Power
“Truth is always the enemy of power. And power the enemy of truth.” -Edward Abbey
The New York Times reported yesterday that Goldman Sachs Chief Executive, Lloyd C. Blankfein is having a great year. While much of the nation finds itself in a festering and widening credit and mortgage crisis, Blankfein should make around $65 million dollars, a nice increase over the paltry $54.3 million he earned in 2006.
Good thing, too. He’s been trying to make it and keep his family fed on a $600,000 salary.
I might add his firm made $9.5 billion while thousands of families lost their homes.
Somewhere in-between regular, private meetings with Bush, Rice, Bernanke and Cox (Securities and Exchange and Federal Reserve folks), Goldman Sachs dumped a lot of mortgage and mortgage related securities and bought insurance to protect against losses. While everyone else was hurting, these guys made a bundle.
Also of note is the fact that Henry M. Paulson, the 74th Secretary of the Treasury, appointed by Bush in June, 2006, was the former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Goldman Sachs.
It’s amazing how this interdigitated group of powerful people control the world. When Goldman moves, the reverberations rattle the entire world. Even a few whispers at a two martini lunch meeting can dramatically affect markets and peoples lives. It’s power. Real power Power beyond what most of us can imagine.
But this is how the small, wealthy group of power brokers work. Wall Street execs go to Washington. Washington insiders become “advisors” on Wall Street. In one segment of society, you have futures, trades, calls, wars and big deposits. Deals made on plush golf courses and in swanky restaurants. Their children get in on the act because they’re members of the lucky sperm club. Lloyd has two kids at Harvard, and they’ll soon make their debuts.
In the segment furthest away, you have a single, poorly educated mom trying to feed three kids on a retail pay grade with no health insurance. She can’t buy even the simplest home because she can’t afford it. The chances are not good her kids will fare much better.
Somewhere in the middle, there are thousands of people trying to be just like lucky Lloyd. Living beyond their means and chasing false dreams. Poor babies. They can’t sell their non-sustainable mega houses purchased for $385,000 for even $200,000. Misery and woe. Might not get that vacation in Belize this winter. No shopping in Dallas. Bye bye botox.
The lucky Lloyd’s of the world make their living off of growth. Non-sustainable growth that requires tremendous amounts of natural resources to make it all work. It requires more than just market savvy and a few good moves. It requires war and death.
They’re predators that make their living on off of the death of living things, but most people think they’re innocent, keen investors that give tons of money to charity. Too few people are willing to look under the rock and think about what really has to happen in the world for these assholes to make the kind of money they make.
I just got a Goldman-Sachs t-shirt at the Salvation Army…I’ll where it proudly!