Replies to post #40976 on Your Economy (No Politics) (YE1)

[Koikaze]

I agree, nlightn. The Goldman Sachs situation is appalling.

On June 06, 2007, Bullwinkle posted an article from the Daily Telegraph citing anxiety in Italy about Goldman Sachs control of the Italian Government. The article mentioned, among many other things, an inquiry into Goldman Sachs involvement in corrupt activities over a 15-year period. You'll find Bullwinkle's post at:

http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=20218326

Meanwhile, as I said once before,

"We, here in the U. S., secure in our smug self-satisfaction,
have been too blind to see our own Goldman Sachs alumnus, our
Secretary of the Treasury, engineer the incredible financial
debacle we're enduring. Then, nincompoops that we are, we
applaud when he uses our money (about 100 billion dollars of
it) to buy the votes of the filth we've elected to represent
us in our government, so he can give his alma mater and a few
of his compatriots on 'the street' 700 billion of our dollars
to consolidate their hold on our existence."


The pervasiveness of the problem is frightening. Our New Jersey Governor, Jon Corzine ... a former Chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs ... appointed Gary Rose, of Goldman Sachs Investment Banking Division, to the specially-created position of Chief of the Governor's Office of Economic Growth, where his power is immense. The Star-Ledger (Newark, NJ) of June 10, 2007, reported it this way:

"Gary Rose is widely considered the second-most powerful
official in New Jersey State Government -- right behind Gov.
Jon Corzine.

While he's never run for office and works far from the public
eye, Trenton insiders describe Rose as Corzine's de facto
lieutenant governor.

Holding a Cabinet job created specifically for him, Rose has
authority over all or parts of two dozen state agencies,
including every important state panel dealing with economic
growth.

In short, he controls virtually every dime the state is
spending to boost the economy."

For completeness, we have to add Corzine's choice of Brad Abelow, who was head of global operations at Goldman Sachs, as the New Jersey State Treasurer.

Note that these folks took the same positions in New Jersey as they took in Italy ... positions that give them control of the flow of money.

This is the crew that tried to strip New Jersey of its assets, seeking to sell the New Jersey Turnpike and the state lottery to the financial industry. These are hugely productive state assets. They pour hundreds of millions of dollars into the state treasury. Corzine and his Goldman Sachs crew have found an innocuous term to cover the theft. They call it "monetization", but it's the same asset-stripping practiced by all corporate raiders.

This is not a hidden conspiracy, it's happening right in front of our eyes. The question is ...

HOW THE HELL DO WE STOP THEM!!!!!

I'll tell you what ... I don't believe we can ... unless we find some way to put decent people in our state legislature ... and that's not going to happen with our present political system.

The Star Ledger does not allow direct links to its articles, but if you'd like to check this, you can try ...

http://www.nj.com/starledger/stories (Enter "go-to guy for talking business" in the search box)

Fred Gohlke

[Koikaze]

As I said in my previous post, the Goldman Sachs situation is appalling.

However, shouldn't we keep in mind that it was our elected representatives that first gutted, and then repealed, Glass-Steagall?

Have you noticed that, in spite of the outrages perpetrated by our banks ... apparently bringing our nation to its knees ... we hear not one word about re-enacting Glass-Steagall or its equivalent?

Never mind the current rash of nonsense about compensation in the banking industry and reforming the SEC to do its job. That's all hogwash, designed to sound good without correcting the problem.

When you see Glass-Steagall (or its equivalent; something that will break up immense banks) put back in force, there will be some hope for our country ...

... but don't hold your breath.

Fred Gohlke