Why isn't this being treated like a crime?

[ColbertWatcher]

The banks made loans without traditional guarantees but then sold them to other financial institutions for a profit.

Those financial institutions then turned around and sold them again to some other investment manipulator for more profit.

Neither the first or second buyer cared what the guarantees for pay back were, placing the blame onto the bank in the first place, because they believed if they could just unload the loans onto someone else, they will make their money back plus a profit.

That sounds like a pyramid scheme to me.

Why aren't the assets frozen?

Why isn't anyone just simply saying eminent domain?

Why isn't this being treated like a crime?

[cabluedem]

1. Simply put the fix is in. The law works one way for us and one way for them. nt

[ElboRuum]

2. Not precisely a pyramid scheme...

But pretty darn close.

[ColbertWatcher]

10. Not to be a contrarian, but how is it not? Seriously.

Just give me a quick explanation of a pyramid scheme like Amway or $cientology. then show how it's different.

I'm honestly not getting it.

[ElboRuum]

26. Ask and ye shall receive...

What this is might be correctly identified as would be a Ponzi scheme. A pyramid scheme is a specific type of con related in several ways but differing importantly in several respects.

I could go into details, but this Wikipedia article explains it in summary:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponzi_scheme

Look specifically for the section on what is and isn't a Ponzi scheme, under that, a pyramid scheme is described and how it differs from a Ponzi scheme.

[RC]

3. The Republicans did this, so therefore no crime can be committed.

[malaise]

4. Bingo

Impeach the fascists and arrest the criminal bankers.

[spanone]

5. the fbi is looking into lehman, aig and all those fucking ceo's we JUST balied out

so did we bail out criminals? who the fuck are these people?

[ColbertWatcher]

11. So why isn't the GOP-controlled media talking about it? Oh, wait ... n/t

[EFerrari]

6. We don't do crime any more, just wars. There's no new power in crime. n/t

[ColbertWatcher]

12. Pfft. Those small-time mobsters got nuthin' on Blackwater! n/t

[EFerrari]

15. Sarah Palin will leave Todd for Eric Prince. It will be a rock opera. n/t

[ColbertWatcher]

22. I love rock operas!

Tina fey doesn't want to play Palin anymore, so I suggest it be done in drag!

I loved Nathan Lane in the Birdcage, so he can play the role of "Sarah" and since Eric is so butch, Harvey Fierstein can play him.

It will be fabulous!

[EFerrari]

23. Let's find a venue and an angel!

:rofl:

[ColbertWatcher]

25. Hell, let's write it here and see how many recs we can get! n/t

[billyoc]

7. The FBI is investigating it now.

http://money.cnn.com/2008/09/23/news/companies/fbi_finance/index.htm

[Disturbed]

8. Is the Bailout Money being given to people that might be

charged with crimes?

[billyoc]

13. I consider that to be quite likely.

[Carni]

9. I was just going to attempt to post something like this

I don't get it...if I get it into my head to start kiting checks or screwing around with other methods of floating money that doesn't exist...I get a visit from the feds.

If I start holding gambling parties in my home I get a visit from law enforcement.

The big guys do far worse with the government's blessing and they get 700 billion dollars.

I guess I must be missing something.

[ColbertWatcher]

14. Somebody already beat ME to it!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=4088145&mesg_id=4088145

[ljm2002]

16. You are so right...

...as I said in another post, my take on it is as follows: risky loans were given out like there was no tomorrow -- and now we find out that some of the people who were given subprime loans, with variable rates and / or balloon payments, could have qualified for prime loans with fixed rates, so already there was lender fraud -- but anyway, these risky loans were then "packaged" (read: laundered) into "mortgage backed securities" and were sold to unsuspecting (read: playing along, in it for the gain) buyers as "Class A Securities" when in reality they were "Class D Secrities" (if that). At the end of the day, many of these were sold to international institutions, largely on the strength of the vaunted transparency and stability of the U.S. financial markets -- and then the foreign investors found out that not only was the paper bad, but they were never going to be able to take possession of the collateral -- so the paper was really, truly worthless.

