Madoff and the Mafia
My suspicions last month that Bernie Madoff was a Mafia money laundering business as much as a Ponzi scheme seem to be confirmed by the man that first tried to warn the SEC about Madoff.
Mr. Markopolos also said he would tell regulators about a dozen private foreign funds — which he said were “hiding in the weeds” in Europe — that raised money for Mr. Madoff and have sustained major losses. These funds have not yet been publicly identified, he said. And their silent victims most likely include investors of “dirty money,” including Russian mobsters and Latin American drug cartels, he said.
There are going to be a lot more revelations of dirty money on Wall Street in the next few months. The New York Stock Exchange didn’t send its President Richard Grasso to meet with the Columbian FARC to improve tourism.
Madeoff: head on a pike.
Chris Cox: guillotine
Paulson: the rack
Fuld: drawn & quartered
Madeoff: head on a pike.
Chris Cox: guillotine
Paulson: the rack
Fuld: drawn & quartered
Bernard Madeoff.
Jack Ruby.
Right?
Bernard Madeoff.
Jack Ruby.
Right?
He’s really given the jewish people a real handicap with all this…. people are using anti semetic remarks even more now because people like madeoff are so involved in the media. This type of behavior he has done will lead to serious stereotypes I’m guessing by people all over the country on the jewish people.
He’s really given the jewish people a real handicap with all this…. people are using anti semetic remarks even more now because people like madeoff are so involved in the media. This type of behavior he has done will lead to serious stereotypes I’m guessing by people all over the country on the jewish people.
After seeing the City guys and their jet, Thain wanting a bonus for cratering ML, Fuld being, well, Fuld, and Rubin stating that ‘no one saw this coming’, I’m beginning to think that Madoff is, relatively speaking, an upstanding guy.
After all, he at least knew that what he was doing was criminal, and had the sense and decency to try and keep it hidden. In the process, he displayed a measure of self and situational awareness that seems to have completely abandoned other, arguably more reckless individuals who got so deep in the Kool-Aid that they think a $500,000 salary cap (for someone, no doubt, worth tens if not hundreds of millions) is ‘draconian’.
For the record, the term ‘draconian’ is best applied to the people who will actually have to pay off the trillion dollar tab for sweeping up this mess, not the asshats who got very rich by causing it.
And the fact that an actual criminal is being more transparent and forthcoming then they are is very telling indeed.
After seeing the City guys and their jet, Thain wanting a bonus for cratering ML, Fuld being, well, Fuld, and Rubin stating that ‘no one saw this coming’, I’m beginning to think that Madoff is, relatively speaking, an upstanding guy.
After all, he at least knew that what he was doing was criminal, and had the sense and decency to try and keep it hidden. In the process, he displayed a measure of self and situational awareness that seems to have completely abandoned other, arguably more reckless individuals who got so deep in the Kool-Aid that they think a $500,000 salary cap (for someone, no doubt, worth tens if not hundreds of millions) is ‘draconian’.
For the record, the term ‘draconian’ is best applied to the people who will actually have to pay off the trillion dollar tab for sweeping up this mess, not the asshats who got very rich by causing it.
And the fact that an actual criminal is being more transparent and forthcoming then they are is very telling indeed.
I wonder which of the two pictured above (Grasso the More Equal Than Others Pig, or Raul Reyes the US Gov’t-listed “terrorist leader”) was giving the other the “Corleone Kiss.”
So I heard on NPR’s “Marketplace” some dude, apparently one of the “compensation consultants” hired to give cover to captive boards “awarding” those billions in bonuses to “oopsie” tycoons, telling the interlocutor that the rest of us have to understand that it is going to be impossible to find “competent” people to man those “senior executive” positions that will be subject to that $500,000 cap guideline (Footnote: that much in cash, but it’s ok to pick up stock in the company too, unlimited amounts apparently, “to be sellable only after all the government money has been repaid. So the rest of us add all the value, these dudes figure out ways to “monetize” their shares – and don’t tell me THAT won’t happen – and we’re right back where we started. And of course, the Dream Teamers are already scrutinizing the limiting language for the loopholes they can drive their own personal Brinks truck through – who is a “senior executive,” after all, can we put up a figurehead subject to limits and pay a shitload of money AGAIN to the actual managers a tier or so below? Scorpion and frog? Not quite. Mor like water moccasin — they can swim to shore and eat the frog too.)
