Shocked!

For a review of the latest hypocrisy out of Washington, please click on the Washington Post.com's review of TARP policy.

The same man, Mr. Geithner, who did the dirty work of the bailouts (starting with getting $10/share for Bear Stearns shareholders than the company was worth), and whose institution (the NY Fed), being "private", did not have to disclose information to Bloomberg when sued under the Freedom of Information Act, is, one may infer, reeking of perspiration because he has no time to shower because, according the Post, he is working day and night. And for us! And the same leadership of more or less the same Congress is distressed because the TARP bill that they muscled into law against the outrage of the American public was actually implemented as passed. The same leadership now supposedly wishes it had passed a different bill.

Here is my proposal. Shut down the insolvent financial insitutions. Do this to save the system. Honor the FDIC's promises to depositors but honor no promises that were never made, such as to preferred stockholders and bondholders of the insolvent companies. No one cared when First National City Corp. of New York became Citicorp, no one cared when Citicorp became Citigroup, and no one will care when Citigroup ceases to exist. All the populace wants is for prudent borrowing and lending to go on. NO ONE cares what the corporate name of the lender is. Only the Establishment cares.

For the Obama-maniacs out there: this man was "made" by real estate interests: first the criminal Rezko, then amazingly Fannie and Freddie made him gigantic recipients of their money when he was the junior Senator from Illinois. And Jim Johnson, former chairman of Fannie, was Mr. Obama's pick to head the transition team until his Fannie past started smelling. I for one have no illusions that Mr. Obama is other than part of the gang that got us where we are.

It's time for a real change. And that change involves moving away from the culture of debt.
We need equity, in both the financial and the moral senses of the word.

Unfortunately that does not mean that it is time to speculate in listed equities on the stock market. The stock market remains the catspaw of the same interests that have brought us to this current mess.

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