Greg Smith Isn't The Only One Who Testifies To The Rot At Goldman-Sachs

Wallace Turbeville, whose tenure as a VP at G-S predates Smith, gives testimony as well.

From The American Spectator:

Having spent 12 years at Goldman prior to 1997, I sympathize with Smith’s feelings of loss and betrayal. I left just at the beginning of the institution’s evolution into its current form and have observed the process with despair—not only for the organization but for the loss suffered by the nation.

He speaks with respect and fondness of his earlier days there, and with despair at what followed.

The world shifted. Trading exploded, largely fueled by information technology. It seemed that every number on earth could be divided by every other number, all in real time. Everything could be priced, and, once priced, could be traded. Markets were deregulated and carved into pieces, each representing a trading opportunity. The Wall Street firms, and Goldman in particular, with their enormous capital resources, could dominate more and more of the price points in the American economy, extracting value from the producers and consumers. Software programs could be written to access electronic trading platforms so that the enormous force of the trading houses could be brought to bear without the inefficiency of human intervention. It seemed that a business model relying on dispassionate exploitation of immediate opportunity had been perfected.

The golden rule kicked in—“He who has the gold makes the rules.” The predominance of trading profits reversed the balance of influence in favor of the traders. Clients were no longer just clients; instead, they were counterparties to be dealt with at arm’s length. In the end, the traders achieved Nirvana—using asset pools, they were able to synthesize their own clients as sources of securities to trade. The business of trading, focused on short-term profits, became dominant at Goldman Sachs, and every firm on Wall Street tried to emulate it.

There is more here, much more. It presents a problem for G-S, because it affirms what they loudly deny: They have been playing the ends against the middle, shamelessly.

Our culture has been gutted, not only because of these people, but they certainly have encouraged the process along.

Our Saviour's haunting question lingers in the air:  

What doth it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul?

And, in that loss of the soul, what happens to the world you attempt to gain? Will it be worth the energy spent in the acquisition?

This story is just beginning to ramp up, ya'll. Don't listen to the noise the PR shills will be creating. Look at what has happened in your own homes and businesses and in the places you live, to your friends and family, your city and county, and your country.