:13:03,600 Speaker 1: So they were ordering martiniz for lunch. And then when 203 00:13:03,600 --> 00:13:06,719 Speaker 1: they were getting ready to leave after their lunch, they 204 00:13:06,720 --> 00:13:10,680 Speaker 1: were walking out with their martini glasses and as a bartender, 205 00:13:10,760 --> 00:13:13,320 Speaker 1: I'd just said I better go and retrieve the glasses. 206 00:13:13,840 --> 00:13:17,120 Speaker 1: So I started to walk out of the hotel and 207 00:13:17,480 --> 00:13:20,360 Speaker 1: then the manager saw me, and then she stopped me 208 00:13:20,400 --> 00:13:23,280 Speaker 1: and she says, where are you going? And said, I'm 209 00:13:23,280 --> 00:13:26,520 Speaker 1: going to go and get the martini glasses from those 210 00:13:26,559 --> 00:13:31,559 Speaker 1: people that are leaving, And then she's stopped and she says, no, 211 00:13:31,720 --> 00:13:35,400 Speaker 1: let them go. And I said, why they're taking our 212 00:13:35,440 --> 00:13:40,400 Speaker 1: glasses and she says, these are the board of directors 213 00:13:41,480 --> 00:13:48,319 Speaker 1: for the Doll company. Yeah, that helped me to realize 214 00:13:48,400 --> 00:13:54,000 Speaker 1: that this plantation was supporting the people that we're having 215 00:13:54,040 --> 00:13:57,880 Speaker 1: martini lunches. And so I asked her, I said, so 216 00:13:58,120 --> 00:14:01,280 Speaker 1: they're leaving right now, Are they going to go in 217 00:14:01,280 --> 00:14:04,680 Speaker 1: into the pineapple fields to thank my mother and my 218 00:14:04,800 --> 00:14:10,640 Speaker 1: father for what they do to give them their flaunting wealth? 219 00:14:11,240 --> 00:14:14,720 Speaker 1: And she says, I don't think so, And then I 220 00:14:14,760 --> 00:14:34,600 Speaker 1: was crushed at that moment. Doll closed its plantation after 221 00:14:34,680 --> 00:14:38,000 Speaker 1: its parent company was bought by a billionaire named David Murdoch. 222 00:14:38,720 --> 00:14:42,160 Speaker 1: Murdoch is what locals now call a poor billionaire. He 223 00:14:42,280 --> 00:14:44,840 Speaker 1: was only worth a couple of billion dollars compared to 224 00:14:44,880 --> 00:14:49,440 Speaker 1: Ellison's roughly nine billion dollar fortune. People told me they 225 00:14:49,480 --> 00:14:53,040 Speaker 1: remember Murdoch routinely complaining about how much money he was 226 00:14:53,080 --> 00:14:56,640 Speaker 1: losing from the island. Ultimately, when he could no longer 227 00:14:56,680 --> 00:14:59,480 Speaker 1: afford to keep it running, he sold it to Ellison. 228 00:15:00,480 --> 00:15:04,000 Speaker 1: But Murdoch's impact on the island was enormous. He's the 229 00:15:04,000 --> 00:15:07,200 Speaker 1: one who built the two hotels and oversaw the transition 230 00:15:07,280 --> 00:15:11,560 Speaker 1: from pineapples to tourism. The change wasn't easy, and he 231 00:15:11,600 --> 00:15:15,240 Speaker 1: tangled with many of Lenais residents during his reign, often 232 00:15:15,240 --> 00:15:19,520 Speaker 1: getting into screaming matches with locals. But unlike Ellison, people 233 00:15:19,560 --> 00:15:22,240 Speaker 1: here told me the island's previous owner was at least 234 00:15:22,280 --> 00:15:25,720 Speaker 1: willing to talk to them face to face. For me, 235 00:15:26,120 --> 00:15:30,760 Speaker 1: that is a relationship, and that is one that allows 236 00:15:30,840 --> 00:15:35,120 Speaker 1: us to interact whether we agree or disagree. I've had 237 00:15:35,160 --> 00:15:38,760 Speaker 1: that relationship with with Murdoch because when he was wrong, 238 00:15:38,880 --> 00:15:41,680 Speaker 1: when he had no idea about it, I wouldn't hesitate 239 00:15:41,720 --> 00:15:44,000 Speaker 1: to him, and he would always tell me, you know, 240 00:15:44,200 --> 00:15:47,040 Speaker 1: you're a thorn in my side, you know, And I 241 00:15:47,080 --> 00:15:51,680 Speaker 1: took that as a compliment. Now with Ellison, it's a 242 00:15:51,680 --> 00:15:56,440 Speaker 1: completely different story. Solve remembers approaching the president of Ellison's 243 00:15:56,480 --> 00:15:58,960 Speaker 1: company to ask for a meeting with the new owner. 