RANT: Too big to fail?

Saturday, September 12, 2009

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=aUTh4YMmI6QE

Lehman Monday Morning Lesson Lost With Obama Regulator-in-Chief
By Alison Fitzgerald and Christine Harper

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“They should be broken up and sold off,” Fine, 58, said he declared, as Geithner scribbled notes before thanking him for his time and ushering him out into the January chill.

The Treasury secretary didn’t follow through on Fine’s suggestion, just as he didn’t act on the advice of former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul A. Volcker, or Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. head Sheila C. Bair, or the dozens of economists and politicians who pressed the White House for measures that would limit the size or activities of U.S. banks.

One year after the demise of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. paralyzed the financial system, “mega-banks,” as Fine’s group calls them, are as interconnected and inscrutable as ever. The Obama administration’s plan for a regulatory overhaul wouldn’t force them to shrink or simplify their structure.

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Washington is corrupt.

Big financial entities make BIG financial contributions.

We probably don’t know half of the stuff that goes on below the surface.

So, we the taxpayers, get screwed repeatedly.

If you were the regulator, and you were presented with an “easy” solution (i.e., break up, sell off, and limit the future size), what would you do?

Seems easy to me.

Pick a big number say 1B$ (that’s billion with a B) and say “No finaincial entity insured by the Fed or the Federal Government gets bigger than that!”

Seems trivial to me.

But, where would the big campaign contributions and payoffs come from?

Washington and all the little DCs are corrupt.

We need more work, workers, and a lot less politicians.

Every wonder why there are SO MANY lawyers?

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FUN: What should Insurance Companies do in response to Obamacare? (WWICD)

Saturday, September 12, 2009

http://knappster.blogspot.com/2009/09/what-insurance-companies-should-do.html

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In my last post on ObamaCare, I put myself in the shoes of the President of the United States. Now I’m going to put myself in the shoes of the president of an insurance company. If I found myself in that position, I’d be getting my ducks in a row right now — calling emergency board meetings, working out details with the company’s officers, etc. I’d be ready to move the instant it became obvious that this bill was going to pass, and this is what my move would look like:

– I’d inform the company’s policyholders that the company is going out of business at the end of the next billing cycle, that their policies will be canceled effective that date, and that they’ll need to find coverage elsewhere;

– I’d inform the company’s workers that their employment is drawing to an end; and

– I’d inform stockholders that the company’s assets are to be liquidated through arranged profitable sale where possible and auction where necessary, and that after the company’s debts are settled and liabilities zeroed out, each stockholder will receive a final dividend per share from any remaining monies.

I might or might not send a note to President Obama, Majority Leader Reid and Speaker Pelosi. If I did, it would be short and to the point:

Find some other business to run, asshole — this one’s no longer available.

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ROFL, but absolutely correct.

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Posted by reinkefj