T. Boone Pickens [on powerful people who don't know what they're talking about] - BostonHerald.com

He said that he talked with then Republican presidential hopeful Sen. John McCain and then Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama about energy before the November elections last year. If both, who supported energy independence, were given an energy quiz then, they’d fail, he said.

"They did not know energy," Pickens said. "Look at their backgrounds. They never worked in energy."

American Thinker Blog: Thomas Friedman and the 'Grasshopper Generation'

Not only his wife an heiress of the Bucksbaum family which took out hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars over the years from the publicly-held corporation they founded (General growth Properties) before it was thrown into bankruptcy due to sky high debt levels, but Friedman and his family live in baronial splendor in an "palatial 11,400 square foot house...on a 7 ½ acre parcel just blocks from..Bethesda Country Club".

From a neighbor of his:

I lived within shouting distance of Friedman. Take a look at the carbon footprint this guy leaves. He lives on about seven acres -- it was once the home site of a prominent Washington attorney...The house sits on a hill with a great view and a western exposure. Friedman bought the house from the late lawyer's family about five years ago, tore down the huge older house and constructed an [over 11,000] square foot residence, with 7.5 bathrooms, on the hilltop. It is beautifully landscaped, as you can tell from the aerial/satellite photographs, and the foliage likely requires a lot of water. The property is listed on the tax rolls for [well over $9,000,000]. It makes me feel better that those who preach environmentalism practice such a modest intrusion on the environment itself. (HT: Powerline)

For those who enjoy luxury porn, here is a photo of his spread (or one of them)...