Comments on: Goldman Sachs CEO: “I’m Doing God’s Work”

By: DLS

DLS — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:34:01 +0000

Side note: Our current power-hungry politicians (most notably, Dems) prefer to take over and “manage” (plan, direct, and control — i.e., command and control) General Motors rather than break it up into some companies that could try and possibly succeed on their own, like Chevrolet.

Given their record this year, is it any surprise that they are overseeing a managed financial consolidation?

By: Father_Time

Father_Time — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 09:44:22 +0000

What the hell is the matter with these people?…and the republican party is virtually owned by them! It appears a sizable portion of the democrats also……the blue dogs!

Money makes inequitable the equality the Constitution demands . When is this nation going to wake up and smell the flipping coffee????

By: JeffersonDavis

JeffersonDavis — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 05:32:59 +0000

Let me see if I have this straight.....

The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.
And this is "God's work"?

Priceless.

Denial ain't just a river in Egypt.

By: ProfElwood

ProfElwood — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 05:19:44 +0000

So, we found agreement in reducing military spending and involvement, are we also agreeing that the banking industry needs to be given a reality check? I'd like to suggest:

1. Breaking the savings banks away from investment banks, and re-implement the rest of Glass-Stegall (and maybe an automatic, immediate death penalty for any representative that suggests repealing it again).
2. Breaking all the "too big to fail" institutions down to, um, failable units.
3. Taking away the ability of banks to loan out more than their assets. I believe that's called fraud, stealing, or counterfeiting in all other industries.
4. Fixing the Federal Reserve. It's insanity to combine government powers with the opaqueness of a private institution.

By: GeorgeSorwell

GeorgeSorwell — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:38:30 +0000

Getting your pitchfork ready, Mikkel?

By: williambanzai7

williambanzai7 — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:33:10 +0000

GOLDMAN SACHS, BAILOUT SUPER STARS
(Jesus Christ Superstar)
WilliamBanzai7

Sing along: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvVr2uks0C8

PRESIDENT OBAMA

Every time I look at you in disgust I don't understand
Why we let Wall Street just get so out of hand.
You could'nt have managed better if you'd had it planned.
Why'd you choose to sink AIG in derivative quick sand?
If you'd come today you would be lynched by a whole nation.
The result of your insatiable greed would be mass extermination.
Don't you get me wrong.
I only want to know.

CHOIR

Goldman Sachs, Goldman Sachs,
Who are you? What have you sacrificed?
Goldman Sachs Bailout Super Stars,
Do you really believe you're what you say you are?

PRESIDENT OBAMA

Tell me what you think about your former friends at the top.
Who'd you think besides yourselves's the pick of the subprime crop?
Lehman, was that where it was at? They are not where you are now?
Could Bear have found use for Bernanke's magic mountain, or was that just bad PR?
Did you mean to go like that? Was it a mistake, or
Certainly you know your messy death would have been a record Wall Street breaker?
Don't you get me wrong.
I only want to know.

CHOIR

Goldman Sachs, Goldman Sachs,
Who are you? What have you sacrificed?
Goldman Sachs Bailout Super Stars,
Just who the Hell do you think you are?

By: DLS

DLS — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 23:38:19 +0000

1. I need to read Gilded Age prose. Didn't the Robber Barons at least try to appear more noble?

2. What's especially sinister about it is that these financial heads are integrated with government, which in turn has its tentacles into much else, not only the financial sector, in embodying (note) such bigness.

By: tidbits

tidbits — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:14:59 +0000

Very informative link, Mikkel. Thank you. There is much food for thought there, particularly the concern expressed in the final paragraph about the difficulty of unravelling the public-private governance model that ignores the national interest in favor of the self-interest of the players.

By: mikkel

mikkel — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:52:26 +0000

Here is an interesting take on how the US has become like post-communist Eastern Europe.

By: tidbits

tidbits — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:37:22 +0000

Combining the comments of Blankfein and the response of Geitner displays the essence of the “Too Big to Fail” sales pitch by Wall Street and the echo chamber of that philosophy that is now Treasury.

By: Almoderate

Almoderate — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:08:39 +0000

I had no idea that bribery and public corruption were considered to be “God's work.”

By: Rambie

Rambie — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:06:27 +0000

FTA: “I’ve got news for you,” he shoots back, eyes narrowing. “If the financial system goes down, our business is going down and, trust me, yours and everyone else’s is going down, too.”

Sounds more like a threat to me.