Brook Astor

I found this article at in the New York Times, it seemed very interesting. A mother and a son love wasn’t what it was thought to be. Brook Astor, the legendary New York society matriarch, her son was convicted of stealing from her as she suffered from Alzheimer’s disease. Anthony D. Marshall, Brooks’s son, an 85-year-old war veteran who fought at Iwo Jima, can be sentenced to 1 to 25 years in jail. Marshall was guilty of 14 counts against him. Jurors convicted him of giving himself an unauthorized raise of about 1 million for managing his mother’s finances. Brooks disease was gone over in court, calling witnesses to testify to the signs of her deterioration; forgetting the names of close friends, not knowing simple words like “faucet,” and harboring paranoid fears of men in suits coming to kill her at night. Mrs. Astor passed away two years ago at the age of 105.

When I first read this article, I was a little shocked that someone would do this to their own flesh and blood; it’s scary to think of how greedy humans have become. Apparently for some very greedy and selfish, who would steal from your sick mother? I don’t see how people can hurt
others without any compassion of love and trust.

Obviously Brook didn’t have any money problems, but if her son were to be in a state to need to borrow some money that wouldn’t of been a problem for Brook. But this was not the case, Marshall didn’t just steal money from his own mother he took herself dignity and respect. He went behind her back, when these poor women was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and tried to take everything that she had. As a son you do not do this to your mother or anyone for that matter. Marshall was guilty of 14 counts against him all were to do with his mother. All the crimes were not listed, but Marshall defiantly went too far in his scheme to take all of his mother’s belongings. He not only dragged himself into this mess, he also had accomplices, of which are serving jail time as well. I thought this article was a tragedy, this man set an example of “the worst son you could have”….”EVER!” Although he is spending the rest of his life in jail, what did his mother do for the end of her life? She spent many hours in a court room; she didn’t even know what was going on most of the time. She died lonely and confused, and heartbroken over what her son had done to her.

In conclusion, I thought this article was somewhat sad and completely terrible; He should win the worst son award of the year. This article made me think of what certain thing do to certain people. For instance, a family that does a lot of sports wants everyone to be involved and to enjoy it. Well what if one of their kids likes to draw instead, what kind of outcast will that create? In this case, Brooks was a very well educated and wealthy women, her son must of looked up to her and wanted to be the same thing, accept her went the wrong rout to find it, instead of earning it he just took it.