244 00:15:59,480 --> 00:16:02,680 Speaker 1: I say, Kurt, I would like to request a meeting 245 00:16:02,920 --> 00:16:09,320 Speaker 1: with Ellison in person. Kurt's response to me, and I'll 246 00:16:09,320 --> 00:16:13,880 Speaker 1: never forget this, He says, I don't mean to be disrespectful, 247 00:16:14,600 --> 00:16:18,640 Speaker 1: but that is not Ellison's style. Those are the exact 248 00:16:18,640 --> 00:16:21,440 Speaker 1: words they've been ingrained in me from that very moment. 249 00:16:21,920 --> 00:16:25,960 Speaker 1: And my response to Kurt was, first of all, that 250 00:16:26,120 --> 00:16:32,320 Speaker 1: is disrespectful, But beyond that, I still have an expectation 251 00:16:32,960 --> 00:16:35,240 Speaker 1: that we need to sit down and meet, you know, 252 00:16:35,800 --> 00:16:40,760 Speaker 1: and so I make my requests. So I've been waiting 253 00:16:40,800 --> 00:16:44,360 Speaker 1: now for ten years to have a conversation, just to 254 00:16:44,480 --> 00:16:50,080 Speaker 1: get to meet this person who somehow this mystic and 255 00:16:50,240 --> 00:16:52,960 Speaker 1: this mover and shaker in a community of which we 256 00:16:53,000 --> 00:16:55,720 Speaker 1: don't get to see you or no, and my requests 257 00:16:55,720 --> 00:17:00,160 Speaker 1: have never been acknowledged or responded to. I also to 258 00:17:00,160 --> 00:17:03,880 Speaker 1: speak with Kurt Matsumoto, the president of Ellison's management company, 259 00:17:04,400 --> 00:17:08,760 Speaker 1: but he didn't respond to my emails. A spokesperson for 260 00:17:08,760 --> 00:17:12,160 Speaker 1: Poulama did suggest I talked to Diane Presa, who acts 261 00:17:12,200 --> 00:17:15,960 Speaker 1: as a liaison between the company and the community. She 262 00:17:16,000 --> 00:17:18,840 Speaker 1: didn't seem to want to talk much about Ellison's plans, 263 00:17:19,480 --> 00:17:22,119 Speaker 1: but she was the only person from Ellison's company who 264 00:17:22,200 --> 00:17:25,760 Speaker 1: agreed to be interviewed. So I had to ask, do 265 00:17:25,800 --> 00:17:27,720 Speaker 1: you feel like you have a broad sense of what 266 00:17:27,760 --> 00:17:31,919 Speaker 1: the plans Polama has for the community? Are? You know? 267 00:17:31,960 --> 00:17:34,720 Speaker 1: Things change at Puloma all the time. So I hate 268 00:17:34,760 --> 00:17:38,280 Speaker 1: to say something and then it doesn't happen, you know, 269 00:17:38,440 --> 00:17:44,119 Speaker 1: I guess like long term plans, you know, um I 270 00:17:44,119 --> 00:17:50,000 Speaker 1: would say no, while the uncertainty is scary for people 271 00:17:50,040 --> 00:17:52,600 Speaker 1: like Saul and Butch, who have lived on l Nay 272 00:17:52,760 --> 00:17:55,960 Speaker 1: for decades. There's more at stake for the younger generation 273 00:17:56,359 --> 00:17:59,160 Speaker 1: that worries about its future here on the island. Take 274 00:17:59,240 --> 00:18:02,360 Speaker 1: Michelle Fuji, a thirty eight year old high school math 275 00:18:02,400 --> 00:18:04,800 Speaker 1: teacher who grew up here and is raising her two 276 00:18:04,880 --> 00:18:09,080 Speaker 1: kids here. She loves lenai An enthusiastically offered to drive 277 00:18:09,160 --> 00:18:11,800 Speaker 1: me around to show me her favorite parts of the island. 