The Libor criminal banking fraud crosses the pond

as far as i'm concerned, the libor scandal is the last straw... many trillions of dollars have been literally stolen from people around the world and if this goes unpunished, we might as well kiss our asses goodbye because we will be forever owned by our super-rich elites and the criminal bankers...

Libor rate-fixing scandal spotlight now on Citi, JPMorgan

The harsh light of the Libor rate-fixing scandal has crossed the Atlantic, with both Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase saying regulators and investigators have requested information from them in a so-far preliminary probe of the case.

Share prices for both — as well as Bank of America, which has not said if it was asked for information — have fallen sharply this week amid worries they could be in line for the type of heavy fines laid on Britain’s Barclays Bank, at the center of the scandal.

break out the rakes and hoes... it's time to go on the attack...

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The global financial collapse edges ever closer

breaking news from the financial times...

Moody's downgrades biggest global banks

Fifteen of the biggest global banks were downgraded by Moody’s Investors Service on Thursday, adding to pressure on their borrowing costs and triggering multi-billion dollar collateral calls.

Morgan Stanley, seen as the most vulnerable, escaped the three-notch downgrade that Moody’s had threatened but saw its rating cut from A2 to Baa1, three notches above “junk”.

Stock markets fell as anticipation of the downgrades, which came after US markets closed, added to fears over the global economy. Shares in Bank of America, Citigroup and RBS fell by more than 3 per cent by the closing bell. The S& P 500 closed down 2.2 per cent at 1,325.51.

bring it on... i've been praying for this absurd house of cards to fall for a very long time...

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It's good to be a (Bank of America) banksta

at a time when bank of america is widely seen as one of the most voracious plunderers in the world, how can its ceo allow this to happen...? oh, wait... it's going in to his own pocket... well, how can the board of directors allow it to happen...? how can the shareholders allow it to happen...? how can we as citizens allow it to happen...?

Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan's pay quadruples

In a year when Bank of America’s stock plunged 58% and the company announced plans to lay off 30,000 employees, chief executive Brian Moynihan’s compensation package more than quadrupled to nearly $8.1 million.

Here’s why: In 2011, the Charlotte, N.C.-based bank recorded $1.4 billion in profit after losing $2.2 billion the year before. So far this year, the stock is up more than 70%.

So although the bank’s compensation and benefits committee kept Moynihan’s salary the same at $950,000, he also landed $6.1 million in performance-reliant stock. Then there’s the $420,000 worth of tax and financial advice, along with use of the company’s aircraft, that’s also part of his package.

Along with various other components, Moynihan will have made nearly 317% more last year than the $1.9 million he pulled in during 2010, according to a BofA filing Wednesday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

yes, that's the bank of america ceo collecting almost 4 times what he collected the previous year, the ceo who heads a bank about which matt taibbi says this...

Matt Taibbi: Bank of America Is a “Raging Hurricane of Theft and Fraud”

There are two things every American needs to know about Bank of America.

The first is that it's corrupt. This bank has systematically defrauded almost everyone with whom it has a significant business relationship, cheating investors, insurers, homeowners, shareholders, depositors, and the state. It is a giant, raging hurricane of theft and fraud, spinning its way through America and leaving a massive trail of wiped-out retirees and foreclosed-upon families in its wake.

The second is that all of us, as taxpayers, are keeping that hurricane raging. Bank of America is not just a private company that systematically steals from American citizens: it's a de facto ward of the state that depends heavily upon public support to stay in business. In fact, without the continued generosity of us taxpayers, and the extraordinary indulgence of our regulators and elected officials, this company long ago would have been swallowed up by scandal, mismanagement, prosecution and litigation, and gone out of business. It would have been liquidated and its component parts sold off, perhaps into a series of smaller regional businesses that would have more respect for the law, and be more responsive to their customers.

i guess it's time to revive my post from last november, an ows spoof on the Geto Boys’ 1992 song “Damn it feels good to be a gangsta”...

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Insensitive, tone-deaf Democrats want to sell more skyboxes at BofA Stadium in Charlotte

the news about the democratic national convention's choice of charlotte's bank of america stadium as the venue for obama to accept the presidential nomination ought to answer any questions as to how sincere are the concerns of the left side of our utterly broken two-party system for us peasants... selling "more skyboxes to wealthy donors" plus the enormous free advertising bofa will reap from the wall-to-wall media coverage before, during and after, clearly demonstrates who obama and the democratic party sees as their constituents...

