This time, Gekko is a repentant father longing to make amends to win his daughter’s approval who also essentially steals a fortune from her to get back in the game.
Gekko is a humble reformed crook who has paid his debt to society and also a sleek alpha male puffing on a phallic cigar who can’t wait to gloat about his prowess at making money.
Gekko is a teacher who shares his knowledge. At times, one could swear that one had wandered into a parallel universe version of An Inconvenient Truth, as Gekko lectures us on the hazards of leverage and financial meltdown. Particularly priceless is when he calls a group of young students “ninjas”—no income, no job, no assets—adding, “You have a lot to look forward to.” But the same guy who observes that the mother of all evil is speculation turns up later in the film dressed in a power suit and giddy over his ability to turn $100 million into $1 billion. I don’t think he earned it at $25 an hour; leverage must have figured in there somewhere.
If we fast-forward 23 years to Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, we are treated to a curiously different kind of moral equation, the morality of “and also” rather than “either or.”
In the new film, Gordon Gekko is a humble reformed crook who has paid his debt to society and also a sleek alpha male who can’t wait to gloat about his prowess at making money. (20th Century Fox)
This “and also” value system also comes across in Gekko’s attitude to innovation. He is clearly cynical about clean tech and derides the “fusion delusion” as the next bubble. In his words, “the only green is money.” Yet at the end of the film, he gives $100 million away to support alternative energy and do something “good” with his money.
• Randall Lane: Wall Street on Wall Street
• Randall Lane: Gordon Gekko’s Secret Revealed
The film’s title may hold its final moral clue. If money never sleeps, then can greed not be far behind, even in these pinched times? No one in the film seems to be hurting for nice apartments and clothes, for example, even with a financial meltdown that has come from “the mother of all bubbles.” As Gekko himself puts it, “Greed got greedier with a little envy thrown in.”
So we’d all like to find a little absolution in these troubled times, and in fact in the end Gekko’s daughter does melt and forgive him, while we on the other hand—adding up all the “and alsos”—don’t know whether to follow suit.
This “and also” value system comes across in Gekko’s attitude to innovation. He is cynical about clean tech, yet in the end, he gives $100 million to support alternative energy.
Gordon, make up your mind. Maybe a little therapy would help.
Dubbed "Mr. Creativity" by The Economist, John Kao is a contributing editor at The Daily Beast and an adviser to both public and private sector leaders. He is chairman of the Institute for Large Scale Innovation, whose i20 group is an association of national innovation "czars." He wrote Jamming: The Art and Discipline of Business Creativity, a BusinessWeek bestseller, and Innovation Nation. He is also a Tony-nominated producer of film and stage.
Get a head start with the Morning Scoop email. It's your Cheat Sheet with must reads from across the Web. Get it.
For inquiries, please contact The Daily Beast at editorial@thedailybeast.com.
(Editor’s note: Patrick Driessen is the CEO of Seed Accelerator, an Asian-Pacific technology startup & business accelerator. He submitted this story to VentureBeat.)
Having spent more than 20 years as an entrepreneur, I’ve seen a lot of theories, philosophies and truisms come and go. Success in the startup world starts long before your company is underway, though. It begins when you’re making the decision on whether the entrepreneurial life is for you.
Last week, I ran down 8 questions people making the leap should ask themselves. Today, I have seven more…
Can you create enough sources of funding? – Startups cost money – and odds are you don’t have enough in your bank account. You may not need a lot of cash on day one, but you need to start planning for it from the outset. In some cases, trustworthy friends and/or family members might be willing to lend you money or take an equity stake in your business. But if not, you’ll need to get access to angel investors and actively build a relationship with them or personally get to know the loan and/or branch manager at your bank.
Other options (perhaps less likely) include arranging an introduction to an outstanding venture capitalist or building up a relationship with clients that are willing to fund some of growth without requiring an equity stake.
Are you a people leader? – Once you start growing, you’ll need a team. To build one, you’ll need to be able to select, hire, retain and utilize the best people. It helps to have experience, but it’s not essential. And keep in mind that even rusty leadership skills can be improved.
