Deserving Losers-Paging Dr. Schadenfreude

Filed in National by on February 17, 2009

While ‘schadenfreude’ basically means taking delight in the misery of others, El Somnambulo, who is nothing if not sympathetic, feels horrible and powerless for what has happened to so many good people.

However, he admits taking great delight in the deserved misery visited upon the piggiest of the piggy, those who didn’t even have time to visit the vomitorium before suffering sudden wealth loss. In the first of what may be an ongoing series, let’s enjoy these falls from grace, shall we?:

* Dubai expatriates abandoning their luxury cars at the airport b/c they can’t make payments and b/c they need to avoid severe Islamic punishment for being deadbeats.

* Russian billionaires who made zillions by exploiting natural resources (why doesn’t this happen to Exxon/Mobil execs?), but are now forced to live on mere millions.

* Oh, and it looks like one of Trump’s casinos is headed for bankruptcy, but ‘Bulo considers that a Dog Bites Man story. Happens every couple a’ years

El Somnambulo welcomes any and all additions to the Deserving Losers list. Trust him. It’s OK to feel joy at their expense.

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  1. jason330 says:

    My Schadenfreud-gasm is going to happen when Mike Castle gets a shoe thrown at him by angry Delaware wingnuts at a Castle/O’Donnell fundraiser.

  2. Dorian Gray says:

    Sleepwalker – I am actually upset by bullet 2. A broke Abramovich means Chelsea have less of a chance to stop ManU from winning the EPL title. I don’t fancy Chelsea but I hate ManU. What am I suppose to do, count on Liverpool? Scouser chavs…

  3. cassandra_m says:

    A new support group: Dating a Banker Anonymous seems ripe for schadenfraude.

  4. El Somnambulo says:

    Cassandra’s link is drop-dead funny.

    As is this correction at the end of the article:

    “Correction: February 2, 2009
    An article on Wednesday about a support group for women dating or married to men in the banking industry misspelled the surname of a prominent Wall Street investor in referring to the effect that significant financial news has on a partner’s mood. The investor is Warren E. Buffett, not Buffet.”

    In post-crash America, there is no such thing as a free Buffet. At least, precipitous weight-gain is something these poor women may not have to worry about.

  5. TPN says:

    Yeah, it’s a rocky time even for self-absorbed gold-diggers.

  6. Von Cracker says:

    Simple – The irrelevant GOP; a regional party at best.

  7. Unstable Isotope says:

    Today’s schadenfreude for me:
    Yoo and Bybee could be disbarred for the torture memos. It seems to me to be the least of their possible punishments but at least something might happen!

  8. Frieda Berryhill says:

    Schadenfreude, indeed I hope the snow melts in Dubai’s indoor ski slopes……..and floods all those empty mansion built on those artificial Islands with their artificial beaches…….