For a party trying to cast itself as fighters for the middle class against Wall Street greed, Democrats are making some curious choices -- at least symbolically -- when it comes to planning for their 2012 convention.

They don't think it's a problem that they're holding their convention in Charlotte, N.C., a city sometimes referred to as "The Wall Street of the South." They also don't think it's a big deal that President Barack Obama is slated to accept the Democratic presidential nomination at Bank of America Stadium, named for the bank that received a $45 billion bailout during the financial crisis and sparked outrage by imposing a $5 monthly debit card fee on its customers. The fee was later dropped.

Democratic officials are also downplaying reports that the real reason they're choosing to hold the final day of their convention at Bank of America Stadium isn't because it means more seats for convention attendees, but because it would allow them to sell more skyboxes to wealthy donors.

Regardless of how much credence they give to such details, the visuals are a stark contrast to the populist image that Democrats are trying to project ahead of the November elections. Obama and congressional Democrats have been ramping up rhetoric about Republicans siding with big banks and wealthy people, while Democrats stand up for average Americans in need of jobs, health care and education.

"They will fight with their last breath to protect tax cuts for the most fortunate Americans," Obama said last week at a Chicago fundraiser. "We cannot go back to this brand of 'you are on your own economics.'"

Any irony in holding the Democratic National Convention at Bank of America Stadium was lost on Democrats involved in convention planning, however. Most said they hadn't heard of the "Wall Street of the South" moniker; some noted, after spontaneous Google searches, that other cities including Galveston and Atlanta have also been slapped with the title. Charlotte gets the name because it is home to Bank of America world headquarters and the East Coast headquarters of Wells Fargo, which makes it the nation's second-largest banking center after New York.

screw 'em... here's one voter that isn't falling for their bullshit populist rhetoric...

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Walkers and oxygen tanks shut down B of A

"a slow-moving group"... i love it...!

Occupy Geriatrics: Seniors in Walkers Shut Down Local Bank of America

What some healthy and spry Occupy Movements across the nation couldn't quite accomplish, San Francisco geriatrics have!

KCBS reports that a small group of senior citizens between the ages of 69 and 82 successfully shut down a Bank of America in Bernal Heights on Thursday with nothing more than walkers and oxygen tanks. That's right: No shouting, chanting, tear gas, or window-smashing.

The group, which dubbed itself "Wild Old Women" set up camp right outside the BofA, holding signs in what they were calling "a run on the bank."

While the protesters said they had no intention (or oxygen) of storming the bank, as occupiers in other communities have done, officials at Bank of America shut the doors and locked them as they spotted the slow-moving group make its way to the front of the bank.

So the seniors took a seat outside the bank where they explained their demands, which were no different than every other occupiers: They want lower fees, and they want the bank to pay higher taxes and stop the foreclosures.

this made my morning...!

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32,000 people

say it slowly... let it roll around in your mouth and your consciousness... savor it...

THIRTY-TWO THOUSAND...!!

Hundreds of demonstrators were arrested across the United States in confrontations with police on the two-month anniversary of the Occupy movement.

Police said they arrested 177 people who crowded intersections near the New York Stock Exchange Thursday morning, The Wall Street Journal reported. They later arrested 99 more who tried to block access to the Brooklyn Bridge.

About 32,000 people massed near Wall Street and elsewhere in New York to mark two months since the Occupy movement began.

In Los Angeles, police in riot gear faced protesters in the financial district, resulting in 72 arrests, some of people who pitched tents in the middle of a busy downtown street. Occupy LA protesters, encamped outside City Hall for nearly seven weeks, also took over a plaza outside the Bank of America Center for several hours until police arrived.

The incident prompted several local and national labor unions to call on the city to let the protesters stay, saying the bank plaza was a "more fitting target" for Occupy LA.

there's an evolution in progress for the occupy movement... i've seen it coming ever since it started when it became clear to me that that the half-life of occupying public space with tents was both short and simply not sustainable, at least not in today's police state... what the evolution is going to look like is anybody's guess but my most fervent desire is that it will continue to grow... right now, i think things could go either way... it might grow and, sad to say, it might die... speaking for myself, i can't imagine going back to a state of numbed-out, barely conscious, ever-increasing marginalization...

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Occupy Reno makes the local front page - again

the second time in a week...



from the article in today's reno gazette journal...