Can you deal with failure? – Not every startup succeeds. And even those that do sometimes face many difficult and unexpected challenges. To survive this, you must learn to accept and overcome failure, forgive others and believe in yourself and your business.
Can you evolve? – As the founder of a fast growing business you will have to be multi-functional. While growing your business you will need to develop new skills and strengthen existing ones. If you’re the proverbial old dog who won’t learn new tricks, you’re not going to make it.
What’s your exit strategy? – You’re responsible for your business from start to finish – so where is the finish line? When and how do you want to exit your company? Do you want to sell it? Merge? Go public? Hand it over to your children?
It’s hard to see the end of the path when you’re just getting started – and this may be one of those issues you’ll have to pivot on, but by thinking about how you’d like things to end, it gives you a purpose and motivation. And it could help as you set plans for your company’s future.
What’s your company worth? -A successful entrepreneur knows the value of his or her company at any point in time. He or she also knows what kind of unique value he or she wants to create, which is often based on their exit strategy.
Knowing your company’s worth (and having an ideal exit strategy) will help determine if the time is right when you have an opportunity presents itself. If you know there’s still growth potential to create more unique value, it could affect your decision.
Who’s your coach and mentor? – The startup path is a long, often lonely, one. Many successful leaders have a coach and mentor to help them along the way. They not only help increase your performance, they can offer sage advice that can enhance your quality of life.
Next Story: DiscoveryBeat 2010’s latest speakers: Kleiner Perkins’ Bing Gordon and more Previous Story: Nimbuzz clocks up 3.65 billion mobile VOIP minutes in a year
<b>News</b> - Source: Beyonce Is Pregnant! - Moms & Babies - UsMagazine.com
She and Jay-Z will welcome their first child next spring, the new Us Weekly reports.
Islamophobia Watch - Documenting anti Muslim bigotry - Fox <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Last week, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly said on ABC's The View that "Muslims killed us on 9/11," prompting The View co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar to walk off the set in disgust. "If anybody felt that I meant all Muslims, ...
Unemployment Extension <b>News</b>
Unemployment Extension News.
robert shumake twitter
and willowy blondes only take you so far, it turns out. Malefactors are punished. The universe is restored to balance.
This time, Gekko is a repentant father longing to make amends to win his daughter’s approval who also essentially steals a fortune from her to get back in the game.
Gekko is a humble reformed crook who has paid his debt to society and also a sleek alpha male puffing on a phallic cigar who can’t wait to gloat about his prowess at making money.
Gekko is a teacher who shares his knowledge. At times, one could swear that one had wandered into a parallel universe version of An Inconvenient Truth, as Gekko lectures us on the hazards of leverage and financial meltdown. Particularly priceless is when he calls a group of young students “ninjas”—no income, no job, no assets—adding, “You have a lot to look forward to.” But the same guy who observes that the mother of all evil is speculation turns up later in the film dressed in a power suit and giddy over his ability to turn $100 million into $1 billion. I don’t think he earned it at $25 an hour; leverage must have figured in there somewhere.
If we fast-forward 23 years to Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, we are treated to a curiously different kind of moral equation, the morality of “and also” rather than “either or.”
In the new film, Gordon Gekko is a humble reformed crook who has paid his debt to society and also a sleek alpha male who can’t wait to gloat about his prowess at making money. (20th Century Fox)
This “and also” value system also comes across in Gekko’s attitude to innovation. He is clearly cynical about clean tech and derides the “fusion delusion” as the next bubble. In his words, “the only green is money.” Yet at the end of the film, he gives $100 million away to support alternative energy and do something “good” with his money.
• Randall Lane: Wall Street on Wall Street
• Randall Lane: Gordon Gekko’s Secret Revealed
The film’s title may hold its final moral clue. If money never sleeps, then can greed not be far behind, even in these pinched times? No one in the film seems to be hurting for nice apartments and clothes, for example, even with a financial meltdown that has come from “the mother of all bubbles.” As Gekko himself puts it, “Greed got greedier with a little envy thrown in.”
So we’d all like to find a little absolution in these troubled times, and in fact in the end Gekko’s daughter does melt and forgive him, while we on the other hand—adding up all the “and alsos”—don’t know whether to follow suit.
