[DeTomaso] Very little Pantera content

[JJD1010 at aol.com]

A couple of thoughts:
 
 
>>>"And why are the "rich" always vilified? How  many of us would not like 
to 
make millions of dollars, or get million dollar  bonuses? Would you turn 
them down if offered? Seems to be sour grapes to  me."
 
***There have  been interesting psychology studies about people's 
perception that  they could in fact end up "rich" enough so that these sorts of tax 
and bonus  issues would be relevant to them. Result are similar to studies 
about inner city  youth who practice basketball at the expense of their school 
studies in the hope  they will be able to play in the NBA and make big 
money. You take it from  there. It's the "rational marketplace" at work.
 
***Regarding those big  bonuses in the financial industry, they get them, 
not necessarily because of  supply and demand, but because their customers 
are afraid to shop around for  good prices. In an IPO, for example, the small 
fraternity of investment  bankers tell you that you need a big, name brand 
firm to bring  your company to market because it helps sell the stock issue 
and they  are the only ones who are prepared to deal with any  contingencies 
that may arise, almost implying that they bring more  value to your stock 
issue than you do.  They then set the fees high relative to  the amount of 
work and risk involved and justify it by telling you that the  fees are 
relatively small compared to the value of YOUR stock offering  and, therefore, it 
would be fiscally imprudent for YOU not to pay them  and risk having YOUR 
stock offering go bad. By playing the cost vs risk vs  reward scare tactic, 
they get those high fees that pay for those big  bonuses.
 
***On another note relative to those big bonuses, most of the companies  
I've ever been exposed to set bonus pools partly on how well the company does. 
 In bad years, the bonus pool is small. That way all the employees are 
dependent  on each other to do good and management is accountable. I guess that 
doesn't  apply to the financial industry. You get your bonus no matter what 
so why would  you care if management was screwing up the company. You've 
been paid to keep  quiet and not question them.
 
 
>>>"This is NOT government for the people and by  the people!"

***Well, interestingly  enough, voter turnout for the 2008 election was the 
highest in at least 40  years and the "people" voted for Obama - 53% of 
them. Same thing for  Congressional races. 
 
 
>>>"I don't think we'll see any convictions.  Everyone  is claiming 
ignorance.  Sort of like the Assistant Kommandant of Auschwitz  who claimed he 
didn't know people were being killed there.  Only in this  case no one cares 
enough to pursue it."
 
***Goldman Sachs was hailed as one of the smart companies that  avoided 
most of the mortgage-backed securities meltdown. The Chairman of  Goldman Sachs 
admitted his company was dumping mortgage backed securities it  had 
purchased for their own account at the same they were packaging and  selling 
mortgages to other unsuspecting firms and people. They knew but that  didn't stop 
them from making big fees syndicating new paper.





Jeff ( can we move on?  )
6559