On Day 6, the protesters are in transition, moving from figuring out how to sustain themselves to hosting events to discuss the issues. An "open mic" is being planned for about 5 p.m. Saturday so people can speak their mind.

[...]

A large geodesic dome -- from Burning Man -- has been set up near the front of the Moana Pool building. With the dome, at least part of the camp will be visible to passing motorists.

The dome will serve as a media room with computers, Lowell said. Bicycle-powered generators and solar panels are being sought for their energy needs.

With the dome, at least part of the camp will be visible to passing motorists.

i posted yesterday about the how Occupy Reno is cooperating with the city of reno... as a testament to that, the mayor himself stopped by unannounced and the police have been very supportive....

[Occupiers] were impressed Mayor Bob Cashell came by himself to talk with them. [A] high-ranking police official asked to be called if any officers give them any trouble for no reason.

and, in line with the FDL Occupy Supply effort, occupy reno has needs...

About a dozen tents have been set up. Many are on top of pallets so people don't have to sleep on the cold ground. Two RVs on site will be moved along the west edge to serve as a windbreak and will be used as warm-up huts on the coldest nights... .

Firewood and a water buffalo, a water tank on wheels, are their biggest needs. They'd rather not use water in throw-away plastic bottles. Donations have covered the cost of about a dozen portable toilets.

on saturday, occupy reno is sponsoring a "Move Your Money" gathering... people will assemble at 9 a.m. in city plaza and march to both bank of america and wells fargo which, conveniently enough, are right across the street from each other... fliers will be distributed to those outside and, if they are b of a or wells customers, will be invited to move their money to the one locally-owned bank or four locally-owned and operated credit unions... occupy participants will also be moving their accounts...

hopefully, i'll have some photos...

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Common equity in Bank of America is either worthless or very close to it and now Greece could be the tipping point

from rt...

European leaders reach a deal on the debt but if politicians decide there is no "credit event" and credit default swaps don't get paid -- it could leave large US banks "naked," according to independent analyst Reggie Middleton of Boom Bust blog. It could be a tipping point for Bank of America which he believes is insolvent and seeing pressure from all sides.

yeah, well, eurozone leaders THOUGHT they had reached a deal on greek debt...

reuters...

Greece risks meltdown after bailout vote bombshell

The Greek government faced possible collapse on Tuesday as ruling party lawmakers demanded Prime Minister George Papandreou resign for throwing the nation's euro membership into jeopardy with a shock call for a referendum.

Caught unawares by his high-risk gamble, the leaders of France and Germany summoned Papandreou to crisis talks in Cannes on Wednesday to push for a quick implehttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifmentation of Greece's new bailout deal ahead of a summit of the G20 major world economies.

The euro and global stocks were pummeled on financial markets after the Greek move threw into question the survival of crucial efforts to contain the euro zone's sovereign debt crisis.

how very interesting - and perhaps even democratic - that papandreou actually thinks the citizens of greece should have a say...

a commentator, writing in spiegel, agrees with papandreou...

Papandreou Is Right to Let the Greeks Decide

It must be said right at the beginning: The Greeks will, for a change, decide for themselves how they and their country will move forward.

They have had no real opportunity to do so for quite some time. For about a year and a half, this once proud country has been under foreign administration; it is de facto no longer a sovereign state. The government's most important task has been dragging the austerity programs and structural reforms though parliament and implementing them. These are dictated by the strict troika of the EU Commission, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund. Otherwise there will be no more bailout money, and the country would go bankrupt.

To no longer be the master of their own finances, to be begging for money and ready to do almost anything for it -- this is as humiliating for penniless states as it is for poor people. It injures the soul, stirs up anger and creates desperation. Knowing that the situation is also largely self-inflicted only makes things worse.

That the Greek Premier Georgios Papandreou wants to consult his people on the financial restructuring of the country seems like an act of desperation appropriate to the dramatic principle of 'committing suicide in fear of death.' The voters will decide whether to endorse the decisions made in Brussels or not.

[...]

Until the referendum in Greece, there will be an intense debate about the two alternatives: Brutal rehabilitation within the euro zone or state bankruptcy with a reintroduction of the drachma.

It will demonstrate that it is not about the choice between hell and paradise. Both paths will be difficult and grueling. Each citizen must decide for themselves what they believe to be the better choice. They will consider whether they want to risk their assets with an exit from the common currency -- savings would be worth hardly anything in a return to the drachma.