I wonder which of the two pictured above (Grasso the More Equal Than Others Pig, or Raul Reyes the US Gov’t-listed “terrorist leader”) was giving the other the “Corleone Kiss.”
So I heard on NPR’s “Marketplace” some dude, apparently one of the “compensation consultants” hired to give cover to captive boards “awarding” those billions in bonuses to “oopsie” tycoons, telling the interlocutor that the rest of us have to understand that it is going to be impossible to find “competent” people to man those “senior executive” positions that will be subject to that $500,000 cap guideline (Footnote: that much in cash, but it’s ok to pick up stock in the company too, unlimited amounts apparently, “to be sellable only after all the government money has been repaid. So the rest of us add all the value, these dudes figure out ways to “monetize” their shares – and don’t tell me THAT won’t happen – and we’re right back where we started. And of course, the Dream Teamers are already scrutinizing the limiting language for the loopholes they can drive their own personal Brinks truck through – who is a “senior executive,” after all, can we put up a figurehead subject to limits and pay a shitload of money AGAIN to the actual managers a tier or so below? Scorpion and frog? Not quite. Mor like water moccasin — they can swim to shore and eat the frog too.)
Oh, and CNN has Carly Fiorina, “female former glass-ceilinged CEO,” who worked such wonders at H-P, telling us that the “right way” to set exec compensation is to have the shareholders vote on it “each and every year.” And of course she “only” got a (full-disclosure, for purposes of “objective journalism”) $11 million severance check (and the rest of the $21 million she walked with was “bonus component,” not “compensation.”)
And how many “shareholders” have a prayer of stacking up even a 51% “no” on the compensation presentation worked up by all the “people,” as in “I got people for that,” who will be working all year long to make sure the large shareholders (mutual funds and their managers, legacy holders, etc.) are lined up? Who has the time, money and energy for a proxy fight other than “people” like Pickens and Icahn, who are not noted for protecting the long-term best interests of anybody other than themselves?
Carly says that the US, where it actually takes security in the firms rather than just shoveling over the Big Bucks, will be able to “control” compensation rather than capping it, thus ensuring that “expertise” will continue to be available freely. Those same “experts” who, like Daschle, will now be plying their skills in the interests of “everyone,” not just the folks riding the foam they skimmed from the last round of bubble-blowing. Sounds like the barn is filling up with horse manure again.
Are these maybe the (snicker, snicker) Double Secret actual meanings behind the phrase “shovel-ready?”
Right.
Oh, and CNN has Carly Fiorina, “female former glass-ceilinged CEO,” who worked such wonders at H-P, telling us that the “right way” to set exec compensation is to have the shareholders vote on it “each and every year.” And of course she “only” got a (full-disclosure, for purposes of “objective journalism”) $11 million severance check (and the rest of the $21 million she walked with was “bonus component,” not “compensation.”)
And how many “shareholders” have a prayer of stacking up even a 51% “no” on the compensation presentation worked up by all the “people,” as in “I got people for that,” who will be working all year long to make sure the large shareholders (mutual funds and their managers, legacy holders, etc.) are lined up? Who has the time, money and energy for a proxy fight other than “people” like Pickens and Icahn, who are not noted for protecting the long-term best interests of anybody other than themselves?
Carly says that the US, where it actually takes security in the firms rather than just shoveling over the Big Bucks, will be able to “control” compensation rather than capping it, thus ensuring that “expertise” will continue to be available freely. Those same “experts” who, like Daschle, will now be plying their skills in the interests of “everyone,” not just the folks riding the foam they skimmed from the last round of bubble-blowing. Sounds like the barn is filling up with horse manure again.
Are these maybe the (snicker, snicker) Double Secret actual meanings behind the phrase “shovel-ready?”
Right.
And now for something not altogether different, for those of you who have REAL access to legislators and/or executive branch folks, here’s what the staffers assemble as the words of the Solons in response to one of my rambles on the “stimulus package:”
“Dear Mr. McPhee:
“Thank you for contacting me about the economic stimulus package.
“The American people are hurting. They are losing their homes, their jobs, their businesses and their life savings. Economists across the political spectrum agree that the government needs to take bold and immediate action to stimulate the economy and curb the risk of a protracted economic recession.
