Former Lehman CEO Happy Visitors Don't Have Guns

NEW YORK/KETCHUM, Idaho (Reuters) - "You don't have a gun; that's good."

That was how Richard Fuld greeted a Reuters reporter who had tracked him down to his country house in a bucolic setting beside a river and amid tree-covered slopes in Ketchum, Idaho last Friday.

The man vilified for the collapse of Lehman Brothers almost a year ago, a failure that triggered the global economic crisis, seemed burdened but not crushed by the pressure of the upcoming anniversary.

Standing on his gravelly driveway wearing a black fleece vest, dark gray shorts, and sandals, Fuld indicated he was torn about speaking out in his own defense, partly because of ongoing litigation but also because he felt the world was not ready to listen.

"You know what? The anniversary's coming up," he said. "I've been pummeled, I've been dumped on, and it's all going to happen again. I can handle it. You know what, let them line up."

Fuld again emphasized his concern about what will be said and written about him in the days leading up to the Sept. 15 anniversary of the Lehman collapse, but also stressed his ability to see it through.