But at least every Greek gets to decide, and can no longer complain about their government bowing to international demands. And even if the Greeks ultimately say no, and in the worst case scenario the country leaves the euro zone, the consequences seem less dicey than they did a year ago.

let the chips fall where they may... at least the greeks can once again lay claim to being a sovereign state rather than a wholly-owned subsidiary of the global banksters...

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Another goddam bailout

worth posting in full...

david dayen posting at firedoglake...

Bank of America announced a way for them to make it look like they made a $6.2 billion profit in the last quarter. The “profit” came mostly from an accounting trick and the sale of their stake in a Chinese bank, part of their downsizing strategy. But they had lower revenue and income in their credit card, real estate and investment banking businesses, which is pretty much their entire business. If you add up the accounting gains totaling $6.2 billion and the net on the sale of the bank, you’d see that the bank lost $1.4 billion last quarter.

The market shrugged off the gimmicks, and at this point BofA is up 10% on the day. But I think that actually has a lot more to do with this:

Bank of America Corp. (BAC), hit by a credit downgrade last month, has moved derivatives from its Merrill Lynch unit to a subsidiary flush with insured deposits, according to people with direct knowledge of the situation.

The Federal Reserve and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. disagree over the transfers, which are being requested by counterparties, said the people, who asked to remain anonymous because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly. The Fed has signaled that it favors moving the derivatives to give relief to the bank holding company, while the FDIC, which would have to pay off depositors in the event of a bank failure, is objecting, said the people. The bank doesn’t believe regulatory approval is needed, said people with knowledge of its position.

Three years after taxpayers rescued some of the biggest U.S. lenders, regulators are grappling with how to protect FDIC- insured bank accounts from risks generated by investment-banking operations. Bank of America, which got a $45 billion bailout during the financial crisis, had $1.04 trillion in deposits as of midyear, ranking it second among U.S. firms.

“The concern is that there is always an enormous temptation to dump the losers on the insured institution,” said William Black, professor of economics and law at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and a former bank regulator. “We should have fairly tight restrictions on that.”

This has been described as another bailout, and it’s not hard to see why. The derivatives go into the insured institution, protecting the counter-parties, and they would be paid off in the event of a failure. Notice that the counter-parties themselves are managing the process, requesting that their bets get implicit government backing. The notional value on these derivatives trades is $75 trillion, with a T. This includes their European derivatives exposure. And according to Bloomberg, JPMorgan Chase has already done this.

When the FDIC is screaming bloody murder and the Federal Reserve reassures that an action is perfectly legitimate and should cause no concern, watch your wallet.

i am so utterly sick of money being thrown at goddam, worthless, too-big-to-fail banks... it's enough to gag a maggot... this is the shit the ows folks (and me) are pissed about...

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Suing the banks - about freakin' time...!

more like this...

U.S. Is Set to Sue a Dozen Big Banks Over Mortgages

The federal agency that oversees the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is set to file suits against more than a dozen big banks, accusing them of misrepresenting the quality of mortgage securities they assembled and sold at the height of the housing bubble, and seeking billions of dollars in compensation.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency suits, which are expected to be filed in the coming days in federal court, are aimed at Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank, among others, according to three individuals briefed on the matter.

The suits stem from subpoenas the finance agency issued to banks a year ago. If the case is not filed Friday, they said, it will come Tuesday, shortly before a deadline expires for the housing agency to file claims.

it's 1:45 a.m... i fell asleep around 6 p.m. with my clothes on and am just now getting up to go back to bed... still recovering from jet-lag, i guess...

anywayz...

doing a late-night email check, i ran across the above, guaranteed to put a smile on my face... how sad that even the slightest evidence of any accountability whatsoever can make my heart flutter...

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More public protests that don't seem to be "newsworthy" enough to merit national coverage

people are crying out for accountability while our traditional news media look the other way...

A coalition of watchdogs and activists released a new report revealing how the wealthiest bailed-out banks have caused the current economic crisis by dodging taxes, and hundreds of demonstrators rallied in Washington, DC, to demand the attorneys general of all 50 states file criminal charges against banks that are suspected of committing foreclosure fraud during the nation's housing crisis.

At least 600 demonstrators gathered outside the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) spring meeting to demand tough settlements on foreclosure fraud cases resulting from a NAAG investigation into several banks' practice of signing foreclosure documents without checking for accuracy - a practice the NAAG calls "robo-signing."

