"...I appreciate that this is a difficult period for the American people. I also appreciate that Congressional leaders and the Administration are working closely together so that we can help the American people by quickly enacting a program to stabilize our financial system.... "
By Bess Levin
05.30.07 at 10:42 AM
No Room At Goldman's Inn?
Breaking Views reports that, despite robust markets, boom in mergers/buyouts and astronomical investment-banking earnings in the first quarter, Goldman Sachs has begun a hiring “pause.” What does this mean for everyone else? Well, given Goldman’s position in the pecking order of things, and the tendency of humans to be sheep, that others will likely follow. BV believes this may even “herald the first industry-wide freeze since the tech meltdown.”
Breaking Views thinks the “pause” stems from Goldman’s realization that by 2008, the firm will drop to $21.10 a share and down to $19.30 the following year. And asking employees to take a cut in bonuses would be out of the question ($100 million to $80 million, are you out of your minds? Why don’t we just ask our top brokers to subsist on food stamps). Some think this is a prudent and necessary step. We think it’s BS, given that we were considering putting in an application down at 85 after the long weekend. Anyone heard anything? You know where to find us. (Crying into a gossamer pillow over no longer having a ticket out of this dump, that's where).
Bank failures and rescues > Timelines (click here) Also known as "When do we stop this roller coaster?"
Does anyone besides me find it more than odd that the FACT is 9 out of every 10 new mortgages in the USA carry a taxpaper (that was taxpayer) guarantee?
I believe what has happened is that Wall Street is still 'playing' while the business of mortgages for home buyers is left to the people of the USA. I believe we are funding our own recovery and the numbers on Wall Street have absolutely nothing to do with it.
Basically, the banks continue to fail because they can't maintain their own debt load with so many foreclosed properties. The banks that continue to fail never received any bailout funding. They were left to 'struggle' to achieve a goal that wasn't plausible. The 'bail-out' funds went to the larger 'infestment banks' such as Goldman Sachs because 'we were lead to believe' by saving them from COMPLETE failure meant it would stop the eroding of the USA financial infrastrucure.
In fact, 'bailing out' these large banks did NOTHING for the financial infrastructure of the USA. The monies these large banks received went to pay off foreign investments and debts. These banks 'stabilized' foreign markets and foreign infrastructure.
When the people of the USA were screaming they couldn't get mortgages even after the spending of $700 billion, it was because there was 'no interest' by these banks to finance housing in the USA.
Now, think about this.
If you had a bank roll of money and the housing market was flooded with homes that were chronically losing value, would you lend into that market in hopes of achieving a 'positive' bottom line?
I wouldn't. Not if I were the CEO of Goldman Sachs. I'd be looking for 'stabilized' markets for reinvestment after I paid off my debts to them. Yes?
So.
The Grand Illusion, this time, is that while Wall Street watches their indexes increase they are laughing at the struggling USA and the 'befuddled' public that actually provided their monies for a return on their investments.
Pretty lousy stuff, if you ask me. But, who ever asks me.
The banks that were loaned all those billions from the USA Treasury need to return it and return it as soon as possible. See, if the American people are funding their own recovery through instruments with government guarantees then we need all those funds back in order to go forward with 'reinvestment' into the USA.
The people of the USA are 'left' to recover their country completely on their own. We need to get our minds around that fact and begin to address our best outcome through instruments within our own possibilities. We don't need foreign investment, we need domestic investment. We don't need huge investment banks or otherwise, we need banks that are well run and well invested into local economies.
There needs to be regulation as proposed by the current US Treasury Secretary, but, more than that there needs to be rules governing the banks that invest domestically. I don't see the USA ever taking this step ever again. I do see the USA seeking to fund banks that will do business exclusively within the borders of the USA.
To recover the USA domestically, invest locally. Fund the recovery of local economies and seek rates of return that are reasonable to the best outcomes of those economies. The 'growth' the people of the USA is seeking won't be found by 'bailing out' international entities. That needs to be left up to Dubai.
Local economies funded by local financial instruments that have an active interest in the best outcomes of those economies, backed by the FDIC.
DO NOT ALLOW 'International Investment Firms or Banks' access to funding of local economies. They'll suck you dry. The US Treasury Secretary needs to stop funding 'international banking infrastructure' and fund domestic banks with potential of rebuilding local economies. I am sure that is far less 'glamorous' than any other option, but, it is a matter of sovereignty.
The words of treason:
Bernanke: World Beginning To Emerge From Financial Crisis (click here)
August 21, 2009 3:52 p.m. EST
"The world has been through the most severe financial crisis since the Great Depression," Bernanke told the summit. "The crisis in turn sparked a deep global recession, from which we are only now beginning to emerge."
The world is doing better than the USA according to THE FEDERAL RESERVE Chairman. Since when is THE WORLD included in the sovereign interests of the USA? And this, while our own banks and economy continue to suffer?
I don't think so.
