rssOnly Some of Us Are Celebrating Today
Monday, September 29, 2008 at 9:05 am
- 5 Comments
Via Angry Bear, here’s Joseph Stiglitz, the Nobel prize-winning economist, on Treasury Sec. Henry Paulson Jr. celebrating the bailout plan he presented to Congress, which was revised in marathon negotiations this weekend:
The champagne bottle corks were popping as Treasury Sec. Henry Paulson announced his trillion-dollar bailout for the banks, buying up their toxic mortgages. To a skeptic, Paulson’s proposal looks like another of those shell games that Wall Street has honed to a fine art. Wall Street has always made money by slicing, dicing and recombining risk. This “cure” is another one of these rearrangements: somehow, by stripping out the bad assets from the banks and paying fair market value for them, the value of the banks will soar.
There is, however, an alternative explanation for Wall Street’s celebration: the banks realized that they were about to get a free ride at taxpayers’ expense. No private firm was willing to buy these toxic mortgages at what the seller thought was a reasonable price; they finally had found a sucker who would take them off their hands–called the American taxpayer.
Just a reminder of how Wall Street views a proposed bailout that has left many Americans frustrated and angry.
5 Comments
Comment posted September 29, 2008 @ 6:46 am
The fact that Wall Street went out of their way to keep the government out of their turf so they could pursue unfettered profit is their business. They deserve to fall flat on their ass(et)s if the market turns on them.
If anyone is to blame, I would first say Congress for letting the depression-era regulations lapse without thoroughly vetting problems that would arise if the regulations were not in place. Second, I would blame the FED for letting businesses getting so large than a collapse by a single entity would cause a market collapse, recession, or depression.
The bailout of Wall Street is necessary only because those responsible to ensure the financial safety of the people of the US failed to carry out their fiduciary responsibilities in a responsible manner, caving into greed and politics.
Comment posted September 29, 2008 @ 8:34 am
Some last-minute online activism on the bailout: No blank check for Wall Street's Send a message to Congress campaign. Here's how you can help:
If you're on Facebook:
1. Sign up as a fan and watch your “updates” for what's next
2. reply to the No blank check for Wall Street thread on Nancy Pelosi's profile (we'll switch to the Senate after the house vote)
3. share this link with your Facebook friends, and ask them to reply — and to forward it to THEIR friends
If you're not on Facebook:
1. sign up for our annoucement email list and check your email for what's next!
2. email this information to your friends, and ask them to help
3. phone or email your legislators and tell them how you feel
Thanks — and please help get the word out!
jon
Comment posted September 29, 2008 @ 1:46 pm
The fact that Wall Street went out of their way to keep the government out of their turf so they could pursue unfettered profit is their business. They deserve to fall flat on their ass(et)s if the market turns on them.
If anyone is to blame, I would first say Congress for letting the depression-era regulations lapse without thoroughly vetting problems that would arise if the regulations were not in place. Second, I would blame the FED for letting businesses getting so large than a collapse by a single entity would cause a market collapse, recession, or depression.
The bailout of Wall Street is necessary only because those responsible to ensure the financial safety of the people of the US failed to carry out their fiduciary responsibilities in a responsible manner, caving into greed and politics.
Comment posted September 29, 2008 @ 3:34 pm
Some last-minute online activism on the bailout: No blank check for Wall Street's Send a message to Congress campaign. Here's how you can help:
If you're on Facebook:
1. Sign up as a fan and watch your “updates” for what's next
2. reply to the No blank check for Wall Street thread on Nancy Pelosi's profile (we'll switch to the Senate after the house vote)
3. share this link with your Facebook friends, and ask them to reply — and to forward it to THEIR friends
If you're not on Facebook:
1. sign up for our annoucement email list and check your email for what's next!
2. email this information to your friends, and ask them to help
3. phone or email your legislators and tell them how you feel
Thanks — and please help get the word out!
jon
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