The demonstrators - many of them homeowners - also occupied and successfully shut down a Bank of America branch before occupying the offices of Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) and House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio).

National Peoples Action Shuts Down
Bank Of America Branch



little by little, the country is awakening from a very long slumber...

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Henry Giroux, among others, characterizes what's happening as an outpouring of student protest

yes, but that's not all it is...

Left Behind? American Youth and the Global Fight for Democracy

Within the last few months, we have seen an outpouring of student protests from all over the globe.

[...]

Counterpublic spheres and modes of resistance that we once did not think young people could mount have erupted in a rush of emotional and political expressions and scattered demonstrations. Mass demonstrations have been organized through the emergent screen cultures of a generation well versed in new technologically assisted forms of social networking and political exchange.

[...]

Signaling a generational crisis that is global in scope, young people have sent a message to the world that they refuse to live any longer under repressive political regimes sustained by a morally bankrupt neoliberal world.

while there's a tremendous number of youth involved in the protests (which is very welcome and long overdue), i think there's also a significant number of my own baby-boomer generation who are equally energized, and many of us have either taken to the streets right along with the young - or would if we weren't tied up in other circumstances... being on a work assignment in southern africa at the moment doesn't offer much of an opportunity to get involved but, believe me, this is one thing i would put my body on the street for in a heartbeat...

i was speaking with my daughter in the twin cities last evening and she's been considering making the trip to madison and, if she does, my heart will be with her... i've been waiting for this kind of tectonic shift all of my life and i won't be relegated to the dustbin of the "elders"...

as a case in point, here's a 60-something who isn't sitting there watching "law and order" re-runs...

Anna Becker looks tired. Becker is leaning against the brick wall beside the entrance to Bank of America's Pearl District branch in Portland, Oregon, where one of over 50 nationwide protests by US Uncut has been underway for nearly two hours.

But Becker, a retired teacher, is just as energized as the protesters at the front of the crowd of about 60, who spill into the street and draw long, loud honks from the stream of cars driving toward the Willamette River.

"I have been waiting for 20 years for something like this to happen in America," says Becker. The words she has spoken in private for years are now plastered onto the canary yellow poster board she holds up like a shield: "B of A is al-Qaeda: financial terrorists."

Bank of America (BofA) is the first corporation to be targeted by US Uncut, the transatlantic offspring of the United Kingdom-based anti-austerity group UK Uncut, which held its first demonstration to protest corporate tax evasion in late 2010.

As a voice at the megaphone of the Portland protest said, "The United States does not have a deficit problem. The United States has a revenue problem." According to a 2008 report by the Government Accountability Office, 25 percent of the biggest corporations pay no federal income tax. BofA, the recipient of $45 billion in bailout funds, shuttles its would-be tax dollars into 115 offshore tax havens. Meanwhile, budget deficits are cited as justification for pay freezes for public workers and cuts to heating assistance programs, Social Security, and other social safety nets.

good stuff, people... keep on wakin' up...!

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Wisconsin protests go national

a compilation of news reports on states where protests are either underway or building, thanks to think progress...



us uncut has called for protests across the u.s. tomorrow, saturday, 26 february...

"I paid my taxes. Why doesn't Bank of America?" ask citizens as they plan actions at 50 branches across the country

New Nationwide Effort to Make Corporate Tax Dodgers Pay Up

Protests in more than 50 cities, including Washington, D.C., New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago

Groups of citizens in more than 50 cities will sit-in and protest at Bank of America branches on Saturday, February 26 in an effort to get corporate tax dodgers to pay their fair share. The actions are loosely affiliated with US Uncut, a new grassroots movement organized through social media networks such as Twitter and Facebook.

WHAT: Sit-in protests at Bank of America branches
WHEN: Saturday, February 26
WHERE: Bank of America branches in cities across the country - www.USuncut.org/actions
WHO: Groups of people who self-organized events using - www.USuncut.org

Anger is rising as Americans are being forced to endure brutal budget cuts at both the federal and state-level. Recent events in Wisconsin represent the need for hard-working Americans to make their voices heard and demand an end to unfair measures. US Uncut instead calls for an end to corporate tax avoidance.

