The Informant Is Back At Work

theodp writes "Fortune catches up with former ADM exec and whistleblower Mark Whitacre, who talks about watching his life on screen in the dark comedy, The Informant!. Among other things, Whitacre apologizes to Fortune for duping the magazine in a 1995 interview when his bipolar-fueled compulsive lying was in its full glory. Thanks to a Ph.D. he earned from Cornell in nutritional biochemistry, and an understanding CEO who was involved in prison ministry, Whitacre is now COO of Cypress Systems, where he's been working since spending nine years in prison for embezzlement. And yes, his wife really did stand by him through the wild ride."

Your point?

[bazald]

He helped the FBI to expose the price-fixing scheme of his company and served his time. Assuming someone is inspecting his work, what more do you want from the guy?

Re:the system works!

[Coda A27]

Glad to see that someone who stole $9 million is able to once again serve as a corporate executive.

He served eight years in prison and, after finishing his sentence, found gainful employment with an open-minded employer with the skillset he possesses. I don't see anything wrong with that.

Re:the system works!

[palegray.net]

There isn't anything wrong with that. The man served his time, and he's a productive member of society again. The comments for this story are, unfortunately, going to be spearheaded by individuals who don't have the talents to serve as an effective executive in the first place. Thus, we get to read a hundred different spins on the "but he committed a crime" theme, all fueled by basic jealousy. Interestingly, this is the same crowd that seems to have no problem celebrating Kevin Mitnick's turnaround and subsequent success.

Re:the system works!

[timmarhy]

kiven's situation is vastly different.

this guy STOLE 11.5 million from his employer, then went on to accuse the FBI of all kinds of bullshit. he's a border line nut job as well as a rotten theif.

kevin on the other hand never stole a cent from anyone, just hacked a bunch of company's system to see how they worked. his only crime was making them and the FBI look like idiots.

Re:Missing Piece

[PPalmgren]

Kind of off-topic, but one late night I was up watching boring TV and saw some awful hour-long show soleley trying to argue that the founding fathers of the US were Christian. I couldn't turn it off because it seemed so bizzare to me that someone would talk for an hour over something so pointless. I get the same vibe from your post. Why does it matter if someone is a Christian or not? I don't understand the logic of even bringing something up like this, since I see zero causation between his religion and his actions. Please enlighten me.

Re:the system works!

[unlametheweak]

Did you even bother to read the available information on the man's history (perhaps starting with the article)? Had you investigated the matter properly and applied a little critical thinking, I sincerely doubt your reply would have been the same.

I read the article, and I know that he blamed his conscious and continual lies and theft on "mental illness". It's interesting that he was sane enough to be able to realize that his mental illness was primarily benefiting himself and hurting other people. I don't see any leadership here.

Re:Missing Piece

[jeffasselin]

It matters to me. Someone who is clearly Christian automatically loses much credibility with me. If he's willing to believe there's some invisible guy listening when he mumbles to himself, what other absurdities is he going to be ready to believe?