278 00:18:12,160 --> 00:18:15,359 Speaker 1: Like pretty much everyone else here, her speedometer rarely topped, 279 00:18:17,240 --> 00:18:19,440 Speaker 1: and it seems like she waved at every passing car 280 00:18:19,680 --> 00:18:22,680 Speaker 1: and person. Let's see if Auntie wants to ride because 281 00:18:22,720 --> 00:18:28,800 Speaker 1: she's walking to the rain. Sorry, that's Auntie. You like 282 00:18:28,880 --> 00:18:33,679 Speaker 1: when ride it is raining? You sure? Okay, you go 283 00:18:33,920 --> 00:18:38,440 Speaker 1: girl with your exercise. Everyone seems to know everyone here. 284 00:18:39,160 --> 00:18:42,639 Speaker 1: People refer to their elders as aunties and uncles. I 285 00:18:42,720 --> 00:18:46,119 Speaker 1: routinely saw people hugging. A stranger even invited me to 286 00:18:46,240 --> 00:18:49,119 Speaker 1: his kid's birthday party on the beach. Ellison is not 287 00:18:49,200 --> 00:18:52,240 Speaker 1: part of any of that, and it doesn't go unnoticed. 288 00:18:53,400 --> 00:18:57,080 Speaker 1: I think a big difference between Murdoch and Allison is 289 00:18:57,080 --> 00:19:00,359 Speaker 1: is just the connection to the community. Like I and 290 00:19:00,359 --> 00:19:02,399 Speaker 1: and I maybe it's like, you know how there's like 291 00:19:02,440 --> 00:19:04,879 Speaker 1: the five love languages and what is your best like 292 00:19:05,119 --> 00:19:10,199 Speaker 1: love language UM, And so maybe Murdoch was like words 293 00:19:10,200 --> 00:19:13,639 Speaker 1: of affirmation or service, you know, where he would actually 294 00:19:13,640 --> 00:19:17,199 Speaker 1: come out UM or quality time and spend time with 295 00:19:17,240 --> 00:19:20,359 Speaker 1: the community members, like people knew him by like first name, 296 00:19:21,080 --> 00:19:23,200 Speaker 1: and you know, whenever he would come home, like sure 297 00:19:23,240 --> 00:19:27,600 Speaker 1: there's still that plantation boss mentality and everybody bowed down 298 00:19:27,680 --> 00:19:30,800 Speaker 1: and you know, praise you. But at the same time, 299 00:19:30,800 --> 00:19:32,920 Speaker 1: it's like people knew who he was. When you've seen 300 00:19:33,000 --> 00:19:36,040 Speaker 1: his face, you would recognize him and he would greet you. 301 00:19:36,240 --> 00:19:40,280 Speaker 1: Ellison is a little bit different. I've never met him. 302 00:19:40,320 --> 00:19:43,680 Speaker 1: Without any insight from Ellison, that leaves Michelle to fill 303 00:19:43,720 --> 00:19:46,640 Speaker 1: in the blanks about how his company's plans will affect 304 00:19:46,640 --> 00:19:52,040 Speaker 1: her life. I don't think that I'm fully Like if 305 00:19:52,080 --> 00:19:54,040 Speaker 1: I had to put my money on whether or not 306 00:19:54,600 --> 00:20:00,119 Speaker 1: Poulama is solely in it for the best interest of 307 00:20:00,160 --> 00:20:04,040 Speaker 1: our community, I would not put my whole fortune on it, 308 00:20:04,160 --> 00:20:07,360 Speaker 1: you know what I mean. Since the pandemic started, more 309 00:20:07,480 --> 00:20:10,840 Speaker 1: rich people seem to be moving to the island. Michelle 310 00:20:10,880 --> 00:20:15,200 Speaker 1: is worried about the community becoming more divided economically. One 311 00:20:15,240 --> 00:20:18,000 Speaker 1: of my biggest fears is that the people of this 312 00:20:18,080 --> 00:20:22,320 Speaker 1: community will sort of be the ones that would be 313 00:20:22,359 --> 00:20:25,600 Speaker 1: caring for the elite rich that can't afford to actually 314 00:20:25,600 --> 00:20:29,760 Speaker 1: live here one day, and that's our sole purpose. Like 315 00:20:29,840 --> 00:20:34,000 Speaker 1: as an educator, you would think that we would want 316 00:20:34,040 --> 00:20:38,400 Speaker 1: our students to graduate and aspire to be more than 317 00:20:38,480 --> 00:20:47,520 Speaker 1: just somebody's servant. Michelle