PBS Frontline, in a tradition of reporting facts often before most here have even heard them, has again reported on
Money, Power, and Wall Street The first two of a four hour report is one of the best explanations of the corruption that created this recession - to enrich only the rich.
For example, CDO (or credit default option) is powerful tool to protect institutions from excessive risk. A tool to address what is most important and only relevant - the product. But as originators of CDOs realized, their instrument eventually was perverted into a tool to enrich the most corrupt and scam the naive. IBK Bank is cited as a perfect example.
These instruments were easily sold by and to people who were also some of the poorest students when you were in school. So that the public would only lose money. Bankers, stock brokers, etc typically enrich themselves - screw the counterparty. And call that acceptable. If they were not bankers, some probably would be bank robbers. Even JP Morgan, who invented the instrument, realized the problem and resulting corruption. And stopped selling this monster. See the people who invented the CDO discuss it.
Are derivatives and credit defaults evil? They are and are not. Anyone who knows in terms of good and evil is part of the problem. These instruments have important purposes. But since bankers are driven by wealth (rather then the purpose of bank), then these finance instruments almost caused a 40% world wide unemployment. CDOs are both evil and productive. You should know why. That means learning details. And ignoring sound bytes. Why do we have a Tea Party? People who would rather remain uneducated are even purchased by the corrupt on Wall Street. Its not hard when a party is based in staying dumb; not learning the details.
If you have any recommendation or criticism of the world financial system, then Frontline is a must watch. To have any opinion without details makes one just as evil. The show will be repeated often. And can be watched on the internet.
BTW, Frontline in four episodes also exposed the lies that justified Mission Accomplished and Shock and Awe. So many so hated the American soldier as to remains uneducated when even Frontline exposed the myths. Anyone who hates the middle class and themselves (or can be manipulated by Rush Limbaugh) also will avoid these episodes.
A bottom line remains. If deceived or foolish, then one thinks the purpose of a company is profits. Only mafiso types believe in profit – screw everything else. Corruption, openly advocated by George Jr and his wacko extremists, created this recession. The rich as still getting richer because so many do not even know these details. So many only parrot political spin.
Details behind this corruption are explained in interviews with people who were complicit in and enriched themselves. Why could Eastman Kodak get so much money from Wall Street when Kodak was only creating a buggy whip business? Money, Power, and Wall Street. A story of investment bankers, stock brokers, bond traders, derivative salesmen, sub-prime loan officers - greedy people whose wealth comes from scamming. Everyone should understand these details – how it works. How we all suffer a lower standard of living because these finance people enriched themselves by supporting an unproductive Kodak. To even do same even to European communities. To not understand means one remains an accessory to an ongoing crime.
Another fundamental fact. Financial instruments (CDO, derivative, etc) should be exchanged in open markets. Banks are now spending massively to continue hiding their scams. Bloomberg News had to appeal to the Supreme Court to discover and report this reality. Because banks want everything to remain secret. Even have the Tea Parry and wacko extremist Republicans supporting them.
During George Jr’s tenure, the nation’s largest banks were borrowing $trillions from the Fed to remain solvent. Sometimes borrowing $100billion a day. Banks played money games so their spread sheets reported mythical profits. New laws made this scam easier - hid the loans. Because deregulation was the political spin to encourage corruption. Same people were so corrupt as to even want Social Security invested in stock markets.
Many of the ‘too big to fail’ banks were on the verge of bankruptcy throughout a large part of George Jr’s reign. When political spin somehow was knowledge to so many.