I tried to imagine how it must feel to be one of those Wall Street bankers who stand to make tens of millions in bonuses from bailout money after nearly bringing the world’s economy to its knees. I know I’d feel too guilty to take the money, so I could only speculate that these guys [...]

A year later, and the folks who gave us the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression are back at it. You’d think that the debacle would have given them at least a small does of humility, but no. Having been bailed out with hundreds of billion of the public’s money, they’re rewarding themselves for [...]

I find it amusing that every bit of good news about the economy seems to be that it’s bad, but just not as bad as it was before, or less bad than expected. If economists and newscasters were truly telling it like it is, it would sound like this. Oddly, even though every kid over [...]

Goldman Sachs has recovered quite nicely from the recession they helped create. They’ve paid back the bailout money already, and freed from the strings that came with it, they’re rewarding themselves for their business prowess with executive compensation above pre-crash levels. How did they do it? By being smarter than the other banks. Oh, it’s [...]

The latest revelations about the SEC’s failure to investigate Bernard Madoff’s dealings, despite the red flags raised by a number of people, should not surprise us, given recent and not so recent history. Until recently, Congress was in serious in deregulation mode, and the agency followed the prevailing mood of keeping hands off Wall Street. [...]

So now the banks that took the bailout money want to give it back as fast as they can. Why? Surely not because they’re suddenly solvent. No, not exactly. The big boys are chafing at the rules that come attached to the money–more transparency in how they do their business, and limits on the bonuses [...]

The results of the administration’s bank stress tests will be revealed on Thursday. Frankly, I don’t put a lot of faith in the results. Maybe I’m getting too cynical in my old age, but  I’m betting that the fix is in, and this is going to be used as a public relations victory for the [...]

Obama’s sales job for his economic reforms has hit hyperspeed. He’s everywhere, it seems. You can’t turn on the tv or the radio or go online without hitting another Obama message. The guy is everywhere. Meanwhile, I’m still more than a little dubious about what he’s selling. His economic team, primarily represented by Treasury Secretary [...]