and her fiance have three kids 318 00:20:47,560 --> 00:20:50,560 Speaker 1: between the two of them and are excited about getting married, 319 00:20:51,000 --> 00:20:54,560 Speaker 1: but she says it's getting impossible to find housing, especially 320 00:20:54,640 --> 00:20:57,199 Speaker 1: after Ellison moved to the island and the pace of 321 00:20:57,280 --> 00:21:02,320 Speaker 1: his construction projects have picked up. All those projects need 322 00:21:02,400 --> 00:21:06,119 Speaker 1: people to build them, which means more construction workers living 323 00:21:06,160 --> 00:21:09,560 Speaker 1: on the island taking up the already limited housing options. 324 00:21:10,280 --> 00:21:16,879 Speaker 1: There's no houses. Really, isn't any homes that we could 325 00:21:17,600 --> 00:21:20,399 Speaker 1: affordably rent, you know, Like I think now, if we 326 00:21:20,400 --> 00:21:22,800 Speaker 1: were to try and find the house that was being 327 00:21:22,840 --> 00:21:25,199 Speaker 1: rented by some local family, we would be paying like 328 00:21:25,240 --> 00:21:29,360 Speaker 1: two dollars a month, because that's what construction workers would pay, 329 00:21:29,400 --> 00:21:32,280 Speaker 1: or that's what you know, the market would allow for. 330 00:21:33,080 --> 00:21:36,439 Speaker 1: To alleviate the housing crunch, Ellison is building more homes 331 00:21:36,440 --> 00:21:39,760 Speaker 1: on the island. The plan initially had units for sale, 332 00:21:40,240 --> 00:21:43,359 Speaker 1: but something changed and now they're all only for rent. 333 00:21:43,960 --> 00:21:46,800 Speaker 1: At first, Michelle was against the project because of the 334 00:21:46,880 --> 00:21:49,280 Speaker 1: change and the fact that the units will all be 335 00:21:49,359 --> 00:21:53,159 Speaker 1: fully furnished, making it feel like they're for outsiders moving 336 00:21:53,160 --> 00:21:56,760 Speaker 1: to the island temporarily. But with her wedding coming up, 337 00:21:57,280 --> 00:22:01,919 Speaker 1: she's desperate for options. That where my sway changed, you know, 338 00:22:02,200 --> 00:22:04,560 Speaker 1: Like then it's like, okay, well, if we're thinking about 339 00:22:04,560 --> 00:22:07,399 Speaker 1: the future as a married couple and we're not able 340 00:22:07,440 --> 00:22:11,760 Speaker 1: to live together unless we you know, I don't want 341 00:22:11,760 --> 00:22:13,840 Speaker 1: to say sell out because it's not really selling out 342 00:22:13,840 --> 00:22:17,560 Speaker 1: because we're not really selling anything, but it definitely changed 343 00:22:17,640 --> 00:22:22,199 Speaker 1: my perspective of things versus it just being like, you know, 344 00:22:22,240 --> 00:22:24,120 Speaker 1: we gotta think about ways that we're going to merge 345 00:22:24,119 --> 00:22:28,640 Speaker 1: our family, and that right now would be a solution. 346 00:22:31,359 --> 00:22:34,880 Speaker 1: Younger families like Michelle's have been moving off the island recently. 347 00:22:35,440 --> 00:22:38,080 Speaker 1: Michelle said she worries that if she did leave and 348 00:22:38,119 --> 00:22:41,040 Speaker 1: gave up her housing and her job, then there'd be 349 00:22:41,119 --> 00:22:44,080 Speaker 1: no way for her or her kids to return because 350 00:22:44,119 --> 00:22:48,760 Speaker 1: everything is becoming so expensive and there are so few 351 00:22:48,760 --> 00:22:53,760 Speaker 1: employment opportunities outside of working for the billionaire around the world. 