The Golden Age: A Shiny Lie Wrapped in Greed | The Immortal Gazette
The Immortal Gazette studio was in full swing, the usual mayhem brewing. Alice was elegantly perched in her chair, flipping through an ancient-looking book with an air of disinterest. Loki leaned against a desk, twirling a dagger between his fingers, looking as smug as ever. Rumple, meanwhile, was aggressively scribbling notes, probably planning some scheme—because of course he was.
Alice looked up, her eyes glinting with amusement. “Ah, yes. The Golden Age. Now, mortals, tell me—what does that sound like to you?”
Loki smirked. “A time of peace, prosperity, maybe a little too much optimism?”
Alice grinned darkly. “Exactly. It sounds like a fairytale, doesn’t it? Like some glorious era where everything was perfect, wealth was abundant, and life was just peachy. But let me break it to you, darlings—the ‘Golden Age’ wasn’t gold. It was gilded—shiny on the surface, rotten underneath.”
Rumple snorted. “So, basically, a scam?”
Alice snapped her fingers. “Bingo, Rumple! And the masterminds behind this glorious deception? The Robber Barons—the real kings of trickery and unchecked greed. They were not royalty, but they sure lived like it.”
Loki raised an eyebrow. “Robber Barons? Sounds dramatic.”
“Oh, it was dramatic, darling,” Alice said, flipping another page. “These were the men who built empires—railroads, steel, oil, banking—monopolizing industries and bleeding the working class dry, all while pretending they were doing everyone a favor.”
Rumple smirked. “And let me guess… they weren’t exactly charitable?”
Alice let out a wicked laugh. “Oh, absolutely not. Let’s talk about a few of them, shall we?” She leaned forward, eyes gleaming. “We’ve got John D. Rockefeller—oil tycoon, king of the Standard Oil monopoly. He didn’t just run the oil industry; he owned it. Controlled over 90% of the oil refineries in America at one point. That’s not business, darling—that’s an empire.”
Loki whistled. “So, let me get this straight—he just… took out his competition?”
“Oh, not just ‘took out,’” Alice said with a grin. “He destroyed them. Crushed small businesses, manipulated railroad companies to charge his competitors more, and basically made sure that if you weren’t with him, you were out of business. By the time anyone tried to stop him, he was too rich to fail.”
Rumple leaned back. “That’s almost impressive.”
“Oh, it gets better,” Alice continued. “Then there was Andrew Carnegie—the steel baron. He built one of the biggest steel empires the world had ever seen. But how? Oh, just a little thing called paying his workers as little as possible while raking in millions. When his steelworkers went on strike in the Homestead Strike of 1892, he let his goon squad attack them. Literal violence to keep his empire running.”
Loki raised an eyebrow. “Charming.”
Alice chuckled darkly. “Oh, absolutely. And let’s not forget J.P. Morgan—the banker of bankers. If Rockefeller owned oil and Carnegie owned steel, Morgan owned money itself. He controlled banking, bought out companies, and even bailed out the U.S. government at one point. Imagine being so rich the government owes you money.”
Rumple looked genuinely intrigued. “Wait, so he didn’t just make money—he owned the system?”
Alice smirked. “Exactly. And then there was Cornelius Vanderbilt, the railroad king. The man literally said, ‘The public be damned,’ when asked about fair business practices. He controlled every major railway line, crushed competition, and did it all with a ‘too bad, so sad’ attitude.”
Loki tapped his chin. “So, let me get this straight—these men basically hijacked the economy, hoarded all the wealth, and treated workers like disposable tools?”
Alice leaned back, satisfied. “Oh, darling, exactly. They weren’t just businessmen—they were industrial warlords. And yet, history paints them as visionaries, philanthropists, and captains of industry.” She snorted. “Some of them did donate to charity—after they had already crushed thousands of workers under their boots. A little too late, don’t you think?”
Rumple shook his head. “So the ‘Golden Age’ was actually just a bunch of rich guys exploiting everyone and slapping a shiny coat of paint over the whole mess?”
Alice grinned. “That’s the beauty of the Gilded Age, darling. It looked like a golden era—but scrape off the glitter, and all you find is corruption, exploitation, and good old-fashioned greed.”
Loki smirked. “And yet, mortals still tell these stories as if these men were heroes.”
Alice sighed dramatically. “Oh, of course. Because nothing says ‘hero’ like hoarding wealth while the poor starve.”
Rumple chuckled darkly. “Well, now that we’ve shattered that illusion… what’s next?”
Alice smirked. “Oh, don’t worry, darlings. There’s always another lie to expose.”
🖋️✨📜🖤