"The $3 in my wallet is more than ExxonMobil, GE and Bank of America paid in taxes last year, combined," said Carl Gibson, founder of US Uncut Mississippi. "There's a direct connection between corporate tax dodging and what's happening to real people’s lives. Because of overseas tax havens and other tax loopholes, US corporations are making profits in America but barely paying taxes here. If we close those loopholes, we wouldn't have to be cutting back on firefighters, library hours and student loans."

Gibson, a 23-year-old resident of Jackson, Miss., was moved to start his chapter two weeks ago after learning about corporate America's unpaid tax bills and how a similar movement, UK Uncut, has swept across England and successfully brought tax dodgers to justice through sit-ins at stores and bank branches. "I work 3 jobs and can barely cover my $450 per-month rent," Gibson said. "But I still pay my taxes. All I'm asking is that the wealthiest corporations pay what they owe, too."

"If Bank of America alone paid their taxes, we could 'uncut' $1.7 billion in early childhood education," said Ryan Clayton, a DC-based media analyst, "Big corporations dodge up to $100 billion every year, and if they paid their taxes this year like the rest of us do, we could also stop the $100 billion in cuts to college loans." [see sources below]

"These cuts are unnecessary. The money is there." said Joanne Gifford a self-described soccer mom from Napa Valley, Calif. who will be paying a visit to her local Bank of America branch on Saturday. "We The People just have to make sure that these tax-dodging corporations pay up."

Reuters Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2008/08/12/us-usa-taxes-corporations-idUSN1249465620080812

For more information, please visit http://USuncut.org

For time & locations of all the actions: http://USuncut.org/actions

i wish i was there... i think this is one time i would bestir myself to make my presence felt...

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Glenn doesn't think the story of this scandal should die

and neither do i...

as an intended victim of a vicious and illegal smear campaign (other intended victims include think progress and brad friedman), greenwald's considered opinion of just how vulnerable people are who speak out against our super-rich elites and their government puppets has - unfortunately - been thoroughly validated... he's concerned that, as happens all too often where the rich and powerful are concerned, this too will be swept under the rug... while my blog is certainly among the very least of the resources that can help keep it visible, i am willing to do what i can...

if you haven't been keeping up on the smear campaigns directed at wikileaks supporters, you can catch up at the following links...

from glenn in ascending chronological order...

The leaked campaign to attack WikiLeaks and its supporters

New information emerges on anti-WikiLeaks plot

More facts emerge about the leaked smear campaigns

marcy - emptywheel - wheeler, again in ascending chronological order...

Security Firms Pitching Bank of America on WikiLeaks Response Proposed Targeting Glenn Greenwald

The Disinformation Campaign Bank of America Considered

Hacked Documents Show Chamber Engaged HBGary to Spy on Unions

From the ChamberPot: A Carefully Worded Nondenial Denial

Palantir Tries to Preserve Their Government Contracts

HBGary Fees: “Dam It Feels Good to Be a Gangsta”

From the ChamberPot: Number Two

The HBGary Scandal: Using Counterterrorism Tactics on Citizen Activism

and here's brad's rundown...

U.S. Chamber of Commerce Thugs Used 'Terror Tools' for Disinfo Scheme Targeting Me, My Family, Other Progressive U.S. Citizens, Groups
And why they are likely to get away with it...

let's keep this visible... it embodies all the ugliness we knew was out there and simply should NOT be allowed to fade away...

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The NYT's Floyd Norris is stunned that people are still pessimistic about the "recovery"

i don't know what alternate universe floyd norris lives in... he seems to think that those of us who think the economy still sucks are misguided...

The American economy appears to be in a cyclical recovery that is gaining strength. Firms have begun to hire and consumer spending seems to be accelerating.

That is what usually happens after particularly sharp recessions, so it is surprising that many commentators, whether economists or politicians, seem to doubt that such a thing could possibly be happening.

Usually you can depend on the White House to view the economy with the most rose-tinted glasses available. But it was not until last week, after a strong employment report, that President Obama started to sound a little optimistic.

“The tough measures that we took — measures that were necessary even though sometimes they were unpopular — have broken this slide and are helping us to climb out of this recession,” he said in a speech at a factory making battery components in North Carolina.

Note, however, that he seemed to believe the country remained in recession. It is virtually certain that is not accurate, as least as will be determined by the arbiters of recession at the National Bureau of Economic Research. “The recession is over,” one of those arbiters, Jeffrey Frankel of Harvard, wrote this week.

But the White House is unwilling to make that claim.