This “and also” value system comes across in Gekko’s attitude to innovation. He is cynical about clean tech, yet in the end, he gives $100 million to support alternative energy.
Gordon, make up your mind. Maybe a little therapy would help.
Dubbed "Mr. Creativity" by The Economist, John Kao is a contributing editor at The Daily Beast and an adviser to both public and private sector leaders. He is chairman of the Institute for Large Scale Innovation, whose i20 group is an association of national innovation "czars." He wrote Jamming: The Art and Discipline of Business Creativity, a BusinessWeek bestseller, and Innovation Nation. He is also a Tony-nominated producer of film and stage.
Get a head start with the Morning Scoop email. It's your Cheat Sheet with must reads from across the Web. Get it.
For inquiries, please contact The Daily Beast at editorial@thedailybeast.com.
(Editor’s note: Patrick Driessen is the CEO of Seed Accelerator, an Asian-Pacific technology startup & business accelerator. He submitted this story to VentureBeat.)
Having spent more than 20 years as an entrepreneur, I’ve seen a lot of theories, philosophies and truisms come and go. Success in the startup world starts long before your company is underway, though. It begins when you’re making the decision on whether the entrepreneurial life is for you.
Last week, I ran down 8 questions people making the leap should ask themselves. Today, I have seven more…
Can you create enough sources of funding? – Startups cost money – and odds are you don’t have enough in your bank account. You may not need a lot of cash on day one, but you need to start planning for it from the outset. In some cases, trustworthy friends and/or family members might be willing to lend you money or take an equity stake in your business. But if not, you’ll need to get access to angel investors and actively build a relationship with them or personally get to know the loan and/or branch manager at your bank.
Other options (perhaps less likely) include arranging an introduction to an outstanding venture capitalist or building up a relationship with clients that are willing to fund some of growth without requiring an equity stake.
Are you a people leader? – Once you start growing, you’ll need a team. To build one, you’ll need to be able to select, hire, retain and utilize the best people. It helps to have experience, but it’s not essential. And keep in mind that even rusty leadership skills can be improved.
Can you deal with failure? – Not every startup succeeds. And even those that do sometimes face many difficult and unexpected challenges. To survive this, you must learn to accept and overcome failure, forgive others and believe in yourself and your business.
Can you evolve? – As the founder of a fast growing business you will have to be multi-functional. While growing your business you will need to develop new skills and strengthen existing ones. If you’re the proverbial old dog who won’t learn new tricks, you’re not going to make it.
What’s your exit strategy? – You’re responsible for your business from start to finish – so where is the finish line? When and how do you want to exit your company? Do you want to sell it? Merge? Go public? Hand it over to your children?
It’s hard to see the end of the path when you’re just getting started – and this may be one of those issues you’ll have to pivot on, but by thinking about how you’d like things to end, it gives you a purpose and motivation. And it could help as you set plans for your company’s future.
What’s your company worth? -A successful entrepreneur knows the value of his or her company at any point in time. He or she also knows what kind of unique value he or she wants to create, which is often based on their exit strategy.
Knowing your company’s worth (and having an ideal exit strategy) will help determine if the time is right when you have an opportunity presents itself. If you know there’s still growth potential to create more unique value, it could affect your decision.
Who’s your coach and mentor? – The startup path is a long, often lonely, one. Many successful leaders have a coach and mentor to help them along the way. They not only help increase your performance, they can offer sage advice that can enhance your quality of life.
Next Story: DiscoveryBeat 2010’s latest speakers: Kleiner Perkins’ Bing Gordon and more Previous Story: Nimbuzz clocks up 3.65 billion mobile VOIP minutes in a year
benchcraft company portland or
<b>News</b> - Source: Beyonce Is Pregnant! - Moms & Babies - UsMagazine.com
She and Jay-Z will welcome their first child next spring, the new Us Weekly reports.
Islamophobia Watch - Documenting anti Muslim bigotry - Fox <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Last week, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly said on ABC's The View that "Muslims killed us on 9/11," prompting The View co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar to walk off the set in disgust. "If anybody felt that I meant all Muslims, ...
