In case you need more proof that our financial and economic system is fundamentally corrupt and needs to be replaced, investment banker Goldman Sachs will pay out the biggest bonuses ever in its 140-year history. How can that be when the US and world economy is in the toilet? How can that be when the actions of Goldman Sachs and other Wall Street leviathans were a principle cause?
Well Goldman Sachs has had a great year so far. And how can that be? Well of course Goldman received from taxpayers, directly and not so indirectly, over $50-billion. They've also taken many billions in easy loans from the Federal Reserve in recent months. The Federal Reserve will not release that information - so we don't know how much. This is all well documented by Nomi Prins, an economists who used to work for Goldman Sachs, at Democracy Now! and on Alternet (I wonder if they will rehire Nomi?) Wall Street apologists will point out that Goldman Sachs, among other firms, paid back their $10-Billion in TARP money. As Nomi explains, that was a slight of hand designed to distract us from much bigger pillage.
As I have said before, an important first step to reverse the organized theft of Wall Street (and other large financial centers) is to re-localize. Instead of putting your money with big multinational banks like Citigroup or Bank of America, take a look at your local credit unions. Some have picked up the anti-consumer habits of the pillagers. But most are still focused on treating you in a transparent way and keep more money (more lending) in your local economy.
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