Why is good news being received with such doubt? Why is “new normal” the currently popular economic phrase, signifying that growth will be subpar for an extended period, and that the old normal is no longer something to be expected?

floyd norris is a tool...

meanwhile, one in every 418 housing units (for a total of 2,082,945) in the u.s. received a foreclosure notice in the month of february 2010...



and over a QUADRILLION dollars worth of toxic derivatives remain off the books...

Today five US banks according to data in the just-released Federal Office of Comptroller of the Currency’s Quarterly Report on Bank Trading and Derivatives Activity, hold 96% of all US bank derivatives positions in terms of nominal values, and an eye-popping 81% of the total net credit risk exposure in event of default.

The five are, in declining order of importance: JPMorgan Chase which holds a staggering $88 trillion in derivatives (€66 trillion!). Morgan Chase is followed by Bank of America with $38 trillion in derivatives, and Citibank with $32 trillion. Number four in the derivatives sweepstakes is Goldman Sachs with a ‘mere’ $30 trillion in derivatives. Number five, the merged Wells Fargo-Wachovia Bank, drops dramatically in size to $5 trillion. Number six, Britain’s HSBC Bank USA has $3.7 trillion.

if and when those derivatives are declared and posted at their market value, the economic house of cards could and should collapse entirely...

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Finally, some action against bank malfeasance

imho, this should have happened quite some time ago and, yes, i know the wheels of justice turn slowly, but...

New York AG filing civil charges against BofA

The New York Attorney General's office is filing civil charges against Bank of America and its former CEO Ken Lewis, saying the bank misled investors about Merrill Lynch when it acquired the Wall Street bank in late 2008.

Civil charges were also being filed against Joe Price, the bank's former chief financial officer.

Lewis stepped down from Bank of America on Dec. 31 after almost a year of strife that followed the bank's purchase of Merrill Lynch.

Bank of America has been accused of failing to properly disclose losses at Merrill and bonuses paid to investment bank employees before the deal closed.

the banksters and our super-rich elites have had to face virtually NO accountability for the havoc they've created... quite the contrary, in fact... they've been systematically REWARDED for it at every turn... their greed has left the u.s. middle class in shambles and taken an even more horrific toll on the most vulnerable world economies, yet perps like ken lewis waltzes on out with his pockets lined with millions and millions of dollars... we simply can't continue to tolerate this kind of shit and kudos to the ny attorney general for having the cojones to step up to the plate... maybe he's picking up where spitzer left off...

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Kiss my butt, BofA

with real unemployment hovering well in excess of 17%, it's positively gagging to read a story of how bank of america, the recipient of more than $45B of taxpayer largesse, can now, as a result of being able to pay it back and thus sidestep federal compensation regulations imposed on bailed out banks, contemplate paying ken lewis' replacement an equally bloated, obscene salary...

gag me with a spoon...

Despite continuing problems with its loans to struggling homeowners and consumers, Bank of America plans to return the $45 billion in aid that it received at the height of the financial panic — a step that, only months ago, would have been almost unimaginable.

But like many other big banks, Bank of America is once again making money, in large part through Wall Street businesses like trading stocks and bonds, rather than by making loans. Its recovery, while many ordinary Americans are still struggling, is an important milestone in the government’s yearlong effort to stabilize the nation’s financial industry.

[...]

It is a particularly delicate time for Bank of America, which has struggled to find a replacement for Mr. Lewis. By paying back the money that it received under the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP, Bank of America will free itself from exceptional federal oversight of its executives’ pay — a thorny issue in recruiting a new chief executive.

Indeed, Bank of America’s board has been riven by dissent over just who should lead the bank into its post-bailout period. Several potential candidates have said they were not interested in the job, in part because of the bank’s federal bailouts and the strings attached to them.

why is bofa's recovery so goddam important "while many americans are still struggling"...? huh...? why...?

the only way i can see to stop this naked highway robbery is to systematically purge the government of the super-rich, elite former banksters that are now (and have been for some time) calling the shots for our economy... they're not going to be stopped by a mere hold on a nomination (see previous post)... they have to be removed... all of them...

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Buh-bye

a recipient of "too-big-to-fail" taxpayer largesse takes a tumble...

Less than a year ago, Bank of America’s chief executive, Kenneth D. Lewis, celebrated his daring takeover of Merrill Lynch as the crowning triumph of a long career. On Wednesday, that conquest proved to be his downfall, as he announced his resignation after months of legal and political scrutiny over the star-crossed merger.

would that the rest of these thieving bastards, including their enablers at the fed and treasury would see fit to skedaddle...

