jfrits

Why AIG Wasn't Allowed to Fail

who invented derivatives like stock options etc.?
who invented hedge funds and why? investing for tax dodgers?
the italian head of govt. said hedge funds should be illegal.
if investing is risk taking, then why make phony insurance on investments legal? an investor who wants it both ways is buying snake oil, and should not delude himself that he has an appetite for risk. that thinking made madoff and others very wealthy.
clinton had a dream: a home for every american to own. if the financial institutions had not bought into phony insurance on garbage loans, the govt. would have had to fund the mortgages with taxpayer money, not private capital. ooops, they thought they did, except when freddie and fannie failed, they found out they didn't.

Great Depression Not Imminent, But Inevitable

one difference between now and 1929 is the presence of large, unregulated pools of money, e.g., hedge funds. in 1929 the unregulated money was investor leverage. post-crash laws eliminated the excesses, but, per darwinian law, the "new rich" money has found a way around that-- some of it even found its way into unregulated pools of quicksand -- "Ponzi schemes" -- i wonder how much wall st. bonus money in this way has passed from one unethical parasite to another?