Guns, Goldman Sachs, and Bloomberg's B.S.

Janet Tavakoli, 12.03.2009

President, Tavakoli Structured Finance, Inc.

Alice Schroeder's article about unverified claims of Goldman execs buying guns is an injustice to Bloomberg's true reporters. It's a shame when sensationalism drowns out good journalism.

Goldman Sachs Responds To The New York Times

Janet Tavakoli, 11.25.2009

President, Tavakoli Structured Finance, Inc.

Did Goldman Sachs dissemble and equivocate in its responses to the New York Times?

Why It's Wrong When Wrongdoers Are Allowed to Admit No Wrongdoing

Arianna Huffington, 11.10.2009

When corporate perpetrators don't have to admit they did anything wrong, it's as if the crime never happened. Which, of course, makes it much more likely that it will happen again.

Warren Buffett and the Business of Life: Part 1 of 7

Alice Schroeder, 10.29.2009

Author, The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life

Warren Buffett is never more himself than when he is given the chance to invest in something he wants at a price of his choosing.

Breaking Up the Big Banks, and Why Congress Won't Do It

Robert Reich, 10.27.2009

Former Secretary of Labor, Professor at Berkeley

Two ideas are floating around Washington regarding how to handle 'too big to fail' banks, but only one is supported by the Treasury and the White House. Unfortunately, it's the wrong one.

Wiping Blood Off White Buck Shoes

Leo W. Gerard, 10.23.2009

President, United Steelworkers International

In New York, the oldest and snobbiest financial ventures are called "white shoe" firms. Their arrogance, risky investments and confounding dealing in derivatives threw the rest of us into the Great Recession.

Can Wal-Mart Think Smaller?

Al Norman, 10.22.2009

60 Minutes' "Guru" of the anti-Wal-Mart movement

Wal-Mart is hinting at smaller stores. The reality: land is not available anywhere for the classic Wal-Mart supercenter, weighing in at over 200,000 square feet.

Wall Street Is More of a Threat to Obama's Domestic Agenda than Afghanistan

Joseph A. Palermo, 10.20.2009

Author/Associate Professor of History

Whatever Obama decides to do in Afghanistan is of little consequence compared to Wall Street's ongoing "plutonomy."

Big Bank Profits Spark Rally in Cocaine, Hooker Sectors

Andy Borowitz, 10.15.2009

BorowitzReport.com

The historic profits notched by the nation's biggest banks are starting to have a positive impact on the broader economy, with the cocaine and hooker sectors showing striking gains.

Time to Stop the Regulatory Circus and to Steer the Ship to Safe Ground

Georges Ugeux, 10.08.2009

Chairman and CEO, Galileo Global Advisors

The real issue for regulators around the globe is a serious definition of the financial world we want to live in. The current focus nearly exclusively on the banking sector could cause authorities to miss the broader picture.

Who Duped Rolling Stone Gonzo Reporter Matt Taibbi?

Diane Tucker, 10.11.2009

Writer/producer/director living in Washington DC

Taibbi, Rolling Stone magazine's teen heartthrob, became a sensation last month after calling Goldman Sachs "a giant vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity."

Sorkin On What Happened After Lehman

Robert Teitelman, 10.05.2009

Editor-in-Chief, "The Deal"

New York Times' reporter Andrew Ross Sorkin's excerpt microscopically examines the actions of some key regulatory and Wall Street players, in this case during the period immediately after Lehman failed.

Ken Lewis Is No Dummy

Fortune's Stanley Bing, 12.01.2009

Fortune Magazine Columnist

Imagine you are Ken Lewis, who yesterday announced his decision to take early retirement from his position at Bank of America. You want to understand why Ken walked? Look at it this way...

Reports of Another Stock Market Fall this Fall Exaggerated

Diane Francis, 11.14.2009

Editor at Large, the National Post

A quick survey of market catastrophes reveals that autumn is not only when the traditional harvest comes in, but also when we reap what we have sown -- whether it's corn or bad economic policy.

This Is It! World Premiere of Capitalism: A Love Story Tonight

Michael Moore, 10.21.2009

Oscar and Emmy-winning director

Tonight, at the Venice Film Festival, I will premiere my new movie, "Capitalism: A Love Story." After 16 months of production, I am proud to present this work of mine to you. It is unlike anything you'll see this year.

TRAILER: My New Movie Capitalism: A Love Story

Michael Moore, 09.20.2009

Oscar and Emmy-winning director

It's a crime story. But it's also a war story about class warfare. And a vampire movie, with the upper 1 percent feeding off the rest of us. And, of course, it's also a love story. Only it's about an abusive relationship.

Letting the Banking Rats Out of the Bag

Robert Scheer, 09.11.2009

Veteran Journalist and Editor of Truthdig.com

Why has it been left to one stellar judge to sound the alarm on Bank of America and Merrill Lynch, and why is Congress and the Obama administration looking the other way?

Bank Bonuses and the Reform Agenda in the Balance

Jeffrey Sachs, 09.06.2009

Economist and Director of the Earth Institute, Columbia University

Health care reform hangs in the balance at the same time we learn that nine banks, all recipients of federal bailout support, paid an astounding $33 billion in bonuses in 2008.

The "Loan Arrangers" Will Not Ride Again

Rep. Barney Frank, 08.29.2009

Democratic Congressman from Massachusetts

We will prove that the best thing you can do for capitalism is to have rules that give investors the confidence to get back into the system, that protect the great majority of decent people from abuses.

Hank Paulson Rewrites History Before Congress

David Fiderer, 08.18.2009

Banker/Writer

The fallout of Paulson's two disastrous decisions (to let Lehman fail and reverse his position on foreclosure relief) prompted the former Treasury Secretary to abuse his powers, with some not-so-veiled threats.

The Boston Consulting Group Caused the Recession

Charles H. Green, 08.12.2009

Author of Trust-based Selling, co-author The Trusted Advisor, speaker, management consultant

This ideology didn't just happen. It was four decades in the making. Sachs and Stanley refined it; private equity and financial engineers distilled it; Merril, Stearns and Joe the Plumber got drunk on it.