Unemployment Extension <b>News</b>
Unemployment Extension News.
robert shumake detroit
robert shumake hall of shame
robert shumake hall of shame
<b>News</b> - Source: Beyonce Is Pregnant! - Moms & Babies - UsMagazine.com
She and Jay-Z will welcome their first child next spring, the new Us Weekly reports.
Islamophobia Watch - Documenting anti Muslim bigotry - Fox <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Last week, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly said on ABC's The View that "Muslims killed us on 9/11," prompting The View co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar to walk off the set in disgust. "If anybody felt that I meant all Muslims, ...
Unemployment Extension <b>News</b>
Unemployment Extension News.
robert shumake hall of shame
and willowy blondes only take you so far, it turns out. Malefactors are punished. The universe is restored to balance.
This time, Gekko is a repentant father longing to make amends to win his daughter’s approval who also essentially steals a fortune from her to get back in the game.
Gekko is a humble reformed crook who has paid his debt to society and also a sleek alpha male puffing on a phallic cigar who can’t wait to gloat about his prowess at making money.
Gekko is a teacher who shares his knowledge. At times, one could swear that one had wandered into a parallel universe version of An Inconvenient Truth, as Gekko lectures us on the hazards of leverage and financial meltdown. Particularly priceless is when he calls a group of young students “ninjas”—no income, no job, no assets—adding, “You have a lot to look forward to.” But the same guy who observes that the mother of all evil is speculation turns up later in the film dressed in a power suit and giddy over his ability to turn $100 million into $1 billion. I don’t think he earned it at $25 an hour; leverage must have figured in there somewhere.
If we fast-forward 23 years to Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, we are treated to a curiously different kind of moral equation, the morality of “and also” rather than “either or.”
In the new film, Gordon Gekko is a humble reformed crook who has paid his debt to society and also a sleek alpha male who can’t wait to gloat about his prowess at making money. (20th Century Fox)
This “and also” value system also comes across in Gekko’s attitude to innovation. He is clearly cynical about clean tech and derides the “fusion delusion” as the next bubble. In his words, “the only green is money.” Yet at the end of the film, he gives $100 million away to support alternative energy and do something “good” with his money.
• Randall Lane: Wall Street on Wall Street
• Randall Lane: Gordon Gekko’s Secret Revealed
The film’s title may hold its final moral clue. If money never sleeps, then can greed not be far behind, even in these pinched times? No one in the film seems to be hurting for nice apartments and clothes, for example, even with a financial meltdown that has come from “the mother of all bubbles.” As Gekko himself puts it, “Greed got greedier with a little envy thrown in.”
So we’d all like to find a little absolution in these troubled times, and in fact in the end Gekko’s daughter does melt and forgive him, while we on the other hand—adding up all the “and alsos”—don’t know whether to follow suit.
This “and also” value system comes across in Gekko’s attitude to innovation. He is cynical about clean tech, yet in the end, he gives $100 million to support alternative energy.
Gordon, make up your mind. Maybe a little therapy would help.
Dubbed "Mr. Creativity" by The Economist, John Kao is a contributing editor at The Daily Beast and an adviser to both public and private sector leaders. He is chairman of the Institute for Large Scale Innovation, whose i20 group is an association of national innovation "czars." He wrote Jamming: The Art and Discipline of Business Creativity, a BusinessWeek bestseller, and Innovation Nation. He is also a Tony-nominated producer of film and stage.
Get a head start with the Morning Scoop email. It's your Cheat Sheet with must reads from across the Web. Get it.
For inquiries, please contact The Daily Beast at editorial@thedailybeast.com.
(Editor’s note: Patrick Driessen is the CEO of Seed Accelerator, an Asian-Pacific technology startup & business accelerator. He submitted this story to VentureBeat.)
Having spent more than 20 years as an entrepreneur, I’ve seen a lot of theories, philosophies and truisms come and go. Success in the startup world starts long before your company is underway, though. It begins when you’re making the decision on whether the entrepreneurial life is for you.
Last week, I ran down 8 questions people making the leap should ask themselves. Today, I have seven more…
Can you create enough sources of funding? – Startups cost money – and odds are you don’t have enough in your bank account. You may not need a lot of cash on day one, but you need to start planning for it from the outset. In some cases, trustworthy friends and/or family members might be willing to lend you money or take an equity stake in your business. But if not, you’ll need to get access to angel investors and actively build a relationship with them or personally get to know the loan and/or branch manager at your bank.