“The economic stimulus package will provide critical tax relief, shore up unemployment benefits and food stamps, improve access to health care, and promote energy independence. I believe the stimulus package is narrowly targeted to spend and invest in ways that will get the economy moving again.
“I understand your concerns about the stimulus package. Last year I voted against spending $700 billion to bail out Wall Street because the bill lacked meaningful relief for homeowners facing foreclosure and didn’t include adequate protections for American taxpayers. I am committed to reducing wasteful spending and improving transparency in Federal funding. For too long have we ignored the consequences of a burgeoning Federal deficit.
“As Congress considers measures to put the economy on the right track, I will be sure to keep your views in mind. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future.
“P.S. From time to time, I compile electronic news briefs highlighting key issues and hot topics of particular importance to Floridians. If you’d like to receive these e-briefs, visit my Web site and sign up for them at http://billnelson.senate.gov/news/ebriefs.cfm ”
And “Bill” Nelson is maybe one of the “good guys.”
I am comforted to know that some data entry person is pigeonholing all the petitions for redress into “pro,” “con,” “other,” and “circular file.”
“Change you can believe in?” Maybe short-change?
And now for something not altogether different, for those of you who have REAL access to legislators and/or executive branch folks, here’s what the staffers assemble as the words of the Solons in response to one of my rambles on the “stimulus package:”
“Dear Mr. McPhee:
“Thank you for contacting me about the economic stimulus package.
“The American people are hurting. They are losing their homes, their jobs, their businesses and their life savings. Economists across the political spectrum agree that the government needs to take bold and immediate action to stimulate the economy and curb the risk of a protracted economic recession.
“The economic stimulus package will provide critical tax relief, shore up unemployment benefits and food stamps, improve access to health care, and promote energy independence. I believe the stimulus package is narrowly targeted to spend and invest in ways that will get the economy moving again.
“I understand your concerns about the stimulus package. Last year I voted against spending $700 billion to bail out Wall Street because the bill lacked meaningful relief for homeowners facing foreclosure and didn’t include adequate protections for American taxpayers. I am committed to reducing wasteful spending and improving transparency in Federal funding. For too long have we ignored the consequences of a burgeoning Federal deficit.
“As Congress considers measures to put the economy on the right track, I will be sure to keep your views in mind. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future.
“P.S. From time to time, I compile electronic news briefs highlighting key issues and hot topics of particular importance to Floridians. If you’d like to receive these e-briefs, visit my Web site and sign up for them at http://billnelson.senate.gov/news/ebriefs.cfm ”
And “Bill” Nelson is maybe one of the “good guys.”
I am comforted to know that some data entry person is pigeonholing all the petitions for redress into “pro,” “con,” “other,” and “circular file.”
“Change you can believe in?” Maybe short-change?
This kind of story is another reminder that, in the world of high-flying finance, the people are sharks, and they’ll gladly rub shoulders with murderers, help to fund them, even pose for pictures with ‘em, if it helps to juice the bottom line a little more.
And if you invest your money in pretty much anything other than an orphanage, then you’re in it too.
This kind of story is another reminder that, in the world of high-flying finance, the people are sharks, and they’ll gladly rub shoulders with murderers, help to fund them, even pose for pictures with ‘em, if it helps to juice the bottom line a little more.
And if you invest your money in pretty much anything other than an orphanage, then you’re in it too.
This kind of story is another reminder that, in the world of high-flying finance, the people are sharks, and they’ll gladly rub shoulders with murderers, help to fund them, even pose for pictures with ‘em, if it helps to juice the bottom line a little more.
And if you invest your money in pretty much anything other than an orphanage, then you’re in it too.
Jesus Jon! That article by Catherine Fitts you have linked to above is FRIGHTENING!!
Bucky Fuller used to say that pirates ran the world, and that the kings and queens were just their “front-men”.
Jesus Jon! That article by Catherine Fitts you have linked to above is FRIGHTENING!!
Bucky Fuller used to say that pirates ran the world, and that the kings and queens were just their “front-men”.
Jesus Jon! That article by Catherine Fitts you have linked to above is FRIGHTENING!!
Bucky Fuller used to say that pirates ran the world, and that the kings and queens were just their “front-men”.
Billy-Bob- Bucky was usually pretty perceptive.
Billy-Bob- Bucky was usually pretty perceptive.