Matt Taibbi: Counterfeit Stocks Behind Bear Stearns And Lehman Downfall

rollingstone.com:

Although the SEC issued more than 50 subpoenas to Wall Street firms, it has yet to identify the mysterious trader who somehow seemed to know in advance that one of the five largest investment banks in America was going to completely tank in a matter of days. "I've seen the SEC send agents overseas in a simple insider-trading case to investigate profits of maybe $2,000," says Brent Baker, a former senior counsel for the commission. "But they did nothing to stop this."

Read the whole story: rollingstone.com

Comments

[iblogleft]

When real journalists finally get hold of this reality, the market will crash (again). I guess I should say "If".

I will not hold my breath.

[msemkiw]

a consice, well written article that highlights the reason that financial literacy is more important than knowing who the first president was, maybe this crisis will jump start schools into teaching whats important, not knowing who gw was never cost me a dime

[Booblius]

I would rather deal with a Chinese government run exchange. what if real solvent companies, like Overstock, reissued all their stock with a proviso that they would only vouche for shares traded and escrowed by a new Chinese exchange. The burden of proof would be on any claimant who aquired their shares on a different exchange or through an unauthorized custodian to show that the share was not counterfeit. They would not honor, count votes, or pay dividends on any but certified shares. goldman Sachs would be free to trade on the exchange as long as they left a hostage who would be shot if they cheated.

[CaptainFailmore]

Every day it's the same old song.

I'd just like to take a poll here. Does this country look like it has a future to you?

[mytradingg]

For a more perfect unions we must have:

Jobs,job securi.ty, job benefits, universal pre school-K.12, housing, affordable college education affordable health are that doesn't ban.krupt sic.k families

good articles; http://ow.ly/dmzm

a better society is one that creates opportunity

[sposton]

Americans really do need to educate themselves about this criminal concept of naked short selling and short selling in general. Both are fraudulent and criminal and ought to be outlawed.

[cnart]

The wall street criminals have so effectively taken over our country and have looted it so thorouhgly i am now trying to decide what country I should move to. I think it,s a lost cause. So much damage was done over the last 20 years it's too late to ever fix it. What a sorry mess, God Damn these SOB;s!

[msjimmied]

Did you catch the Frontline show tonight? I had to turn it off towards the end because my stomach could not take anymore. Thank god we have technology that will give us all the news at our fingertips, it should be on their site. We have the information flow, the visuals, the words, right there at a click of the button. A blow by blow account of what is transpiring...but Matt and others can only shine the light. We have to build the knowledge base to understand what is going on. As some sage said..."Nothing is difficult if you allow yourself to learn.."

Brooksley Born...Obama, that is the one you should have in your cabinet. Transformational power comes from harnessing all the right attributes to get to where you want to go. The tainted group you have surrounded yourself with will only lead you astray. This is a crucial pivotal moment....the kind that leaves you alone with your soul as your only guiding light at 3 am in the morning, nothing but you and the truth that you have to wrestle with. What will it be?

[sposton]

You weren't the only one feeling sick.

The only possible explanation for Summers and Geither being in Obama administration is that Obama has been bought by the banksters. I can't think of anything else even remotely plausible, can you?

[OC4Obama4Pres]

I can, sposton. When President Obama asked Summers and Geithner to serve he did so most likely without knowledge of how events transpired vis-a-vis Frontline. Brooksley Born has been so silent up to now that nobody knew she existed. Did you? I think he may have made a different choice if he had known the story that we now know. He should hire Brooksley Born immediately and look to get rid of Summers and Geithner but especially Summers.

[bola47]

fantastic article. where are the govt. regulators? oh, they are in the pocket of the crooks on wall st.

[joebhed]

Matt,
We are forever in your debt.
And theirs too, of course.
Thanks.

[samhmariam]

Another great piece of work Matt. Have immensly enjoy the article. Keep them coming. God bless.

[Madmac]

Ladies and gentlemen,

This was a Bust Out...Plain and simple. Meaning that it was a common tactic in the organized crime world where a business's assets and lines of credit are exploited and exhausted to the point of bankruptcy.

La Cosa Nostra has become legit. They've become bankers. Now the next question is why hasn't the alleged mainstream media done some investigating on this? Too much ballooning?

[OC4Obama4Pres]

Because of deregulation, the MSM is owned by corporations that put shareholder profitability first instead of the news and the truth. Investigative reporting costs both time and money and the right-wingers that run these corporations consider those costs as not a necessity, but a burden.

[menlopian]

One part valid point (i.e. it's time to enforce existing securities laws), 9 parts of incendiary hyperbole and rhetorical embellishment. Mmmmmmm, spoon feed me some more...

[joebhed]

which nine parts, exactly, would that be?

[daveschwartz007]

It is a very sad state of affairs when you need to go to a music magazine to get real journalism. No media outlet is pressing and asking why the SEC did not or doesn't enforce the rules they already have on the books. No one is reporting on how the SEC has been deliberating for a year now of bringing back the uptick rule but still has done nothing.

If it is this obvious to me that the SEC,Congress and our whole Gov't has been bought off by lobbyists and the Banking Industry and that it seems like our Newspapers and Media outlets are nothing more than shills pushing their backers agendas. It is like being a citizen during the fall of Rome.

Afghanistan will be like Iraq. We will free the people there and declare victory after all the bad guys leave and go somewhere else like Pakistan. We will have a $1.5 Trillion deficit for 2009 alone and this doesn't count off budget items like Social Security,Medicare and Medicaid. Banks will give their mgmt large bonuses based on the great job they did this and then cry poverty again next year and ask for another bailout. Banks still have the toxic derivative exposure on their books no one talks about it.

It is sad when you get the best news coverage on from Jon Stewart on Comedy Central and the best journalism from a music magazine..... Please forgive us, cause we know not what we do.

[kingbuzz]

and ganga is illegal?

[joebhed]

no, no.
ganga is completely legal, and well-regulated.
ganja is illegal.