JP Morgan Chase to pay $27 billion, largely in bonuses

[Joanne98]

I was skipping around the Web, seeking news and analysis regarding the banking collapse, the taxpayer bailout and the massive profit and bonuses that the bailout has generated for an industry that still prefers to believe it did nothing wrong and that few changes need to made.

When I stopped by Forbes.com, I was greeted by its “Thought Of The Day”:

“When a deep injury is done to us, we never recover until we forgive.”
– Alan Paton

Well, that’s nice, I thought. On the other hand, there’s this:

“In a remarkable rebound from the depths of the financial crisis, (JP) Morgan earned $11.7 billion last year, more than double its profit in 2008, and generated record revenue. The bank earned $3.3 billion in the fourth quarter alone.

Those cheery figures were accompanied by news that JPMorgan has earmarked $26.9 billion to compensate its workers, 18 percent higher than in 2008, much of which will now be paid out as bonuses.”

You read that right: $27 billion. much of it in bonuses. Ka-ching!!

The Masters of the Universe who helped engineer this mess — although blame certainly extends from top government circles down to folks sitting at kitchen tables in homes about to be foreclosed — are merrily going about their way, paying themselves huge bonuses while the rest of the country looks on in astonishment from the unemployment line.

Earlier this week, CEOs of the four biggest Wall Street banks testified before a bipartisan commission created to investigate how this mess was allowed to happen. In his column today, Nobel-winning economist Paul Krugman says that “the bankers’ testimony showed a stunning failure, even now, to grasp the nature and extent of the current crisis”:

“There were two moments in Wednesday’s hearing that stood out. One was when Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase declared that a financial crisis is something that “happens every five to seven years. We shouldn’t be surprised.” In short, stuff happens, and that’s just part of life.

But the truth is that the United States managed to avoid major financial crises for half a century after the Pecora hearings were held and Congress enacted major banking reforms. It was only after we forgot those lessons, and dismantled effective regulation, that our financial system went back to being dangerously unstable.

As an aside, it was also startling to hear Mr. Dimon admit that his bank never even considered the possibility of a large decline in home prices, despite widespread warnings that we were in the midst of a monstrous housing bubble.”

Over at Calculated Risk, Bill McBride echoes that conclusion. “The bankers are apparently clueless, or if they have any inkling about what happened, they will not say it. The first morning of hearings were a waste of time.”

But he also offered a suggestion for how the commission might get at the real roots of the problem:

“…. first, start from the bottom, not the top. Don’t interview any more bankers or heads of regulatory agencies, at least not yet.

My first suggestion is that the Commission start interviewing – in private – the field examiners at the Fed, FDIC, OCC and OTS (the four federal banking regulatory agencies). There is no need to publicly embarrass any examiner. The various Inspector General reports on bank failures would provide a starting point.

Ask the examiners what they saw and when – according to the Inspector General’s reports, the field examiners were warning about lending problems in 2002 and 2003.

Follow the trail. Did this information generate warnings inside the organizations? If so, why wasn’t action taken? Was the action blocked by political appointees?”

That’s exactly right. I’ve read and reported on some of those inspector-general reports regarding failed banks here in Georgia, and they read just as McBride suggests. I’ve also heard first-hand but off-the-record accounts of examiners being discouraged from looking too hard at banking practices that until a few years ago would have set off alarm bells.

Continued>>>
http://blogs.ajc.com/jay-bookman-blog/2010/01/15/jp-morgan-chase-to-pay-27-billion-in-bonuses/?cxntfid=blogs_jay_bookman_blog

[tabatha]

1. I hate Chase.

Don't know how Jamie Dimon can call himself a Democrat.

[jotsy]

2. First day of the commission testimony I heard someone say

"regulatory structure did not keep pace with the 'innovation' of the financial services industry. I remember thinking thieves do the same thing when running away from authority.

[nightrain]

3. kick. Chase is one of the finest robbers we have. Transfer your money from them.

[midnight]

4. This current economic down turn has been brought to you by Moral hazard banking

[AnArmyVeteran]

5. We Need Forfeiture Laws for White Collared Criminals NOW!

PASS FORFEITURE LAWS FOR WHITE COLLAR CRIMINALS NOW!

Current FEDERAL drug forfeiture laws to empower the government
to seize all property, bank accounts, automobiles, essentially
all possession of anyone who is caught dealing even a small
quantity of drugs. 

So why aren't there equivalent laws to strip away all the
possessions of white collar criminals like Mark Sanford,
Bernard Madoff, Ken Lay and thousands of other white collar
criminals just like them? How about applying these laws to the
Wall Street thieves who stole trillions and destroyed our
country's economy?

"We the People" need to FORCE our government to pass
Forfeiture Laws to strip away every dime from any white collar
criminal who steals more than $10,000. If a person of average
means steals even a small possession they can end up in
prison. I even heard of a California man who stole a candy
bar, and because it was his '3rd strike' he was given life in
prison. There are definitely two sets of laws, one for the
rich, and the other for the poor.

If a white collared criminal is guilty of stealing millions
then we should be able to seize their mansions, fleets of
luxury cars, yatchs, jewelry, bank accounts, stocks, bonds,
even their family dog. And take EVERYTHING from their corrupt
families too! If their families are in on the crime, put them
in prison for life too. And if somehow one of these criminals
gets out of prison, mandate by law that they can never amass
more than $12,000 in a year for the rest of their lives, or
whatever the minimum federal poverty level is set at.
Currently, white collared criminals usually get token
sentences in country club prisons, and then when they are
released they simply get all of the money they stole from
their oversees bank accounts.

I am never for excess government intervention, but I am always
for equality and justice. I believe the rich should be held to
a higher standard than the rest of us because they have gifts,
abilities and intelligence to know better, so they should be
forced to submit to a tougher set of penalties.

We can continue with the current system of 'justice' where the
rich can buy more 'justice' than the rest of us (just like
they buy elections), or we can change the system that would
make the rich more accountable for their crimes. If we
eliminated the current system where 'justice is for sale' to
the highest bidder, our country would be a much better place.
All anyone wants is an even playing field, but we will never
have that if we have two sets of justice, one for the rich and
one for the poor.

Call your representative TODAY! Their number is 800-828-0498.
Call NOW! Demand forfeiture laws for rich criminals now.