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Three big banks now hold $3 of every $10 on deposit in the U.S. while the little fish continue to die off

the "too big to fail" banks are, gosh and golly sports fans, now even BIGGER thanks to the strategy pursued by those who supposedly have the common good of the citizenry at heart... HA...!

check the stats in the last paragraph...

When the credit crisis struck last year, federal regulators pumped tens of billions of dollars into the nation's leading financial institutions because the banks were so big that officials feared their failure would ruin the entire financial system.

The crisis may be turning out very well for many of the behemoths that dominate U.S. finance. A series of federally arranged mergers safely landed troubled banks on the decks of more stable firms. And it allowed the survivors to emerge from the turmoil with strengthened market positions, giving them even greater control over consumer lending and more potential to profit.

J.P. Morgan Chase, an amalgam of some of Wall Street's most storied institutions, now holds more than $1 of every $10 on deposit in this country. So does Bank of America, scarred by its acquisition of Merrill Lynch and partly government-owned as a result of the crisis, as does Wells Fargo, the biggest West Coast bank. Those three banks, plus government-rescued and -owned Citigroup, now issue one of every two mortgages and about two of every three credit cards, federal data show.

leapin' lizards, batman...! that essentially means that you and i are now officially wholly-owned subsidiaries of the banksters...

meanwhile, the smaller fish continue to die off...

Regulators seized 45 firms during the first half of the year. In the past two months they have closed 36 more, including regional powerhouses Colonial Bank of Alabama and Guaranty Bank of Texas. The FDIC said Thursday that it counted 416 banks at risk of failing as of the end of June, a 36 percent increase from the first quarter. As with the cost of failures, the number was the highest since the early 1990s, when regulators were dealing with the aftermath of the savings and loan crisis and excessive lending for commercial development.

In recent quarters, the failures have forced the FDIC to spend more money than it collects. Banks use money from depositors to make loans. As a result, when a bank fails, much of the depositors' money is no longer in the vaults, and some of it is tied up in loans that will never be repaid. The FDIC was created by Congress to replace the missing money -- up to $250,000 in each account, under current rules.

The insurance fund held $45.2 billion at the end of June 2008. It held $13 billion at the end of March. The agency has warned that the balance could reach zero by the end of the year.

oh, but never fear... between you and i and our deep pockets, the treasury can always print more money to hand out...

Should the FDIC need even more money, the agency can borrow from the Treasury Department, then repay the government with fees collected from banks in years to come.

and what about the economic recovery that all the punditocracy is crowing about...? not so much...

[I]n an indication that the industry has not turned the corner, the share of troubled loans increased even more quickly. A trend that began with distressed mortgage lending has long since spread to other categories including credit card lending, loans to small businesses, and -- now deteriorating most rapidly -- loans for commercial real estate development.

kinda warms your heart, doesn't it...? in the mad dash of our controllers and handlers to preserve the status quo - the status quo of the super-rich and powerful elites, that is - we've ended up not only preserving the status quo, we've significantly bolstered it... heckuva job, tim... heckuva job, ben... heckuva job, larry... heckuva job, hank...

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Tradesters and banksters continue to enrich themselves ($5B) at our expense

more validation for what we already knew was happening...

Thousands of top traders and bankers on Wall Street were awarded huge bonuses and pay packages last year, even as their employers were battered by the financial crisis.

Nine of the financial firms that were among the largest recipients of federal bailout money paid about 5,000 of their traders and bankers bonuses of more than $1 million apiece for 2008, according to a report released Thursday by Andrew M. Cuomo, the New York attorney general.

At Goldman Sachs, for example, bonuses of more than $1 million went to 953 traders and bankers, and Morgan Stanley awarded seven-figure bonuses to 428 employees. Even at weaker banks like Citigroup and Bank of America, million-dollar awards were distributed to hundreds of workers.

[...]

The report suggests that those roughly 5,000 people — a small subset of the industry — accounted for more than $5 billion in bonuses. At Goldman, just 200 people collectively were paid nearly $1 billion in total, and at Morgan Stanley, $577 million was shared by 101 people.

All told, the bonus pools at the nine banks that received bailout money was $32.6 billion, while those banks lost $81 billion.

where's the outrage...?

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