352 00:22:54,160 --> 00:22:56,600 Speaker 1: As the rich get richer and decided to move into 353 00:22:56,600 --> 00:23:00,800 Speaker 1: your neighborhood, changing it to fit their tastes. People often 354 00:23:00,880 --> 00:23:05,280 Speaker 1: throw around the word gentrification, but on the night it 355 00:23:05,320 --> 00:23:08,199 Speaker 1: goes beyond that, because it ultimately comes down to the 356 00:23:08,240 --> 00:23:13,080 Speaker 1: tastes of one person who increasingly dictates who and what 357 00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:17,080 Speaker 1: is allowed on his island. And in this version of gentrification, 358 00:23:17,720 --> 00:23:20,840 Speaker 1: you're not pushed further from the city center. You're pushed 359 00:23:20,920 --> 00:23:24,120 Speaker 1: into the ocean, and who knows if you can come back. 360 00:23:34,800 --> 00:23:37,480 Speaker 1: When I first started reporting on this season of The Paycheck, 361 00:23:38,000 --> 00:23:41,560 Speaker 1: an economist named Gabriel Zuckman told me something that's stuck 362 00:23:41,600 --> 00:23:45,440 Speaker 1: with me. He said, if you think about it, extreme 363 00:23:45,480 --> 00:23:51,640 Speaker 1: wealth inequality is inefficient. To someone like Larry Ellison, an 364 00:23:51,640 --> 00:23:56,320 Speaker 1: extra billion dollars doesn't change his life that much, but 365 00:23:56,480 --> 00:23:59,119 Speaker 1: that amount of money for the thousands of people on 366 00:23:59,160 --> 00:24:03,439 Speaker 1: the island, it would drastically change their lives. When you 367 00:24:03,640 --> 00:24:07,000 Speaker 1: own a hundred billion dollars, it's just useless. It's not 368 00:24:07,200 --> 00:24:12,840 Speaker 1: changing their lifestyle. It has no meaning. And whereas an 369 00:24:12,840 --> 00:24:15,760 Speaker 1: extrat billion, you know that that could be I don't know, 370 00:24:15,840 --> 00:24:21,920 Speaker 1: paid in taxes spent on education and healthcare, on infrastructure 371 00:24:22,760 --> 00:24:27,160 Speaker 1: that that is valuable. Next week on the Paycheck. We 372 00:24:27,240 --> 00:24:30,320 Speaker 1: had to a place where the government's decisions about how 373 00:24:30,359 --> 00:24:35,520 Speaker 1: to manage the pandemic had unintended consequences for women. I mean, 374 00:24:35,960 --> 00:24:39,800 Speaker 1: as public had professionals. We must do better. We have 375 00:24:39,960 --> 00:24:43,680 Speaker 1: to educate people. We had to educate communities, We had 376 00:24:43,720 --> 00:24:46,359 Speaker 1: to educate po data. It will be a mainting if 377 00:24:46,440 --> 00:24:50,520 Speaker 1: we can help them to work together with the physicians, 378 00:24:50,760 --> 00:24:53,800 Speaker 1: for them to learn more and to be working together. 379 00:24:54,480 --> 00:24:57,440 Speaker 1: Thanks for listening to The Paycheck. If you like our show, 380 00:24:57,600 --> 00:25:00,320 Speaker 1: please head on over to Apple Podcasts or ever you 381 00:25:00,359 --> 00:25:04,120 Speaker 1: listen to podcasts and rate a review and subscribe. This 382 00:25:04,200 --> 00:25:08,119 Speaker 1: episode was hosted by me Rebecca Greenfield and reported by 383 00:25:08,160 --> 00:25:11,920 Speaker 1: Sophie Alexander. It was edited by Shelley Banjo with help 384 00:25:11,960 --> 00:25:16,919 Speaker 1: from Francesca Levi, Janet Paskin Rocksheeta Soluja, and me. We 385 00:25:17,000 --> 00:25:21,720 Speaker 1: also had editing help from Daniel Balby, Kristin B. Brown, Gildaa, Carly, 386 00:25:22,160 --> 00:25:27,399 Speaker 1: Nicole Flato, Melissa McDonald, and Kai Schultz. This episode was 387 00:25:27,440 --> 00:25:31,560 Speaker 1: produced by Gildaa, Carly and sound engineered by Matt kim Our. 388 00:25:31,560 --> 00:25:35,960 Speaker 1: Original music is by Leo Sidron. Special thanks to Magnus Hendrickson, 389 00:25:36,280 --> 00:25:41,560 Speaker 1: Mckinnonda Keeper, Margaret Sutherland, Stacy Wong, and Aisha Diello. Francesca 390 00:25:41,680 --> 00:25:44,640 Speaker 1: Levy is Bloomberg's head of podcasts. See you next week.