Bob Swern published an excellent diary today titled, "Closely-Watched Court Decision Breaks Bad for Wall St. Has A Day of Reckoning Arrived?" But there is even more to the story that has got to make Wall Street's hemorrhoids ache...
I highly recommend Bob's Diary:
"Closely-Watched Court Decision Breaks Bad for Wall St. Has A Day of Reckoning Arrived?"
http://www.dailykos.com/...
We are all very familiar now with the stories of organized mortgage fraud by the big banks and while to our great shame none of the Banksters have been tried or convicted of anything, there have at least been court cases brought by the DOJ that have resulted in fines for some of their illegal activity.
This is little consolation for the amount of theft and human misery that they have caused, but it is at least something even if it sends an entirely wrong message to people everywhere… that you can get away with anything if you have enough money.
A kid can be sent to jail for possession of a joint but run a global Ponzi scheme that defrauds millions of investors out of literally trillions of dollars, throws thousands of people out of their homes and on to the streets, costs millions their jobs, and brings the world’s economy to its knees and what did the Banksters get? The Banksters got fines that while to the average person seem large, in reality to them they were little more than a slap on the wrist and many have been allowed to stay in business and even collect bonuses!
The Banksters, however, did not act alone. They had accomplices in their scams... the ratings agencies. There activities have been reported on but up until nothing has been done punitively to them for their role until yesterday.
Rachel Maddow has done a superlative report on the DOJ's first attempt to hold them accountable or at least provide a semblance of it, but noted that it has taken four years for even this move. It may be justice delayed, but it may not be denied entirely... we will have to wait until the proverbial fat lady sings to know for sure!
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Over the last four years it has been one layer of this onion we call the global banking system, being peeled back to reveal corruption on a scale unimaginable by previous generations. Mortgage fraud by major banks, the selling of fraudulently inflated securities by investment banks and hedge funds, the rigging of the Libor averages by the worlds largest banks and financial firms... and yet no one goes to jail in our "justice system"... except the poor schmuck kid who gets caught with a couple of joints.