Other options (perhaps less likely) include arranging an introduction to an outstanding venture capitalist or building up a relationship with clients that are willing to fund some of growth without requiring an equity stake.
Are you a people leader? – Once you start growing, you’ll need a team. To build one, you’ll need to be able to select, hire, retain and utilize the best people. It helps to have experience, but it’s not essential. And keep in mind that even rusty leadership skills can be improved.
Can you deal with failure? – Not every startup succeeds. And even those that do sometimes face many difficult and unexpected challenges. To survive this, you must learn to accept and overcome failure, forgive others and believe in yourself and your business.
Can you evolve? – As the founder of a fast growing business you will have to be multi-functional. While growing your business you will need to develop new skills and strengthen existing ones. If you’re the proverbial old dog who won’t learn new tricks, you’re not going to make it.
What’s your exit strategy? – You’re responsible for your business from start to finish – so where is the finish line? When and how do you want to exit your company? Do you want to sell it? Merge? Go public? Hand it over to your children?
It’s hard to see the end of the path when you’re just getting started – and this may be one of those issues you’ll have to pivot on, but by thinking about how you’d like things to end, it gives you a purpose and motivation. And it could help as you set plans for your company’s future.
What’s your company worth? -A successful entrepreneur knows the value of his or her company at any point in time. He or she also knows what kind of unique value he or she wants to create, which is often based on their exit strategy.
Knowing your company’s worth (and having an ideal exit strategy) will help determine if the time is right when you have an opportunity presents itself. If you know there’s still growth potential to create more unique value, it could affect your decision.
Who’s your coach and mentor? – The startup path is a long, often lonely, one. Many successful leaders have a coach and mentor to help them along the way. They not only help increase your performance, they can offer sage advice that can enhance your quality of life.
Next Story: DiscoveryBeat 2010’s latest speakers: Kleiner Perkins’ Bing Gordon and more Previous Story: Nimbuzz clocks up 3.65 billion mobile VOIP minutes in a year
robert shumake detroit
<b>News</b> - Source: Beyonce Is Pregnant! - Moms & Babies - UsMagazine.com
She and Jay-Z will welcome their first child next spring, the new Us Weekly reports.
Islamophobia Watch - Documenting anti Muslim bigotry - Fox <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Last week, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly said on ABC's The View that "Muslims killed us on 9/11," prompting The View co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar to walk off the set in disgust. "If anybody felt that I meant all Muslims, ...
Unemployment Extension <b>News</b>
Unemployment Extension News.
robert shumake detroit
robert shumake twitter
<b>News</b> - Source: Beyonce Is Pregnant! - Moms & Babies - UsMagazine.com
She and Jay-Z will welcome their first child next spring, the new Us Weekly reports.
Islamophobia Watch - Documenting anti Muslim bigotry - Fox <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Last week, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly said on ABC's The View that "Muslims killed us on 9/11," prompting The View co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar to walk off the set in disgust. "If anybody felt that I meant all Muslims, ...
Unemployment Extension <b>News</b>
Unemployment Extension News.
robert shumake hall of shame
<b>News</b> - Source: Beyonce Is Pregnant! - Moms & Babies - UsMagazine.com
She and Jay-Z will welcome their first child next spring, the new Us Weekly reports.
Islamophobia Watch - Documenting anti Muslim bigotry - Fox <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Last week, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly said on ABC's The View that "Muslims killed us on 9/11," prompting The View co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar to walk off the set in disgust. "If anybody felt that I meant all Muslims, ...
Unemployment Extension <b>News</b>
Unemployment Extension News.
robert shumake hall of shame
<b>News</b> - Source: Beyonce Is Pregnant! - Moms & Babies - UsMagazine.com
She and Jay-Z will welcome their first child next spring, the new Us Weekly reports.
Islamophobia Watch - Documenting anti Muslim bigotry - Fox <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Last week, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly said on ABC's The View that "Muslims killed us on 9/11," prompting The View co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar to walk off the set in disgust. "If anybody felt that I meant all Muslims, ...
