The Financial Crisis Misunderstanding

Stormy weather has returned to Wall Street this week, thanks to the latest testimonies from several key players in last year's mortgage meltdown. If I didn't know better, I could swear that this was a well-intended ploy to distract John Q Public from the current tea-party ramblings as we approach Tax Day tomorrow, but I'll leave that for another post. Partisanship has once again reared its ugly head as both sides restart their finger-pointing at endless and pointless arguements about who's to blame, instead of focusing on effect as well as cause. This conincides with a lot of useless rhetoric about how evil the TARP idea was for America and how it benefited nobody but the big banks. Oh, Really? If you believe that, you seriously need to buy a clue. America stands to make HUGE profits from the TARP repayments, as nearly all of the major players have already repaid their loans, and at a high premium. But do you see any of that on the headlines? Oh, hell no -- all we hear is how it wasn't fair to bail out the Wall Street bloodsuckers and banks and yadda yadda yadda. Well, Guess What, America? The bailouts are working! The Treasury Department is expected to make a PROFIT from the repayments on the TARP funds. This goes clearly against the bitter thought process of the so-called economic experts who were quick to jump on the "it will kill us all" bandwagon. Now, they're slowly backpedalling, and because why? They're now armed with the FACTS. As for the rest of the anti-TARP crowd -- well, they know better than to get the truth get in the way of a good story.

The Big Tease

There was a slight edge of excitement creeping within the sub-conscious of the bank operations center; "Cube World", as the natives jokingly referred to it, was experiencing the normal increase in chatter that usually accompanies a late Friday afternoon before a holiday weekend. Alex noticed a higher-than-average of loitering by the mostly all-female staff, but it didn't bother him. He was focusing on completing a last-minute transfer request from his contemporary in Las Vegas. "Cindy must have hit a big account again", he grumbled under his breath. That would make 3 in four weeks to his 1 -- and his was a lucky one to get at that. He knew what was coming next: a phone call from Cindy, to, you know, follow up and confirm he got the email request. She didn't need to make the call -- he and she both knew their emails had return receipt acknowledgement turn on -- but he knew she couldn't go without talking to him about it. Plus, he enjoyed her call anyway, even if it was to tease him about the current standings in their contest. She would be sure to remind him of the stakes: Loser travels to Winner's city for a night on the town, courtesy of the Loser. Little did she realize that he was secretly hoping to lose the contest anyway, because he was very curious to finally meet Cindy in person after carrying on a friendly working relationship via phone for over a year. Cindy gave great phone, as they say in the biz, and she knew it. Alex would look forward to her calls, especially on Friday afternoons, it put him in the mood for when he hit the happy hour circuit with his friends after work. If the bank only knew how nasty the conversations were on the phone; he sometimes wondered if the phone lines would melt from the subtle heat. Cindy left no doubt about her intentions -- or maybe she was playing it strong because she had the physical distance between them act as her buffer zone. Alex didn't mind, since he always had Stacey at home to take care of any wandering urges brought on by the "hot topic" of the day. Stacey didn't mind when Alex came home in an armorous mood, especially if the result was physical satisfaction for her, and Alex would hardly ever disappoint. If Stacey only knew that it was Cindy who was responsible for getting Alex going...
"ring-ring"...Right on cue. From the Caller Id, he could see it was Cindy. "Trading Desk", he answered, trying to sound as indifferent as possible. He heard a girlish yet seductive chuckle on the other line, the same one he's heard for several months now, the same one he's enjoyed for just as long. "Hey, You...I think you're going to lose the bet!", she said, laughingly. He loved how she just knew his voice and avoided the formalities. She made him very comfortable with her loving-like teases, and she was only too happy to oblige. "What are you talking about, girl?", he replied, smiling. He was sure to turn away from eye-shot of the other co-workers. Alex's desk on the 14th floor was positioned so that his back was to the floor-to-ceiling glass, but he faced another desk -- Jillian, who, per rumor, had a thing for Alex but would never admit it to his face. Alex knew it was prudent to not rock the boat with his co-workers, especially the ones who were so nice and willing to make his life easier, and in return, he was careful not to burn any bridges by acting like an ass or showing off his interstate friendships for all to see or hear. He turned to the window. "There's still one more week to go, my dear -- and I'm a late charger. You'd better be saving your pennies -- Phoenix can be very expensive." Then came that laugh again -- she wasn't having any of it. "Oh, really?", she immediately replied. "Hey, I'm not worried...and last I looked, you were two trades behind me! Hope your bags are packed...and your wallet, too!" Her voice was light and breezy, like a sea breeze, and he could see his smile in the window reflection. He just loved her voice. "Phoenix is boring anyway -- you would love it here in Vegas", she continued. "I'll show you all the sights that tourists don't see -- and I promise it'll only be a little expensive!" It was his turn to laugh. (to be continued)

The Big "Kick Ass" difference

Happy One, my peoples! It's the first day of a new month, the first day of a new business quarter, the first day of a new commission cycle...everything starts all over, like Groundhog Day. And, in keeping with that mindset comes an ad campaign for a new movie, "Kick-Ass". Think "Fight Club" meets "Watchmen". The premise (from what I can gather from the previews and ads -- and you know they just about give everything away in those things) is that a small group of Ordinary Joes take it upon themselves to become vigilant Ordinary Joe superheroes, thereby taking the time to disguise themselves in full costume to go out and fight the bad guys, albeit with absolutely no superpowers, all (it seems) just for the thrill of it, as well as for justice. Don't know if there's an intention sublimial message involved, but it got me to thinking about one anyway: just what are we trying to say here? Are we all fed up with too much petty crime and not enough justice (i.e. car thefts, burglaries, etc.) because the Po-Po is more interested in the bigger fish? And if law enforcement denies it, does this mean we are disappointed in the results we see in bringing these petty criminals to justice in a timely and effective manner? If you saw "Watchmen", you would have seen how this street-level crime-fighting ended up in a corruptive state, because it's only human nature that we eventually lose sight of the forest from the trees. I liked what they did there -- it exposed our fallibility, our weaknesses, our All-Too-Human nature. And in the end, is that a bad thing? We know that we are not perfect, but we also know we are driven (most of the time) to fight for justice and to see good win over evil. It doesn't always go our way in the end, but it takes a lot for most of us to get overwhelmed by continual disappointment. We love to see the good guys win -- but please hold the sappiness, after all, we're watching calories!
My other question is, what is Hollywood trying to convey via this topic? I realize it's all for entertainment purposes only (no wagering), but it still begs for some discussion of the prevailing social mores within our society. I wonder if there are other trends or movements that the general public would like to see "cleansed" by do-gooders fighting for the common man -- maybe Washington political stalemate unclogged by Captain Drano? Or global religious zealots crushed by Major Reason? I'd like to see that -- along with child abusers physically eliminated from the face of the earth by General Consensus. What would you like to see?