A Billionaire Is Fueling a Rat Explosion in a Chicago Park in the Stupidest Way Possible
There’s probably nothing about city life more stereotypically wholesome than the sight of an elderly patron snug on a public park bench feeding the birds (or maybe even some squirrels). Seid’s delegated recreational feeding of local wildlife, according to the city, has attracted “flocks of pigeons, whose droppings have in turn attracted a significant rat infestation” in the three years that the billionaire has been funding this dubious animal welfare program. Seid—a notorious recluse best known for donating his entire $1.6 billion electronics company to fund “attack philanthropy” that promotes climate change denialism and other right-wing causes—has reportedly paid every fine thrown at him to deter his intervention into Lincoln Park’s ecosystem.
- ▪There’s probably nothing about city life more stereotypically wholesome than the sight of an elderly patron snug on a public park bench feeding the birds (or maybe even some squirrels).
- ▪Seid’s delegated recreational feeding of local wildlife, according to the city, has attracted “flocks of pigeons, whose droppings have in turn attracted a significant rat infestation” in the three years that the billionaire has been funding
- ▪Seid—a notorious recluse best known for donating his entire $1.6 billion electronics company to fund “attack philanthropy” that promotes climate change denialism and other right-wing causes—has reportedly paid every fine thrown at him to de
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| Original publisher | Gizmodo |
| Canonical URL | https://gizmodo.com/a-billionaire-is-fueling-a-rat-explosion-in-a-chicago-park-in-the-stupidest-way-possible-2000823641 |
| Publication time | Thu, 08 Oct 2026 19:35:18 +0000 |
| Retrieval time | 2026-10-08T19:38:01.609Z |
| Last seen | 2026-10-08T19:38:01.609Z |
| Headline source | Publisher (no WeSearch rewrite) |
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| Summary | WeSearch · cerebras-chat (WeSearch summarizer) |
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| Cluster | hxJw2U7a-934 · 1 stories |
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| Retrieval / RAG | May the content be exposed for third-party retrieval-augmented generation? | Not asserted |
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Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
There’s probably nothing about city life more stereotypically wholesome than the sight of an elderly patron snug on a public park bench feeding the birds (or maybe even some squirrels). So, prepare to be amazed by the corrupting power of billionaire wealth to pervert this classic retirement hobby.cnx.cmd.push(function(){cnx({"playerId":"92b7b46b-43ed-4e0e-b21b-2c999302d9d7","settings":{"advertising":{"macros":{"AD_UNIT":"/23178111854/od.gizmodo.com/article","CHILD_UNIT":"article","POST_ID":"2000823641","POST_TYPE":"post","CHANNEL":"science","SECTION":"biology","SUBSECTION":"","CATEGORIES":"biology","TAGS":"billionaires,chicago,pests,rats","NOP":"0"},"timeBeforeFirstAd":0}}}).render("cnx-player-main")}); Local officials in Chicago’s 43rd Ward have accused 94-year-old electronics…
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