Unemployment Extension <b>News</b>
Unemployment Extension News.
how to lose weight fast robert shumake detroit
robert shumake detroit
robert shumake twitter
robert shumake hall of shame
<b>News</b> - Source: Beyonce Is Pregnant! - Moms & Babies - UsMagazine.com
She and Jay-Z will welcome their first child next spring, the new Us Weekly reports.
Islamophobia Watch - Documenting anti Muslim bigotry - Fox <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Last week, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly said on ABC's The View that "Muslims killed us on 9/11," prompting The View co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar to walk off the set in disgust. "If anybody felt that I meant all Muslims, ...
Unemployment Extension <b>News</b>
Unemployment Extension News.
robert shumake hall of shame
Cheney's company, Halliburton, has a reputation. Their faulty work electrocuted US soldiers in Iraq. This is described in the May 4, 2008 article "Despite Alert, Flawed Wiring Still Kills G.I.'s" at Cheney's Criminal Historywhich stated about KBR, a Halliburton subsidiary "One electrician warned his KBR bosses in his 2005 letter of resignation that unsafe electrical work was "a disaster waiting to happen." Another said he witnessed an American soldier in Afghanistan receiving a potentially lethal shock. A third provided e-mail messages and other documents showing that he had complained to KBR and the government that logs were created to make it appear that nonexistent electrical safety systems were properly functioning."
Not only did they do criminally inept work but they lied about it in order that they could continue getting paid.
So that their work was deficient in the Gulf Oil Spill was to be expected particularly when you realize that Halliburton has been accused of performing a poor cement job in the case of a major blowout in the Timor Sea off Australia last August in which an investigation is underway.
Oil executives testified at the Senate Energy Committee's hearing on the Gulf oil spill on May 12, 2010. Tim Probert, Halliburton's chief health, safety, and environmental officer spouted gibberish that amounted to: They were just following orders. That is the oldest dodge in the world and the Nuremburg trials invalidated it as a legal strategy.
When did these shoddy regulations originate? The article "Thank Dick Cheney for Gulf Oil Spill--Blogger connects dots and finds arrow pointing to ex-VP" at Cheney's Culpability states "The scope of the Gulf oil spill is far from clear, but the finger-pointing is already under way, and a lot of fingers ought to be aiming at Dick Cheney, Alex Pareene blogs for Salon. Connecting the dots that begin with a Wall Street Journal exposé, we learn that Cheney's highly classified energy task force was responsible for the fact "that the oil well didn't have a remote-control shut-off switch," Pareene writes, "a thing that it seems every single offshore drilling rig should have."
"The former Dark Lord of the Naval Observatory" is no rookie at covering his tracks, but the follow-up argument is a no-brainer: "Halliburton is involved, too! The Los Angeles Times reports that BP contracted Dick Cheney's old company to cement the deepwater drill hole." In short, Pareene writes, "Thanks, Dick. Nice work."
The article "Dick Cheney and the oil spill" at Cheney's Secret Energy Task Force notes regarding acoustic triggers that "The U.K., where BP is headquartered, doesn't require the use of acoustic triggers.
The Journal's report doesn't come out and say this, but the environmental lawyer, Mike Papantonio, said on the Schultz show in an interview that it was Cheney's energy task force - the secretive one that he wouldn't say much about publicly - that decided that the switches, which cost $500,000, were too much a burden on the industry."
$500,000 could have saved us from this catastrophe. Cheney and his daughter have been attacking Obama since the beginning of his Presidency. Why have the Cheneys been silent about this?
It is not only the Cheneys who threw caution to the wind and it isn't only the big oil who made an obscene profit.
The article "McCain guru linked to subprime crisis" at McCain's Involvement in Subprime Crisis states regarding the repeal of Glass-Steagall "The general co-chairman of John McCain's presidential campaign, former Sen. Phil Gramm (R-Texas), led the charge in 1999 to repeal a Depression-era banking regulation law that Democrat Barack Obama claimed on Thursday contributed significantly to today's economic turmoil.
