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Supporting the Aristocracy: Wall Street Pays Out $70 Billion + in Bonuses

I think that its fair to say that a number of us here suspect that a fair number of those populating the financial establishment are there by virtue of being the idiot children of America's aristocracy. Some of us have probably even said as much. This though is far less entertaining than watching one of their own come out and say it.

On Friday that's precisely what happened. Andrew Lahde, a manager at a Los Angeles based hedge fund sent an email out to all in his firm telling them that he was quitting the game and:

Friday Movie Night - Enron 2.0 Edition

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It's Friday Night! Party Time!   Time to relax, put your feet up on the couch, lay back, and watch some detailed videos on economic policy!

Considering how Lehman Brothers just received subpoenas for criminal violations, I thought we might revisit Enron. Isn't it wonderful how we have scandal, hearings and a few get busted but most....simply move on to yet another bubble?

Why the recession *should be* ending

No, I have not lost my mind, although with a slew of just awful economic data for September and October spilling out, the title of this blog entry is a contrarian statement to say the least. What I mean is, measured by the indicators of past recessions going back all the way through the Great Depression, the shallow recession that I believe started approximately last December, and primarily affected Wall Street with only a glancing blow at Main Street, ought to be ending.

Wall Street Bailout: Trickle-Down Economics on Steroids

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trickle-down theory: the economic-political argument that the increases in the earnings of the rich are good for the poor because some of those additional earnings will benefit the middle class and the poor through increased spending, investment, and job creation.

You remember the trickle-down theory that is forever associated with Reagan, don't you? It was only about 18 months ago that the NY Times declared trickle-down theory to be discredited and unable to work in the real world. The article was a devastating indictment to the supply-side crowd.

Yet the moment that Wall Street gets into trouble the economists, the media, and the politicians immediately start robbing the poor and giving to the rich.

The Evil Doers of the Financial Crisis

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Many folks are asking what the hell is going on, how did we get here and who is responsible?

The Washington post has named names on what and who are responsible for this disaster.

The issue at hand was regulation of the derivatives market and Brooksley E. Born wanted to regulate it. This is 1998, the Clinton administration.

It seems Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, Treasury Secretary Robert E. Rubin and Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Arthur Levitt Jr. didn't want any regulation on the growing shadow banking system called derivatives.

Obama vs. McCain vs. America on the Economy

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Right now the entire country seems to believe that Democrats will save the day on the economy and we're looking at a super majority for Democrats to gain complete control of the United States Government in this year's election results.

But, is this really true? Between the corporate lobbyists of the left and the corporate lobbyists on the right, will either party truly represent the national interest or working America's interests?

I have a premise that the only way to get the United States moving economically is to start producing, saving, exporting and raising up the middle class. I am not alone in this conclusion:

The Bipolar Economy

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The past two weeks have shown shocking stock market moves of 500 points or more, both directions.

dow jones 5 day

Panic selling, panic buying, who knows just how much was lost in the volatility, changing of the rules daily and turmoil.

So, while all of the focus is about propping up a semi-insolvent financial system, what about the actual people?

Murder, Suicides and desperate acts are on the rise. (please people, it's only money).

After falling 3 1/2 years behind in payments, the Taunton, Mass., housewife had been intercepting letters from the mortgage company and shredding them before her husband saw them. She tried to refinance but was declined.

When $700 Billion is Chump Change

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"Once a run gets started it is rational for other people to join in.”
- Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England, commenting on bank runs

Probably about now the people who actually wanted the massive bailout of the Wall Street crooks are asking themselves, "What exactly did we buy with the $700 Billion in taxpayer money?"
It's a little late to ask that question You don't purchase a car without kicking the tires, you don't purchase a home without having the foundation inspected, and you don't bail out Wall Street unless you made certain that the money isn't going to be wasted.

With the DOW dropping nearly 2,300 points in just the 7 days since the bailout was announced, the sheeple are realizing that they've been mugged by the crooks yet again. Except this time the taxpayer wasn't held up. We gave them our wallets willingly.

The Barrage and Not Enough Time to Know What it Means

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The Barrage of news is pouring in and I am trying to get my business taxes done before the deadline.

So forgive me if this post is a little weak.

It's being reported now we will have the worse recession in 25 years, if we are lucky.

''It's certainly going to be the worst since the 1980s,'' says Bradford DeLong, an economics professor at the University of California at Berkeley who worked at the U.S. Treasury Department from 1993 to 1995. ``The hope is that it won't become the worst unemployment business cycle since the Great Depression

There goes the Royal Bank of Scotland

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