From PIMCO’s Bill Gross:
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| PIMCO’s Bill Gross |
Fifty years ago, the highest paid and most prestigious professions were that of a doctor or a 707 airline pilot who flew the “golden” route from Los Angeles to Honolulu. Today the yellow brick road begins on Wall Street or the City. Aside from supernova innovators such as Steve Jobs or Mark Zuckerberg, the money is made from securitizing things instead of booting and rebuilding America. The tallest buildings in almost every major city are banks, with tens of thousands of people shuffling and trading paper for a living. One of this country’s premier investment banks paid each of its 26,000 employees an average of $370,000 in 2010, nearly ten times the take-home pay of other American workers. Almost a quarter of the 400 wealthiest people on Forbes annual richest list make their moneyfrom money, whereas only 8% could make that claim in its first issue in 1982, and probably close to 0% when I first read my economic primer in 1966.
Having been part of this process and even a member of the rogue’s gallery itself, I know one thing for sure: This is not God’s work – it has the unmistakable odor of Mammon.No kidding, Bill . . . but aside from the nice words, what are you planning to do about it?
People deal with the moral problem of ill-gotten gains in different ways. Most bankers justify their earnings with garbage economic theories about how what they do is really making EVERYONE rich (despite all evidence to the contrary). Bill Gross' strategy is to criticize his colleagues for their dishonest gains... while keeping his own.
ReplyDeleteWhen I say "dishonest," I don't mean Gross has cheated. But the only reason shuffling paper is so profitable is because of Fed market distortion which encourages leveraging assets. If a trader realizes this and wants to do the right thing, the solution is not to write edgy op-eds, it's to unplug yourself and begin working AGAINST dishonesty and theft
At least Gross is talking the talk more than most of his colleagues. Maybe hes not walking the walk but he says he is doing his best for his clients, implying hes dumping the dollar.
ReplyDeleteMaybe thats the best way to bring this crisis to a head, a massive dollar dump by everyone.
Reading about "personalities" is getting odd on the eyes. How about some Ben Barnake bashing, or O'bama bashing. I would find that more interesting.
ReplyDeleteGood luck from Kansas - I have an idea. Why not start a separate section, like you have done with the tutorial, and call it the "Bash,Slash, and Crash of Useless Personalities" or something like that. That way some of your biggest fans can easily avoid the personal jabs on others if they so desire - and you can still voice your heart and soul out!. - Thanks again for your work!