rocky

Fisking Ben Stein on Goldman's 'Wrongdoing'

Ben Stein should worry more about his own ethical conflicts of interest and less about what Goldman Sachs did or didn't do for its customers. Most of Mr. Stein's articles in the NY Times and on yahoo Finance seem to slip in recommendations for variable annuities (although the current one does not), without Mr. Stein ever disclosing his financial ties to the life insurance industry. Variable annuities tend to come with very high fees that are not in the interest of the average Mom and Pop investor. Goldman does not go after the Mom and Pop investor. Its customers are mostly institutions, along with some wealthy individuals, who are presumed to be financially knowledgeable. If a county pension fund does not understand the mortgage backed securities it is buying, whose fault is that? The broker's or the management of the pension fund?