At this point, the credit that dried up was that from the international banks to our banks -- you know, that deficit that we've been running on for years (and in truth, long before Bush ever took office). That's why the whole thing was about to freeze up. Apparently even our conscience-free financiers and the Fed could not bring themselves to just simply print more money -- or maybe there was still some semblance of control that made it imossible to do so without being found out right then and there. So they came crying to Congress...

Well, not crying exactly. Paulson figured they could just do the usual, make a weakness into a strength, and he waltzed in with a 3-page plan to demand $700Bn with no strings attached and no oversight and absolute power for himself, and was actually shocked when the Congressional lap dogs did not play their usual role and roll over for it.

Current negotiations are still ludicrous -- there should be no negotiating with these criminals. The only negotiations should be for how long their prison sentences are going to be, and the bailout should occur VERY incrementally and with minimal monetary output until Obama takes office.

So sez I.

[ColbertWatcher]

18. Too many people are confused by all of this.

Why can't an investigation take place first?

Let the banks fall where they may, do the investigation, open banks according to how they faired during the investigations.

Hell, a man, who 7 of 9 witnesses who testified against him at trial are now wondering if he might indeed be innocent. His execution was postponed. Any bailout before investigations is tantamount to a death penalty for the American economy.

What the hell is wrong with waiting for the investigation!?

[Joe Chi Minh]

17. When McCain, one of the Founding Fathers of deregulation tells everyone

he's going to get this whole Ponzi-fraud catastrophe sorted out, could it get more surreal? Even by Neocon standards? Trust Me. I'm John McCain.

Heck, "Trust me. I'm a politician" was bad enough. It reminds me of the joke about a woman pushing her way through a crowd gathered around the victim and paramedics at the scene of a road accident, shouting, "Let me through! Let me through! I'm a beautician!" Only it's worse than that. More like Hunter Thompson's words in the foreword to a book by his friend, cartoonist, Ralph Steadman, "Hitler took the high road and you, Ralph, took the low road..." For Ralph, substitute "John".

It was a great example of the hilarious way in which Thompson, a wild and pretty lawless tearaway, would speak to Steadman like a very kindly uncle, to a seriously disturbed, extremely dysfunctional child. But I think that would be an all together too indulgent a tone to adopt in relation to McCain.

[ColbertWatcher]

19. I want to think in some way McCain had a brief moment of clarity ...

... and that he really is a patriot and loves his country.

And in that brief moment of clarity because he knows he's not healthy and he realizes that the VP nom his Party selected for him is too dangerous to be put in the White House.

I want to believe that McCain is deliberately muddying the waters so badly that the GOP will have no chance come November.

But, I know he's a narcissist and believes he deserves the pomp and circumstance of the Office of the President.

[Joe Chi Minh]

28. I'm afraid clarity wouldn't have begun to cut it. I don't believe he has

anything like the intellectual wherewithal for the job.

The Republicans seem to have got into a despicable habit of insulting the people by foisting supposedly "entitled" upper-class (or "yuppie" types, as HST designated Bush sr) who don't possess the savvy for the office; the Democrats, never. They always provide astute, very able presidents. On that basis alone, the Republican Party should be disbanded, and rebranded with its better types(currently out of office) in charge.

[Dr Fate]

20. Because they somehow own the country and both parties?

I'm not sure how that works, since they are claiming to be broke, but it's the best I can come up with.

[katty]

21. WHY isn't bush/cheney & gang impeached, in jail BY NOW?!

it's bushworld-all is upside down.

[ColbertWatcher]

24. We. Don't. Have. The. Votes. In. The. Senate.

Still don't.

Also, FOX has the sheeple convinced there has been no crime. So they call their Congresscritter and tell them not to impeach.

The GOP controls the media and the Senate.

[katty]

30. i know-just being rhetorical - it 's beyond any comprehension

[spanone]

27. my question about 911

[Carni]

29. Speaking of 911...

Am I the only one who wonders who held credit default swaps on that whole deal?

I guess I need to put my tin foil hat away for fall but when I was made aware of all of this scheming and gaming in the markets over the last couple of weeks...
one has to wonder!

We know there were stock shorts on the airlines but now I am wondering who else cleaned up?