Leave it to the Rolling Stone & Matt Taibbi, to get the real story right.
Hidden past the smoke screen of the bonus outrage, the counter parties and their own desire to PROFIT at any COST.
http://www.rollingstone.com/...
In essence, Paulson used the bailout to transform the government into a giant bureaucracy of entitled assholedom, one that would socialize "toxic" risks but keep both the profits and the management of the bailed-out firms in private hands. Moreover, this whole process would be done in secret, away from the prying eyes of NASCAR dads, broke-ass liberals who read translations of French novels, subprime mortgage holders and other such financial losers.
Place AIGFP into receivership.
Fire Geithner, Summers, Liddy, and anyone else from Goldman Sachs or any other major bank.
Bring in Stiglitz NOW.
http://www.thenation.com/...
Short yes, however there is a great deal to read here.
http://www.thenation.com/...
Stiglitz is the man with a bank bail out plan that will work and he is the people's first team, IMHO.
It is easy enough to see good people who could help him get the job done.
The good bank will be owned by the U.S. Taxpayer. The employees and signs stay until such time as a new buyer values the good bank for it's true worth. This will allow for new loans from day 1.
The bad bank will be owned by former management and their bondholders.
If they sell their toxic assets over time, good for them.
The TARP should be clawed back and there should be damages now.
These banks knew they had no business buying these assets. THEY KNEW.
Actually, come to think of it, why are we even giving taxpayer money to you people? Why are we not throwing your ass in jail instead?"
Matt says it best..
We're fools, protagonists in a kind of gruesome comedy about the marriage of greed and stupidity. And the worst part about it is that we're still in denial — we still think this is some kind of unfortunate accident, not something that was created by the group of psychopaths on Wall Street whom we allowed to gang-rape the American Dream.
Yet another article on the subject by Bob Ostertag. Articles should be coming one after another now...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...
Another article on the subject by Jeffrey Feldman...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...
If AIG had declared bankruptcy, a judge would have monitored all those counter-party payments, effectively telling all the other gamblers owed money by AIG to get in line, wait their turn, and be satisfied with whatever portion of payment the court allowed. The judge would have also berated AIG and every other company involve for turning a publicly traded company into a casino without rules. In monetary terms, a bankruptcy court would have forced the gamblers on the other side of the table from AIG to burden the share of the risk that they assumed when they walked up to AIGs credit default swap table at the casino and placed billion dollar bets, for example, on the U.S. housing market failing. It would have been painful, but it would have been relatively fair.
But that is not what happened.
Now we are talking Expose the Con, Claw back the TARP, plus damages.
The motorhead messiah was tuning the system in.
Johnny Magic: Neil Young http://www.lincvolt.com/