"A regulatory structure set up for banks in the 1930s needed to change because the nature of business had changed," the Illinois senator running for president said in a New York economic speech. "But by the time was repealed in 1999, the $300 million lobbying effort that drove deregulation was more about facilitating mergers than creating an efficient regulatory framework."
Gramm's role in the swift and dramatic recent restructuring of the nation's investment houses and practices didn't stop there.
A year after the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act repealed the old regulations, Swiss Bank UBS gobbled up brokerage house Paine Weber. Two years later, Gramm settled in as a vice chairman of UBS's new investment banking arm."
The pattern is the same as the Gulf oil spill. These GOP robber barons can't be satisfied with making a good living pursuing activities that would benefit society. They have to go for huge profits by removing safety practices and the bottom 99% are left with all of the expense.
The GOP likes to pretend that our economic crisis was because of the Democrats and their Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. That ignores the fact Bush 43 was encouraging home ownership and creating policy that contributed to our housing market collapse and this policy specifically dealt with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The article "Timeline of the United States housing bubble" at W's Responsibilty for Housing Crisis states "June 17 2002: President G.W. Bush sets goal of increasing minority home owners by at least 5.5 million by 2010 through billions of dollars in tax credits, subsidies and a Fannie Mae commitment of $440 billion to establish NeighborWorks America with faith based organizations...
September 2003 Bush administration recommended moving governmental supervision of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac under a new agency created within the Department of the Treasury. The changes were blocked by Congress.
December 2003 President Bush signs the American Dream Downpayment Act to be implemented under the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The goal was to provide a maximum downpayment assistance grant of either $10,000 or six percent of the purchase price of the home, whichever was greater. In addition, the Bush Administration committed to reforming the homebuying process that would lower closing costs by approximately $700 per loan. It was said it would further stimulate homeownership for all Americans."
The article "Wall Street: Land of the Million Dollar Babies" at GOP Obstruction of Regulations states regarding the repeal of Glass-Steagall "There is still another good opportunity to rein in the banks ability to gamble with our money. Senators Merkley and Levin have proposed an amendment that would prohibit commercial banks from trading on their own behalf. The point is that commercial banks are backed up by the Federal Deposit Insurance Cooperation and the Federal Reserve Board. If they get into trouble, it is taxpayers' dollars at risk.
Until the repeal of Glass-Steagall in 1999, commercial banks were sharply restricted in what they could do, precisely in order to prevent them from taking advantage of this guarantee. If you wanted to engage in highly speculative activity you could set up a hedge fund or an investment bank, but Glass-Steagall prevented banks from gambling with government insured deposits. But this separation was obliterated by the repeal and now we have investment banks like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley that are openly speculating with taxpayer insured money.
The Merkley-Levin amendment seeks to restore this separation. It really should be in the category of no-brainer: why should schoolteachers and firefighters be subsidizing the high-powered traders at Goldman Sachs?
But, as Senator Richard Durbin said last spring when the Senate voted down a bill that would have helped homeowners keep their homes: "the banks own the place." We'll see what happens."
There is one theme that runs throughout this. GOP greed causes them to cut corners on safety which results in catastrophes. Their cronies make some cash and the bottom 99% pay for their crimes.
robert shumake twitter
<b>News</b> - Source: Beyonce Is Pregnant! - Moms & Babies - UsMagazine.com
She and Jay-Z will welcome their first child next spring, the new Us Weekly reports.
Islamophobia Watch - Documenting anti Muslim bigotry - Fox <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Last week, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly said on ABC's The View that "Muslims killed us on 9/11," prompting The View co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar to walk off the set in disgust. "If anybody felt that I meant all Muslims, ...
Unemployment Extension <b>News</b>
Unemployment Extension News.
robert shumake detroit
<b>News</b> - Source: Beyonce Is Pregnant! - Moms & Babies - UsMagazine.com
She and Jay-Z will welcome their first child next spring, the new Us Weekly reports.
Islamophobia Watch - Documenting anti Muslim bigotry - Fox <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Last week, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly said on ABC's The View that "Muslims killed us on 9/11," prompting The View co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar to walk off the set in disgust. "If anybody felt that I meant all Muslims, ...
Unemployment Extension <b>News</b>
Unemployment Extension News.
No comments:
Post a Comment