[USML Announce] Socialized Risk, Privatized Profit: No Bonus For Me, Baby

Wed Apr 1 11:05:35 EDT 2009

Amen to the second paragraph of Kerber's e-mail.  The whole idea for years was to make mortgages available to people that who did not qualify for mortgages in the past.  When the system cratered, the people who offered the mortgages were blamed, and the people who could not afford them in the first place were portrayed as victims.  What sense does that make?

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	From: announce-bounces at usml.net [mailto:announce-bounces at usml.net] On Behalf Of springkerb at aol.com
	Sent: Wednesday, April 01, 2009 10:47 AM
	To: announce at usml.net
	Subject: Re: [USML Announce] Socialized Risk,Privatized Profit: No Bonus For Me, Baby

	In the case of AIG, the bonuses in question were not for performance.  They were apparently/supposedly retention bonuses paid to people who were needed to manage the restructuing--although there are admittedly some questions about whether that was universally true, since some of the bonuses went to people who left the company.  In any case, the Treasury knew about it.  Eventually, word got out about the bonuses, and the Treasury suddenly was "shocked, shocked" to find that bonuses were being paid.  So now the government pretended it knew nothing about what was going on and forced AIG to break its promises and screw the people who stayed around in reliance on the bonuses.  Part of the fallout of this is that a couple of those key executives have left one of AIG's affiliates in France, and as direct fallout of their departure, AIG was recently in danger of defaulting on $234 billion worth of derivat ive transactions as a result of a "change in control" provision.  (Don't know if that has worked itself out yet.)  If AIG does default, pulling back those guys' bonuses will be one of the stupidest moves in history.

	As for the "mess they created," what about the government itself?  We had about 15 straight years for which the official US government policy (on both sides of the aisle, by the way) was to promote cheap mortgages and home ownership for everyone.  Then the same sanctimonius bastards (sometimes known as congressmen) that pushed that policy get to hold a Salem witch trial for the executives of all the banks and investment firms that underwrote the cheap mortgages the government itself was promoting.  Screw them, too.

	And what about all the morons that bought houses they couldn't afford, because they thought there was absolutely no way you could fail to make money hand over fist buying real estate.  They are now supposedly the victims.  Screw them, too.

	Hey, Bhudda, let's go out for a beer!

	Mark

	-----Original Message-----
	From: Brad Jansen <bljansen at gmail.com>
	To: USML Announcements <announce at usml.net>
	Sent: Wed, 1 Apr 2009 9:51 am
	Subject: [USML Announce] Socialized Risk, Privatized Profit: No Bonus For Me, Baby

	Today's thoughts:
	Hey, if all those greedy SOBs at AIG have to worry about these days is other folks' "jealousy," they should be happier than pigs in shit.

	As a public sector employee, I don't get bonuses, but gee in the private sector aren't bonuses supposed to be based somewhat on performance. I mean, good performance?

	Mark, I appreciate your concern about gov't getting involved in managing a business, (especially since AIG Financial Products did such a great job managing itself), but as a fellow taxpayer watching our tax dollars subsidize a bottomless sinkhole created by some financial "geniuses" I for one am more troubled by the fact that I've become an involuntary shareholder in a business run by insiders now charged with the task of fixing the mess they created.  And I am watching my country's future "managed" by these self-dealing insiders who build nothing, create nothing and care about nothing except turning money into more money (and now are using mine as well).  Screw 'em. 

	And, by the way, you're dead wrong about Morrow, too.

	Oh, April Fools. Just kidding. Really. Some of my best friends are hedge fund managers.  

	On 4/1/09, springkerb at aol.com <springkerb at aol.com> wrote: 

		You won't get much of a fight out of me on this one, Bhudda.  I'm OK in principal with the gov't restricting bonuses, etc., when they are bailing companies out, but if they do it too much they won't attract the talent needed to make these companies viable again.  And, when the gov't starts getting directly involved in managing a business, that business is as good as dead with or without bailout money.  I'm generally more of a libertarian than a true liberal. 

		Mark

		-----Original Message-----
		From: Bbuddhas at aol.com
		To: announce at usml.net
		Sent: Wed, 1 Apr 2009 12:02 am
		Subject: Re: [USML Announce] USML Today: Who's Up, Down and Holding Steady

		no no   this socialism thing is really working well......i was wrong    Go get those AIG guys....and the TARP recipients too!!!!!!

		A Rasmussen poll (taken in these United States of America) said 30% think the Federal Government should enact a law that caps athletes and entertainers pay at $1 million........... 36% think executives pay should be capped at $1 million....... that's what this country was built on....jealousy.

		I think that Mickey Robinson's squeeze liked to quote Lincoln....try this one

		I don't believe in a law to prevent a man from g etting rich; it would do more harm than good. So while we do not propose any war upon capital, we do wish to allow the humblest man an equal chance to get rich with everybody else. 

		--March 6, 1860 Speech at New Haven, Connecticut

		OR

		"Property is the fruit of labor...property is desirable...is a positive good in the world. That some should be rich shows that others may become rich, and hence is just encouragement to industry and enterprise. Let not him who is houseless pull down the house of another; but let him labor diligently and build one for himself, thus by example assuring that his own shall be safe from violence when built." 
		-- March 21, 1864 - Reply to New York Workingmen's Democratic Republican Association".

		In a message dated 3/31/2009 9:12:30 P.M. Central Daylight Time, springkerb at aol.com writes:

				Republicans:    Because at the end of the day, you know he's right.

			Way right.

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