Objectively intelligent.

[sebastian_dangerfield]

Originally Posted by Tyrone Slothrop

If the government makes policy by deciding whether it is sympathetic to banks, a lot of ordinary people who didn't do anything wrong are going to get fucked. During a crisis, the better thing to do is keep banks alive somehow, to save their customers. But you also want to take it out of the owners, so that they pay the price. In 2007-08, the government did a pretty good job of protecting the customers, so at least we had that.

You misunderstood me. I want to take it out exclusively on management.

[Greedy,Greedy,Greedy]

Originally Posted by Hank Chinaski

In related news, a 35 year old friend is looking for work. His experience is rather thin- I think he flew a military helicopter for a short while, likely not near combat. Otherwise, he basically travelled the World smiling and waving at people that seem to think his mom is somehow above everyone else, since a long time ago her ancestors killed a bunch of people and took over. The friend's wife has worked, so if you give him a chance she might be able to give him advice on how to handle work situations and challenges.

It sounds like he has the right skill set to be an investment banker.

[LessinSF]

Elie Mystal and Above the Law for the win - https://reason.com/2020/01/08/above-...hobic-insults/

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally Posted by Greedy,Greedy,Greedy

It sounds like he has the right skill set to be an investment banker.

it's his grandmom I meant, his mom is dead. He was basically following his dad's career path, but dad is horribly frustrated with hitting a ceiling.

[Hank Chinaski]

You all can't see the pictures, but from the Iraqi guy's FB

Millions of Iraqis protested today in all cities that have presence of Iranian backed militias, they came out to tell Iraq and the world that their government does not represent them, the Prime Minister who resigned a month ago should not be revoking any treaties (like the security treaty with the US).
They carried pictures of their secular candidate and they will continue their revolution.
If you are not Iraqi, what you need to know is:

- They dont want foreign intervention and regime change, they want to fix the constitution and have a presidential system where the gov isn’t divided between Sunni, Shiite and Kurd.
- No presence to any armed militia except for the Iraqi military and other law enforcement but no civilian militias.
- Check and balances in the government branches so politicians can’t steals millions and millions of dollars without even do their jobs.
- Keep religion and politics separate.

These are the main goals of the revolution but there are few more.

Whoever cited a blog to say it is only a few crackpots protesting in Iraq.... well maybe you're right, but maybe you are wrong?

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally Posted by sebastian_dangerfield

It was musical chairs. "This is going to scorch a lot of folks... but not me." Or, "This is going to scorch a lot of folks, but I'll have made so much money in the interim, I'll be alright if it scorches me."

One thing I don't think anyone at a bank in 2007 thought was:

"This is going to scorch a lot of folks, but when it does, the govt will bail people like me out and I'll wind up only losing a year or two of big bonuses, and I'll make multiples of that loss in the stock market from a crazy run-up fueled by liquidity and MBS purchases the Fed uses to cure the problem I was involved in creating. I can't lose!"

But they do now.

Lots and lots of people at the big banks thought those things in 2007. The banks' names stay the same, but the people at them who make a lot of money turned over quite a bit. In fifteen seconds on Google I found this, from the NYT in 2009:

The “I.B.G. – Y.B.G.” problem. A major cause of the current crisis will most likely prove to be a mismatch of incentives for Wall Street traders. If a mortgage trader made a big bet, he had the chance to land a big bonus if it paid off (and his boss did, too). If, however, that bet didn’t pan out — and the trader lost a lot of money for the firm — he might receive no bonus at all. On the contrary, he might get a princely severance package.

But one thing seems pretty clear: That trader would not receive a “negative bonus.” In other words, he did not personally incur the cost of the trading blowup. Indeed, the open secret on Wall Street was that traders did not risk losing their own money — just the chance of receiving an enormous payout.

Economists call this a moral hazard problem. In bankerspeak, it’s known as the “I.B.G.-Y.B.G.” issue — as in “I’ll Be Gone and You’ll Be Gone” if the trade goes south. As one senior Wall Street executive recently told me: “Compensation was a one-way option for the trader, with the firm bearing all the risk.” Today, the American taxpayer is sharing that burden as well.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Suppose I find myself in Decatur, Georgia, tomorrow afternoon. What to do?

[LessinSF]

Originally Posted by Tyrone Slothrop

Suppose I find myself in Decatur, Georgia, tomorrow afternoon. What to do?

Eat barbecue and keep your liberal trap shut.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally Posted by LessinSF

Eat barbecue and keep your liberal trap shut.

No worries, I'm here with a bunch of lefties (my family). I had truly mediocre sushi for dinner tonight, and they forgot to put soy sauce in the bag. So sad. BBW recommendations would be great.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally Posted by Hank Chinaski

Whoever cited a blog to say it is only a few crackpots protesting in Iraq.... well maybe you're right, but maybe you are wrong?

Did someone do that here?

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally Posted by Tyrone Slothrop

Did someone do that here?

Ummm, yes “someone” did explain that to me.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally Posted by Hank Chinaski

Ummm, yes “someone” did explain that to me.

Cite, please.

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally Posted by Tyrone Slothrop

Cite, please.

You eat sushi in Georgia?

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally Posted by Tyrone Slothrop

Cite, please.

I don’t normally reply to the same post twice, you did say the guy I quoted was in the extreme minority.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally Posted by Hank Chinaski

I don’t normally reply to the same post twice, you did say the guy I quoted was in the extreme minority.

No, I did not say Sunnis are an "extreme" minority. Wikipedia:

A report published by the European Parliamentary Research Service suggests that in 2015 there was 20 million Arabs (15 million Shia and 9 million Sunni); 8 million Sunni Kurds (plus 500,000 Shia Feylis and 200,000 Kaka'i); 0.5 million Iraqi Turkmen/Turkoman; 1 million Black Iraqis; 500,000 Christians (including Chaldeans, Syriacs, Assyrians, Armenians and Arab Christians); 500,000 Yazidis; 250,000 Shabaks; 50,000 Roma; 3,000 Sabean-Mandaeans; 2,000 Circassians; 1,000 Baha’i; and a few dozen Jews.

So about half the population Shia, and a little less than a third Sunni. TBH, I would have guessed there were more Shia, and fewer Kurds.