“Rep. Peter Welsh: Mr Turner…I think you said that the SEC office of Risk Management was reduced to a staff, did you say of ……’One’?
Lynn Turner: Yeah, when that gentleman would go home at night he could turn the lights out. In February of this year we had gotten down to just one person at the SEC responsible for identifying the risk of all the institutions.
Rep Peter Welsh: So that included the 62 trillion dollar credit default swap?
Lynn Turner: That’s correct.”
House Oversight Committee Hearing, AIG, 7 October
I am not now, nor ever have been, a member of that select financial coterie known as ‘Goldman Sachs’ Alumni’.
I am not now, nor ever have been a Banker.
I emphasise the first letter in that last word of immediately preceding sentence for reasons pursuant to honoring truth.
What a staggering insight the above extract from Committee Hearing is!
Sixty two trillion dollars in credit default swaps (CDS’s) overseen by a staff of just one individual?
As in ‘reduction’?
Here’s a parallel idea.
Get rid of all the Border Security in America. Get them all to stand down.
Replace them with just one individual – how about Joe the Plumber?
It doesn’t need a Rocket Scientist to work out the results of what that little harebrained scheme would be.
As with border security and checks on legitimacy of persons ‘in transit’; so with financial security and checks on legitimacy of credit default swaps ‘in transit’.
When the people in charge make such an obvious, harebrained ‘mistake’ in their decision making concerning allocation of budget, consequence being such ‘reduction’, you can bet your bottom dollar there is method in such madness.
It isn’t harebrained at all, in fact.
It’s part of some method as providing underlying reason.
But still; sheer madness none the less.
We are all in the midst of the results of such madness borne to fruition as tragedy right now.
The thorns in the whirl wind sown, cutting into flesh.
But not of the few as guilty.
The pain is for now of the many as innocent.
Of the honest, loyal, decent and hardworking.
Families of same – men and women alike; facing loss of livelihood, loss of home.
Of the hard working, looking at life savings in anguish and despair, as decimated; staring into abyss.
Of growing lines of unemployed individuals keen and able, willing; yet unable to find work. Of no money for Health Care or Education. Of Main Street withering under such onslaught; good, decent, long established Companies which provide livelihoods and trade honestly going under daily.
Of ‘suckers going down’ as POTUS 43 could put it.
Not to use ‘that one’- as in the current reprehensible, not to say despicable, vernacular of political dialogue as sideshow evident.
What of the focus of mainstream media/free press?
Joe the Plumber, indeed.
Why so full of trivia; so blind, so devoid of compassion; sense of truth?
Why not as serving the interests of the people; of Democracy?
Apropos of ‘plumbing’ here’s a question:
Who is at the moment the most powerful individual in America? (surely a matter of some small interest; lest President being eclipsed by unelected eminence grise being as of no import? – Not that it would take much to so eclipse, alas).
Would not ex inmate Swift Trail Camp Arizona John Ehrlichman as former mentor to Henry Paulson as said eminence grise, and patterns evident in recent American Political History, be of greater relevance concerning fascination with plumbing?
Or concerning ‘spreading wealth’?
Or indeed; concerning corruption and greed as anathema to Democracy?
Never mind Joe the Plumber. Let him live in peace.
The American Economy is seriously weakened- the human sufferance is immense and growing.
Even if this were an accident, which it is not; the response to such consequences of financial collapse would be unforgivable.
Think of Hurricane Katrina and FEMA.
But the real tragedy: this no accident.
Or result of ‘force majeure’.
Here some questions; put to you as that all Citizens should be asking in midst of such disaster, form of financial meltdown; demanding answer.
Why was the budget of the SEC cut so?
Why was the Glass-Steagall Act repealed?
Why was Lehmann Brothers allowed to fail?
Why were no Economists consulted in the Paulson Bailout Plan?
Why the volte – face so sudden in the biggest bailout ever?
What really happened at the G7 meeting in October?
Why has Europe failed to fall in ‘lock step’ with the plan?
How can 2.3 trillion dollars go missing in a budget?
Why has history repeated itself?
Why is failure in Wall Street rewarded, but Main Street failure punished?
Where has all the money gone?
Where is our Roosevelt to come from this time around?
I don’t have the answers to these questions.
But the right to ask questions remains, as ever; key component of lifeblood of Democracy.
Those who would have such questions not asked, off the Agenda, far let alone answered; are not Democratic.
Being privy to such mindset as would repress is not the same as being of such mindset.
The questions above may be those as born of paranoia, but such their consequence implied for the way we are now forced to live as they deserve answering; and such focus as attendant towards in the demand thereby.
This crisis no ‘happenstance’ – but rather product of wilful and deliberate scheme?
A scheme which has failed ?
If tomorrow, God forbid, thousands of people were suddenly to develop an illness all of a sudden, we would not be inclined just to ignore it.
We would want to know how it happened, why it happened, so that we could prevent it from happening again.
For illness read financial malaise, and for thousands read millions.
Does the importance of knowing how and why change, ceterus paribus?
To Democracy the questions about how this financial meltdown occurred are as will not go away – no matter the pretence, or shameful indulgence/complicity to perverse desire contrary – as in the tameness of mass media.
No matter the bums steers out running ‘wild’.
No matter the stooges fielded.
The plain fact is that there is too much sufferance for there not to be such questions.
They are as elephant in the room.
They are such only as can be deferred in the answering of, to subsequent demand concerning speaking up.
Martin Niemoller wrote the poem about failure to speak up.
As to whom, rather than what taken, albeit.
But ask questions to challenge Democracy; as can be wide in the embrace; to tired, to poor, to huddled masses yearning to breathe free, to wretched refuse of teeming shore, to homeless tempest tossed.
