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Are Financiers Overpaid?

Isn't that the way of things? A topic, or a sector, gets hot... there's an exciting story to tell, brain power and resources get over-diverted... eventually, that market becomes overloaded with participants, driving profits down, or it collapses... then, on to the next "thing."

Have we reached equlibrium yet?

What Do the Bailouts Really Mean for America?

[but the big banks need to survive.]

Could someone please explain WHY?

IMO, there has been far too much consolidation in this industry and my feeling is we would be better off dismantling these banks into smaller pieces... although there may be good arguments against my position, I've yet to hear them.

[This group deserves bailout money... The second group does not.]

Yet it's the second group who's getting more assistance than the first, particularly on GSE loans.

[The new phrase would simply read, “Ask not what I can do for my Country, just tell me what my government entitlement looks like.”]

I had been very disgusted with what I thought was an entitlement philosophy of many Americans.

My current thinking is that it's not really entitlement thinking, it's capitulation. SO MUCH MONEY, and so much power flow through Washington, that it's perhaps natural to think that the federal governement is the backstop of the world. "You can't fight city hall" has become more like "You can't fight the White House [or Capitol Hill]."

Any time a dollar moves, a piece of it (often a big piece) goes to federal, state, and in the most egregious form of theft, to local taxes.

The only way left to fight back is to deal in cash. I'm seeing a lot more contractors, businesses, and individuals moving in this direction.

Obama Wants a 'Better Plan'? Here's One: Bite the Bullet

[I'm not certain how many "strong regional banks" there are to step up to the plate. ]

Are we to believe that if the big names in banking were allowed to fail that nobody will fill the void?

I find that hard to believe.

As a consumer and a business owner, I'd prefer a larger amount of choices in this area.

Surely there's some correlation between the consolidation in the banking industry and the increased focus of far too many resources on economic activity that produces little to no real value.