Bubbles Come and Bubbles Go (On)
Some say that in the five years since the 2008 GFC-Global Financial Crisis destroyed millions of livelihoods European and American politicians have allowed the powerful heads of the world’s central banks to take the wheel even though there is still no sheriff in town. If indeed the sheriff has holstered his guns should journalists now take up the challenge? On [...]
Tales of Smash, Grab, Contempt and Ru(i)n
While cashless Cypriots show their disgust for Germany and other southern sun-belters reel at a contemptuous smash and grab effort by European authorities, despotic bankers carry on as audaciously as ever. As ProPublica reveals below Germany’s prestigious Deutsche Bank — just fined 17.5 million dollars by US regulators — is merely the latest global financial institution to have [...]
Banking: Sociopaths Still in Charge
Five long years after north Atlantic financial rogues collapsed the global economy, unpunished sociopaths remain in charge and the crisis, particularly in Europe, shows few signs of abating. Below is the latest ProPublica investigation of the continuing financial scandal undermining global confidence in banking institutions. Republished with acknowledgments and thanks. A Scorecard For This Summer’s Bank Scandals by Cora Currier and Lena Groeger [...]
Occupy Wall Street – a Global Protest
Have the indignados — initially Spanish but now pan-European — struck a global chord of despair and disgust among well-educated youth with no job prospects? This article republished from ProPublica looks at national differences in a movement driven by social media. Globalizing Occupy Wall Street: From Chile to Israel, Protests Erupt by Lois Beckett ProPublica, [...]
Trouble, Turmoil and the Rating Agencies
Moody’s, S&P, Fitch — all powerful US firms– are the world’s top rating agencies and were major players in the devastating economic assault that fuelled the North Atlantic financial fireball currently consuming Euroland economies. Indeed many credible post-crash analyses suggest the agencies’ conflicted status as statutory providers of ratings to investors on complex debt vehicles, while being [...]
