tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5706985217856735134.post3750020763926224022..comments2023-11-05T02:27:56.891-08:00Comments on Thoughts From the Desert: Feeding the Beast--Our Insatiable Need For VillainsLarry Gellmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01742752540516030687noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5706985217856735134.post-31163713545385449272009-11-26T19:39:26.848-08:002009-11-26T19:39:26.848-08:00You may have not intended to do so, but I think yo...You may have not intended to do so, but I think you have managed to express the state of mind that a lot of people are in. The sense of wanting to help, but not knowing how or where, is something a lot of us are going through. Please come visit my site <a href="http://www.businessesdallas.com" rel="nofollow">Directory San Diego City</a> when you got time.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5706985217856735134.post-52017828866612095992009-11-24T13:46:41.023-08:002009-11-24T13:46:41.023-08:00It's really not a question of finding villains...It's really not a question of finding villains.You seem only to want to absolve the present administration and protect Goldman as well. I'm not sure why in either case. In a few years (hopefully it will be many but I doubt it) we'll be right back where we were in the fall of '08. Why? Clearly, because we've given a 'soft' landing to those that should have been allowed to fail, regardless of their size. That's the only true test of whether free enterprise and capitalism work. It does only if we are forced to pay the price for our failures.Neilhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00957751176001498435noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5706985217856735134.post-14711593026625804382009-11-24T07:40:58.852-08:002009-11-24T07:40:58.852-08:00I love your writing, Larry, but this post goes too...I love your writing, Larry, but this post goes too far. Goldman is being singled out because:<br /><br />1) they didn't get hurt that much and are now back to making record profits, <br />2) there is a revolving door between Goldman executive suites and DC, and<br />3) there is more to the rage at Goldman than mortgages, for instance the super-fast computer algorithms that can print profits<br /><br />I'm sure there are more, but these are the big ones. Also, AIG was a much more intense and longer-lasting demon than Goldman has been. But at some point, people get tired of beating the same horse. Goldman's day will pass, too. <br /><br />You can't blame the people for repealing Glass-Stegall or refusing to regulate derivatives. Voters didn't elect and support representatives to do these things. The financial industry did. (Goldman gives money to politicians, don't they?) You know who is the biggest class of people to blame for government debt, Republicans who passed Bush's tax cuts.<br /><br />"But in real life it's apparently much easier to just get angry at everyone except ourselves and look for villains to blame." Of course it is, when you have a way of preventing this, let me know.<br /><br />As far as the NYT editorial, it isn't fair to say they only blame Goldman. It's one editorial, they have spread blame around over the course of the crisis. And if there is one person to blame for the editorial, it is clearly Blankfein. Can you defend his recent remarks?<br /><br />Spare me the illegal bit. The crisis was enabled by allowing systemic risk to be legal.Mark Ericksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12604074895219791713noreply@blogger.com