Since the market collapse and the subsequent bailout approved by our increasingly "surprised" and clueless Congress we have seen the following bailout developments:
1. No transparency in the processFor added measure, we also get former Fed Chair Alan Greenspan acknowledging he didn't understand how greedy people could do stupid things that would harm the market.
2. Financial institutions using taxpayer money to pay off shareholders.
3. Financial institutions using taxpayer money to purchase failing institutions at fire sale prices.
4. Financial institutions using the financial mess to change the rules and increase their write-offs (which taxpayers pay for).
5. AIG partying it up in luxury hotels on our dime.
The result? After seeing wealth concentration in America increase to pre-Depression levels during the Bush administration, we are currently watching as one of the greatest transfers of wealth in human history occurs right under our nose. Worse, the money is going to people who created the mess, and are already wealthy.
No one knows what to do, as Paul Krugman points out here. I'll be discussing this on tomorrow's program.
- Mark
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