some sobering numbers... in bank reform
Not to depress any of our readers, and I do wish I could write about other things, but we are all in this together, no matter how rich or poor, the banking industry who has been bailed out with our tax dollars, is doing all it can, with it's vast wealth, to halt any credible attempt by congress and the President, to reform how the banks deal with us at the bottom.
I've written about this before and don't want to bore anyone, but you should know what is being reported:
Goldman Sachs has set aside 16.7 BILLION for compensation, this after the company has received 10 billion in Federal funds as well as 12.9 BILLION from the bailout of AIG.
224 million has been spent in the first half of this year to lobby congress. This will meet or best last years 460 million spent by real estate, insurance and financial institutes.
27 of the 71 members of the House Financial Services Committee have received more than a quarter of the total campaign contributions from the banking industry.
Political Action committees and employees from the financial institutes have contributed another 53 million to members of congress.
In related news Mike Capuano has donated to charity, 64,500 in funds he collected form a lobbyists group who is now under federal investigation for pay-to-play. Another 47,000 from employee's of PMA has not been given back or to charity.
Only two D's running for Ted's seat have not taken pac or lobbyists monies. Pagliuca doesn't need to (his net worth is around 400 million) and Khazie, City Year founder.
Can any decision made by those who take money from those who are to be regulated, ever be good, fair and just, for the common man and women? I can't see how.
posted by Jim Pillsbury @ 11:51 AM
5 Comments
5 Comments:
These numbers are appalling. Where exactly do the lobbyist get paid from? If it is from corporations, then I say those corporations are making far too great a profit if they have this much money to spend on influencing another persons vote on issues related to them. Isn’t that called bribery if you do it outside of government? Sounds like DC has its own rules, or more accurately, lack of rules. Think of the people we could be feeding, the number of homes we could be saving, the number of homeless people we could house, with that amount of money. 16.7 B for compensaiton at Goldman Sachs? Is that really the number? Think about that, the entire state of MA is short 600 M in our budget. That means that Goldman Sachs compensation money could bail out about 28 states in the same position as MA, 28 states, more than half of the country. Does that sound reasonable to you?
Some one some where sure has lots of money to throw around. Guess the colapse of the US economy was not really a total collapse, just those of us middle class people had it collapse on us. The poor are still poor, and still getting assistance, and the rich are still rich, and still getting assistance, and those of us in the middle are losing our assistance so the governement can continue to assist the other 2 groups. I have no problem with my unemployment benefits ending because they can not fund it to keep the poor from going hungry, after all, without my benefits, I qualify as one of the poor. But to have my benefits ended while my tax dollars are paying these kinds fo things, that I have a problem with.
Talk about depressing news. For over a year now this is what we have been hearing about, and in that year, nothing has really changed, except I have gotten poorer, further from that retirement date, and less able to help my kids who are struggling also. I told them go to college, be a good kid, play by the rules and you will have a good life. Three kids out of college, one lost his job last November, still out of work, a wife and baby to take care of, one lost his job in April, had to give up his apartment and move home so we can feed him, and one graduated from college in May, no decent job prospects in site, working at Starbucks. And did I mention my wife lost her job, which she had for 16 yrs, and can’t find another because she is too old? So my one income is now supporting 7 people. Need I mention that things are pretty tight? My kids all worked hard, studied hard, made decent grades, and stayed out of trouble. Something has happened to the American Dream people. It simply is not attainable anymore.
JG... for what it's worth... your not alone. The hard working less privileged, who have made this country, are still carrying more than their share of the weight. We will survive this as we have in the past.
It's gotta get better.
You guys make sense... sure would good a long way to get people back to work.
If we'd only been bankers.
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