Story for performance #671
webcast from Los Angeles at 07:30PM, 22 Apr 07
In my role as feng shui master and property developer, I meet a wide range of unusual people and although I have been fortunate enough to be successful, on the whole I am a private person and wish to remain so. I trust that you will understand I am meeting with you here in the strictest confidence because I know that you share my personal views and that we both agree that in many circumstances secrecy is essential in guaranteeing the security which our clients require—and for which they are rich and powerful enough to be able to pay.
The extent of my property development portfolio now precludes me from exercising my skills as a feng shui master and I am only able to provide advice to a very select group of clients, mostly tycoons and celebrities, and I think it is fair to say that I am now merely a hobbyist in this area.
It is true that my skills have been decidedly helpful in property development, since one of the key things needed in selling a property is to enhance the sense of ‘flow’ in an environment and it seems I have a highly developed intuitive sense for identifying this quality of space. I can walk into a room and immediately see what is blocking the energy—what elements are in conflict with each other, what needs to be done to stimulate the flow of chi and achieve harmony and those who have taken my advice have not only improved the general appearance of their surroundings, but in many cases, they have also greatly increased their personal fortunes.
Sometimes they don’t take my advice; for example, many years ago, when I was starting out, there was a corrupt politician whom I advised to burn a pile of $500 banknotes to gain merits which might have prevented him from being jailed. He ignored my advice and burned $100 notes instead—only to have the court find him guilty of buying votes. All this happened well before the hand-over and, needless to say, such things no longer occur.
Many people remain skeptical of feng shui practice and dismiss it as mere fortune-telling. I believe it is based in ancient and sound principles of metaphysics and I am humbled by the trust which people have shown in me and in cases where they have even gone so far as to bequeath me their own personal fortunes, I can say that this could only occur if we shared similar personal philosophies and the philosophy of running businesses.
It is because of my relative success that I am a director of this company and it is in that capacity that I am meeting with you to discuss your slightly unusual request. I have explained these details of my history because you have asked me certain questions. These matters have been raised in the news recently and I can understand you want to know a little about me, since you need to know whether I am a trustworthy person—even though you are traveling under a fake name yourself, as our intelligence informs me. That is your business. Please forgive the formality of my language. I am a very formal person and I stand by the principles which our company espouses—a commitment to safety, integrity, privacy and respect in all of our operations. We are a growing company, engaged in regional logistics. Our parent company was originally in the property business, which is my connection to this operation, but increasingly opportunities have opened up in China in infrastructure development, telecommunications, e-business, that sort of thing.
And because commercial air travel is now becoming so complicated, people with the money prefer to buy or charter private jets, so we have recognized a business opportunity in this area as well. I trust you will also understand that, for security reasons and in view of existing commercial in-confidence commitments, I cannot give you a client list. I can however tell you that our fleet consists of Learjets, and Gulfstream G200s and G450s, which are privately owned and we manage the operations, taking care of aircraft maintenance, security procedures and crew selection.
It is true that the aircraft are also available for charter and I can have our staff prepare a quote for you, depending on your requirements, the number of passengers and any special needs you may have. I believe you want to transport a limited number of passengers under particular circumstances from here to Cairo. For this purpose, the Gulfstream G450 may be the best choice, since neither the Learjet, nor the G200 has enough range to fly this distance without refueling. It will be very costly because you have indicated it is a one-way flight, which means the crew will need downtime before the return. The increased hangar costs at the other end will need to be factored in as well as the complications of logging the flight plan and clearing it with air traffic control authorities. You have indicated you want the crew to sign confidentiality agreements. It goes without saying we already offer the tightest security and privacy. But, as you wish, since you have said that cost is not a factor here.
No, I have no interest in politics at all. I am a businessman and I understand that our clients have special needs, which it is our task to carry out to the best of our abilities and to respect their privacy. Yes, of course the world is becoming more and more unsafe, which is why we have a greater need for privacy to protect our assets. Our freedoms are important and must be protected. Democracy is a fine principle, but we don’t have it here, in the sense in which you would understand it, and yet we have prospered by hard work, without the inefficiencies of too much government getting in the way. The wider world is starting to see the merits of this way of thinking.