Thread: $50 billion ponzie

Like father like son. It would seem ol W has inherited his father's lack of talent for managing the economy. But hey we threw that witch Martha Steward in jail because she was such a threat to Wall street.

Thanks goodness we have term limits...

Originally Posted by JTH

Like father like son. It would seem ol W has inherited his father's lack of talent for managing the economy. But hey we threw that witch Martha Steward in jail because she was such a threat to Wall street.

Thanks goodness we have term limits...

And exactly how many times should the IRS audit your bank account?

I don't think you have a valid point on this one. It was the SEC's responsibility to fess up on what was going on here.

Oh, and can I remind everyone that the dot com failure was the product of the Clinton Administration. There was an EIGHT year separation between the father and son.

I really believe that this "good ol boy network" is to blame. If we want results and legal businesses, then enforce the laws.

Originally Posted by Frixxxx

If we want results and legal businesses, then enforce the laws.

That's exactly my point, W failed to manage. But don't worry I have plently of blame left over for the Democatic controlled congress too.

Still, W is the leader and you can't tell me he didn't see any of this coming. Instead he chose to try and pass the buck on to someone else.

The president's job isn't to "manage the economy".

The Fed apparently believed its job is to do that, and now we are seeing disastrous results of that misguided thinking (lowering interest rates too far and for too long creates a cheap lending environment which leads to lots of leveraging / bad risks taken which ultimately leads to bubbles and the inevitable popping of said bubbles).

I have the sinking feeling that we are in for hyperinflation whenever the economy finally pulls out of this deep recession. All that money the Fed pumped into the system will flood back into the economy when bankers regain confidence and start lending in earnest again.

Obama's "Coolers" for Wall Street

Thursday December 18, 11:01 am ET
Obama picks 3 financial regulators during unrelenting market turmoil

CHICAGO (AP) -- Rounding out his economic team, President-elect Barack Obama on Thursday named three veteran regulators to deal with unrelenting turmoil in the nation's financial markets and broader economy.

Obama said Mary Schapiro would chair the Securities and Exchange Commission, Gary Gensler would head the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Daniel Tarullo would fill an empty Federal Reserve seat. All three will need to be confirmed by the Senate next year.

In announcing the appointments, Obama mentioned Wall Street money manager Bernard Madoff, saying that the latest investment scandal "has reminded us yet again of how badly reform is needed." The president-elect said his new team will help put in place new rules that will help "crack down on the culture of greed and scheming."
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/081218/obama.html?.v=7

Why are people so upset about the Madoff thing? You couldn't invest in it unless you had tons of cash. And if you have tons of cash, the ASSumption is that you are wise with your money and would only risk what you could afford to lose. And if you wanted to give your money to some guy but had no idea what he was doing, then that is up to you.

Damm. I was hoping Obama was going to pick Jim Cramer for SEC. Cramer said several times he wanted the job and it seemed to me that he would know where to look to find the boyz playing games...

Originally Posted by turbo23dog

Damm. I was hoping Obama was going to pick Jim Cramer for SEC. Cramer said several times he wanted the job and it seemed to me that he would know where to look to find the boyz playing games...

Did you see Cramer last night? Had to laugh..says social security is the worlds largest ponzie scheme. Unfortunely, he is probably right.

Originally Posted by fabijo

Why are people so upset about the Madoff thing? You couldn't invest in it unless you had tons of cash. And if you have tons of cash, the ASSumption is that you are wise with your money and would only risk what you could afford to lose. And if you wanted to give your money to some guy but had no idea what he was doing, then that is up to you.

Avoiding Instant-Status Traps and the Bernie Madoffs Who Set Them
Beware of Schemers


In addition, it was status anxiety that propelled smart people to hand over enormous sums of money to Bernard Madoff without paying adequate attention to what he was doing with it.

"What strikes one about the investors in the Ponzi scheme is desperation -- and not necessarily desperation to become rich, but to earn status, honor, and esteem," Botton wrote me in an email. "If our position on the ladder is a matter of such concern, it is because how we feel about ourselves depends to an unfortunate degree on what others think of us.

"Except in societies where status is fixed at birth, our position on the ladder hangs upon what we achieve -- and success is uncertain," he continues. "And from failure will flow humiliation: a corroding awareness that we have failed to convince the world of our value and are henceforth condemned to consider the successful with bitterness and ourselves with shame. That's where Madoff came in: he promised an instant and painless release from these status anxieties."
http://finance.yahoo.com/expert/arti...eyhappy/129866

Originally Posted by turbo23dog

Damm. I was hoping Obama was going to pick Jim Cramer for SEC. Cramer said several times he wanted the job and it seemed to me that he would know where to look to find the boyz playing games...

Yeah, right...Cramer would be a good pick if you believe that the best way to find a crook is to use a crook to hunt him.

Originally Posted by Mike

The president's job isn't to "manage the economy".

The Fed apparently believed its job is to do that, and now we are seeing disastrous results of that misguided thinking (lowering interest rates too far and for too long creates a cheap lending environment which leads to lots of leveraging / bad risks taken which ultimately leads to bubbles and the inevitable popping of said bubbles).

I have the sinking feeling that we are in for hyperinflation whenever the economy finally pulls out of this deep recession. All that money the Fed pumped into the system will flood back into the economy when bankers regain confidence and start lending in earnest again.

That must be what Birch means when all the side-lined money floods the markets and causes the prices on stock to soar? Trick is we will all be spending money on everyday items with no $ for stocks.

Originally Posted by budnipper1

"And from failure will flow humiliation: a corroding awareness that we have failed to convince the world of our value and are henceforth condemned to consider the successful with bitterness and ourselves with shame.

Awwww. I feel so sorry for them.