Ask the questions demanded.
Towards the furthering of Democracy?
For we are more of us joined so right now such embrace; midst ‘financial meltdown’.
I do not know.
But what I do know is a rat when I smell one, and I can tell you of my understanding such as it is.
There are rats out there right now, gathered together by force of plan as has come unstuck; desperate in the back peddle and grasping with gnashed teeth at ‘Plan B’.
The stench is unbearable.
Ever seen rats in a cage?
When one bites they all start biting.
Much and loud the squealing consequential.
Paraphrasing the man with no eyes: “What we got here, with such rats, is a failure to communicate.”
What required here is the flipside of a McCarthy witch hunt.
Someone who instead of being evil in persecution of the innocent, could serve good by prosecuting the guilty.
Someone who instead of serving Fascist trends, serves Democratic trend.
Someone who instead of serving money, serves the people.
Someone who asks the right questions; who will not be deflected.
Someone who can tell a bum steer or a stooge at fifty paces; and see through smoke and mirrors.
Who can detect the truth from lie without polygraph; but by such as look in eye, sound to ear, in understanding non verbal.
Who has olfactory sense unparalleled concerning the odor of rat.
Someone whom given only lies most part; can reveal truth .
Someone, some body, with the vigour and authority to get in there; peg on nose and protective suit and gloves as required – and invade every aspect of the ‘lives’ of the soulless and treasonous and reveal their nefarious schemes for expansion of power as have led to the sufferance of so many.
The cronies.
The financial records.
The meetings.
The plans.
The chronology of events.
The works.
Call it a ‘rat hunt’.
A root and branch shutdown of the sewer as provides sustenance to vermin – and poison to Democracy in form of financial control and manipulation this instance.
To punish them for such sufferance caused in their wilful deliberation; way of avarice.
By taking away from them that which they covet most; their control of Finance; their filthy lucre, their assets as they have stolen – and as enabled them to carry out their grand scheme – to such manifold sufferance of Citizen.
Depriving them of the liberty to do so ever again.
That Democracy may be poisoned no more.
That there may be recovery.
That their treason not soil Constitution further to such stench consequential.
That never again such sufferance; such shore.
America needs a ‘cleanout’.
Not a bailout.
That this cleanout be in Democracy realised and recovered in expression of the voice and power of the Citizen found.
Because what has been done for money by this small proportion, in deed as by intent; treason no less; and as standing for long time yet alas; in the sufferance; the misery caused, to all Citizens of America as part of body humanity innocent; as monstrous revulsion.
Treason against: labor useful and pure as can be; life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; in the ideal – and in the reality made as misery.
And that is unforgivable.
A change of lexicon; of emphasis as to that which counts; that prioritised:
Cleanout.
Not Bailout.
That America shall arise from such disaster befallen – to be Beacon burning bright once more..
As haven to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
In such, Humanity shall surely rejoice.
That once again, such as Roosevelt may step up to the plate.
To rebuild through Presidential Vision and loyalty true.
To life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Overcoming fear, calming panic, implementing measures required.
Getting America working again.
Nothing to fear, but fear itself.
– But not without the treasonous vermin, as engineered such fear and monumental sufferance in the first place, being taken care of.
Not without Cleanout.
This time around.
The questions as to how and why, and by whom indeed; answered in form of necessary actions taken.
‘The Last Man in America’?
Other than as in extract from House Oversight Committee Hearing concerning the one man as last of the SEC Office of Risk Management, (Lynn Turner resigning honorably from SEC Office in 2001) reference is to the intended title of ‘1984’ by George Orwell.
He wanted it to be ‘The Last Man in Europe’
The ‘world’ portrayed in 1984 is as far from the real world of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness which Democracy can facilitate as ever inscribed on the immemorial tablet of truth concerning political possibility by hand of man.
In it’s clarity of Dystopian vision, ‘1984’ undoubtedly held warning; a forbearance for humanity.
For this, the World surely owes much to Eric Arthur Blair.
Concerning letting treasonous ‘individuals’ keep control of their ill gotten gains; expropriation can be a two way street – and the wilful destruction of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness such scale is Treason.
Carried out by so few; causing sufferance for so many, and for such little gain.
Were they as carried such out in the attempt ‘American’?
No.
They were as self confessed Stateless; in their free market, and in their aspiration of Global Financial Dominance.
‘Loyalty’ to nought but profit maximisation leading.
They knew the risks – they knew the ‘downside’.
It is a downside we are all living in midst of now; as financial meltdown.
But still as more than pattern in their scheming Weltanschuung as they would have us be, lest we are ever on our guard.
As Citizens yet.
In Democracy yet.
They, without loyalty to humanity – far let alone country of origin as of birth within and nurture; these parasites to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Their true State, as of their origin; Hell.
God willing that they may return to same soon.
That they be hoisted as by their own petard through expropriation and in denial of their liberty– for they have shown America no mercy, let alone the rest of the World in such as they have done in abuse ofLiberty; given them by grace of State and God; and as has led to such sufferance of the many greater and good in and under same; Nation and Kingdom.
Sufferance of every man, woman and child as humanity in America as once Great, and soon to be again by courtesy of same, and under grace of God; Nation.
Long live Democracy – may the Citizen ever be victorious.
As it will be.
Of that I have no doubt – let alone fear.
The wrongs which we seek to condemn and punish have been so calculated, so malignant, and so devastating, that civilization cannot tolerate their being ignored, because it cannot survive their being repeated.
Justice Robert H Jackson.
STEPHEN MARTIN can be reached at: stephenmarti@yahoo.com
