Anyone who’s ever wanted to see Richard Branson with a gun pointed to his head got their wish yesterday as the thrill- and publicity-seeking billionaire got his jollies pretending to be, of all things, a hostage and refugee.
While most who converged on the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, came to fret over the global economic meltdown, the entrepreneur, who slaps the Virgin name on virtually anything, yesterday was one of several CEOs participating in a “refugee run simulation” produced by the United Nations Refugee Agency.
Instead of trying yet again to break air, land and sea records, Branson spent part of the day walking around with his right arm in a sling, visiting a mock refugee camp, experiencing a fake mine field and border corruption, and learning refugee-camp survival.
It’s a far cry from his past attempts at getting his adrenaline pumped.
Branson, who Forbes says is worth $4.4 billion, has made several attempts to travel across the globe in sailboats and hot-air balloons, and is gearing up to travel into space in two years in a spaceship he’s built.
Then again, maybe Branson’s trying to be strategic: He’ll know what to do if, during one of his hot-air balloon trips, he goes down in enemy territory.