Well, I found the 2005 National Community Reinvestment Coalition report on CRA commitments in trillions of dollars, so I'm going to make it a VDARE.com article for this weekend. So, this is just a placeholder.
My published articles are archived at iSteve.com -- Steve Sailer
Wow. I dont think I've ever seen so many new posts on this blog in one day. Thanks for this new and more detailed look at the information.
ReplyDeleteStrangely Steve Sailer has quickly grown bored with the Madoff case...but Taki stays on the outrageous and developing Madoff case:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.takimag.com/blogs/article/marked_men
"Last week I ventured down to Geneva for a meeting with my banker, a gentleman of the old school who did not get carried away by Bernie Madoff’s siren songs. To the contrary, he went as far as Odysseus, tied himself to his desk and plugged up the ears of his underlings. Metaphorically, that is. He had some interesting things to say. The mega-crook and fraudster never met suckers in person, except for those—mostly Jewish—friends of his in Palm Beach and in the Big Bagel. Europeans and Latin Americans were handled by his feeder fund managers, around 150 known ones, and, according to my banker, perhaps as many as 200 more unknown ones. That’s around 300 feeder funds working in secret to provide funds for a man whose name is already an adjective."
"A feeder fund manager would approach a bank or a rich individual, announce how regretful it was that the Madoff fund was closed, but drop hints that, if an opening came up, the “mark” could become a member of the “club.” The con was on, and sure enough the “mark” would soon get another visit and hear the good news that finally they could join the club. In my banker’s case—his name shall remain a secret — he was told that, in view of the fact his bank is as prominent as it is, $500 million would be a minimum investment. My banker friend had contemplated investing perhaps 20 million for a look-see but, after the suggestion of 500 million big ones, told them thanks but no thanks. A wise and prudent man."
I think it should be pointed out that 2004 and 2005 were years when Republicans controlled both houses of Congress and Bush was president.
ReplyDeleteI know we are going to go through hell under the socialists in the White house and Congress for the next 4 years, but let's not let Bush and the RINO's off the hook.
They are just as guilty as Obama, Pelosi, Reid, et al., they only thought smaller.
I often feel like I have My Own Private Internet. I put in a few hours here and there, and I keep digging up nuggets -- $4.2 trillion! -- with no diminishing marginal returns.
ReplyDeleteThat's because real journalists, who are obviously morally superior to you, don't care about these things.
My theory is that the housing bubble, alongside the oil commodity bubble, was kept up as long as possible.
ReplyDeleteMany important people made millions, if not billions, of both bubbles.
This has nothing to do with bipartisanship, nor with the (I am so tired of this) republican vs. democrat, left (in America? snort) vs right (fascist/corporatist).
I won't even dare to say conservative vs liberal in America, as those just do not exist in the mainstream in the USofA.
This is simply about $$$.
This is simply some unscrupulous people making money, BIG money, and damn the consequences, just like the CEO's of American corporations, bankers and AIG insurers.
"Lets make our money now, and get out before it all crashes down all around us".
That's how it works in our American version of capitalism.
Off-topic: Steve-o, you gonna do that AIPAC treason trial or shall I?
Hell, lets both do it.
"They are just as guilty as Obama, Pelosi, Reid, et al., they only thought smaller."
ReplyDeleteCome on now - Iraq, angling for Iran, bringing this country to its knees, hell - the whole world into a possible Great Depression part deux...
They did think big after all, hey?
Note that in the first line the date for the CRA should be 77 not 1997.
ReplyDeleteThis is certainly evidence of a major blundering of the economy by special interest groups. It really shouldn’t be surprising that the major media outlets don’t talk about it. Note also that the mostly neocon talk radio doesn’t talk about it either.
Blundering or plundering?
ReplyDeleteThat _is_ the question, isn't it?
Steve,
ReplyDeleteYou explained to me the diff. between trillions and billions. But somehow when I read that stuff I'm still confused. So I like this new unit, "Terabux". Thats more fuzzy, just like our financial system has become.
Well, it is both. Plundering by some of all the rest of us and blundering by some on behalf of all the rest of us.
ReplyDeleteWhat would a right-wing corporatist fascist look like?
ReplyDeleteA lot like the US Chamber of Commerce, which strongly supported the current "stimulus" bill in Congress.
It's rare to find businessmen who resemble Ayn Rands fantasy of them.