OS didn't check the news til late afternoon--DJIA up 500 points in one freaking day.
And we thought we were all in deep doo-doo, what with most of the Western World in debt to the tune of trillions of dollars, which of course will be mathematically impossible to repay.
So, solution: Just print up some more, throw it at the stock market. That will make everything just a-o-k!
Why didn't we think of this earlier?
Well, actually, Virginia; look up 'Weimar Republic' to see what occurs from massive money printing....eventually they ended up with a little guy with a funny mustache and a messianic belief in himself. That worked out, ok, didn't it?
Well, didn't it?
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Judge Rakoff Tells The SEC and Citigroup He's Had Enough, Refuses To Approve One More Slap On the Wrist
As OS noted last month, the judge seems to have located his huevos.
Today's new's comes as confirmation that, indeed, he has.
From the New York Times, this evening:
Taking a broad swipe at the Securities and Exchange Commission’s practice of allowing companies to settle cases without admitting that they had done anything wrong, a federal judge on Monday rejected a $285 million settlement between Citigroup and the agency.
The judge, Jed S. Rakoff of United States District Court in Manhattan, said that he could not determine whether the agency’s settlement with Citigroup was “fair, reasonable, adequate and in the public interest,” as required by law, because the agency had claimed, but had not proved, that Citigroup committed fraud.
As it has in recent cases involving Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, UBS and others, the agency proposed to settle the case by levying a fine on Citigroup and allowing it to neither admit nor deny the agency’s findings. Such settlements require approval by a federal judge.
While other judges are not obligated to follow Judge Rakoff’s opinion, the 15-page ruling could severely undermine the agency’s enforcement efforts if it eventually blocks the agency from settling cases in which the defendant does not admit the charges.
The agency contends that it must settle most of the cases it brings because it does not have the money or the staff to battle deep-pocketed Wall Street firms in court. Wall Street firms will rarely admit wrongdoing, the agency says, because that can be used against them in investor lawsuits.
'Well, Duh!' to quote Snookie. Beside, the lawyers at the SEC, who sheltered Bernie Madoff all those years, were too busy with their online porn to actually check to see if Citigroup were engaging in massive fraud. That would resemble...well...work! Besides, if you want a job at Citigroup or J.P. Morgan after your exhausting five years at the SEC, you best not piss those bankers off by actually doing your job.
In his decision, Judge Rakoff called Citigroup “a recidivist,” or repeat offender, for having previously settled other fraud cases with the agency where it neither admitted nor denied the allegations but agreed never to violate the law in the future.
Citigroup and other repeat offenders can agree to those terms, the judge said, because they know that the commission has not monitored compliance, failing to bring contempt charges for repeat violations in at least 10 years.
Ten years, at least ten years. No attempt to monitor compliance of known fraud artists. Billions lost, businesses and neighborhoods in ruins. Words fail.
It's time for the lawsuits and indictments, ya'll. Somebody needs to go to jail, or we need to apologize to Bernie Madoff and let him go home to Ruth and get back into business. Why the hell not? Either we prosecute massive frauds or we don't. At least, let's be honest and admit that we don't, if we don't intend to.
Here's hoping his ruling stands, and that he doesn't waken one morning with the decapitated head of a horse on the foot of his bed, left as a friendly warning about what happens to uppity judges.
Today's new's comes as confirmation that, indeed, he has.
From the New York Times, this evening:
Taking a broad swipe at the Securities and Exchange Commission’s practice of allowing companies to settle cases without admitting that they had done anything wrong, a federal judge on Monday rejected a $285 million settlement between Citigroup and the agency.
The judge, Jed S. Rakoff of United States District Court in Manhattan, said that he could not determine whether the agency’s settlement with Citigroup was “fair, reasonable, adequate and in the public interest,” as required by law, because the agency had claimed, but had not proved, that Citigroup committed fraud.
As it has in recent cases involving Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, UBS and others, the agency proposed to settle the case by levying a fine on Citigroup and allowing it to neither admit nor deny the agency’s findings. Such settlements require approval by a federal judge.
While other judges are not obligated to follow Judge Rakoff’s opinion, the 15-page ruling could severely undermine the agency’s enforcement efforts if it eventually blocks the agency from settling cases in which the defendant does not admit the charges.
The agency contends that it must settle most of the cases it brings because it does not have the money or the staff to battle deep-pocketed Wall Street firms in court. Wall Street firms will rarely admit wrongdoing, the agency says, because that can be used against them in investor lawsuits.
'Well, Duh!' to quote Snookie. Beside, the lawyers at the SEC, who sheltered Bernie Madoff all those years, were too busy with their online porn to actually check to see if Citigroup were engaging in massive fraud. That would resemble...well...work! Besides, if you want a job at Citigroup or J.P. Morgan after your exhausting five years at the SEC, you best not piss those bankers off by actually doing your job.
In his decision, Judge Rakoff called Citigroup “a recidivist,” or repeat offender, for having previously settled other fraud cases with the agency where it neither admitted nor denied the allegations but agreed never to violate the law in the future.
Citigroup and other repeat offenders can agree to those terms, the judge said, because they know that the commission has not monitored compliance, failing to bring contempt charges for repeat violations in at least 10 years.
Ten years, at least ten years. No attempt to monitor compliance of known fraud artists. Billions lost, businesses and neighborhoods in ruins. Words fail.
It's time for the lawsuits and indictments, ya'll. Somebody needs to go to jail, or we need to apologize to Bernie Madoff and let him go home to Ruth and get back into business. Why the hell not? Either we prosecute massive frauds or we don't. At least, let's be honest and admit that we don't, if we don't intend to.
Here's hoping his ruling stands, and that he doesn't waken one morning with the decapitated head of a horse on the foot of his bed, left as a friendly warning about what happens to uppity judges.
Sunday, November 27, 2011
So, Where Does One Go To Sell Worthless Loans On To Unsuspecting Buyers
Seems the word has gotten out about the European banks--desperate for cash, with boatloads of worthless paper for sale.
Does anyone out there really believe the Euro was a good idea?
It's going to be an interesting week and month to year's end...
Does anyone out there really believe the Euro was a good idea?
It's going to be an interesting week and month to year's end...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)