Death Threats

I thought the government was designed to protect the people. Well, welcome to life in this era. This is another part of the original thoughts that went by the wayside. Now, the government, specifically Congress, are putting people in harm's way. It is sad when private citizens are placed at peril by the Feds.

I am obviously referring to the AIG debacle. This story gets crazier by the day. We come to find out that many of those who received bonuses got death threats. To me, this is absurd. It will be interesting to see if the government atones for their screwups by prosecuting these people.

First, it is crucial to realize that those who received the bonuses are law abiding citizens. They had signed contracts which stipulated payments for their services rendered. They were the ones who were looked to in an effort to try to salvage what they could of AIG.

Secondly, they were not the people who caused the collapse. The ones responsible for that mess left over a year ago. People are taking it out on the wrong people.

Then Congress comes up with the idea to tax these people at 90% in an effort to get the money back. This is the equivalent to modern day piracy. All these members of Congress who signed on to this ridiculous idea ought to be tried and convicted. Their actions are outrageous.

Of course, Congress claims they wanted to get the money back for the taxpayers, like it is their money. What a farce. The politicians put people lives at risk for political gain. And have you heard even one apology. Nancy Pelosi ought to call each AIG bonus recipient and personally ask their forgiveness for being such a stupid ass. So should Chuck Shumer. Barney Frank. And the ever corrupt Chris Dodd. These people should be ashamed of their behavior.

Congress is showing how much they can screw things up when the government is involved. There is nothing they touch which they cannot turn into total crap. Lovers of big government show how truly ignorant they really are. Government excels at corruption and inefficiency. This is what they do best.

When private citizens are receiving death as a result of the actions of people in Congress, something needs to be done. Bet the ranch the FBI would be investing if one of the members of Congress received a death threat. Of course, to demand equal justice is absurd. The powerful only protect themselves.

Maybe people will wake up to the fact that these people in Washington need to be thrown out of office. The revolution is nearing.

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The AIG Hoopla

This is what happens when you let government get involved with anything. They mess it up. People end up playing politics with people's lives. The truth is that government is the most corrupt, inefficient, and unethical organization there is, accusations that were levied against AIG.

Here are the facts of the matter. It is absurd for the politicians to scream over $140 million in bonuses when they just passed a pork-laden spending bill in the amount of $410 billion. Anyone on Capitol Hill who opens their mouth about this ought to be slapped. After all, it was Chuck Schumer, Senator from New York, who stated during the hearing for the spending bill that the American people do not care about $200 million.

Another thing: those receiving the bonuses did not create the financial crisis AIG finds itself in. Those parties are long gone. The ones who are there now were the ones put in charge of reversing the trend. They legally earned this money and it is immoral, unethical, and unconstitutional for Congress to take it back.

Finally, the argument that quality people will not leave the financial institutions is bogus. These people are talented. They will find employment elsewhere. There are plenty of companies who are willing to take them on at salaries well above the cap that the government placed upon the Tarp receiving companies. Of course, this will further weaken the institutions the government is professing to want to help. This will lead to the nationalization of these outfits. Do you see how the scam works now?

In case you still have an issue with this AIG deal, here is a copy of a resignation letter that appeared in the NY Times.

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AIG Bonuses

The Imperial Federal government decided that the people who received bonuses at AIG ought to be taxed at a 90% tax rate. This is nothing more than an outrage. These people did nothing illegal yet are being investigated by the Congress like they were Al Capone. It is truly awful that we have come to this.

Here is the simple fact. A bunch of moronic politicians who are as corrupt as they are stupid are imposing their will. Of course, they are claiming this is to protect the taxpayers money. Why now? They did not seem to care when they were spending $30 million on the study of rats in San Francisco (or whatever they wasted money on).

So, Congress feels that the law abiding citizens who received bonuses from AIG ought to give the money back. It is outrageous that people take money from a company when it is going under. If that is the criteria, maybe Congress should give the money back also. After all, it is taxpayer money.

Here is a list of the top 12 people in Congress who received money from AIG in 2008.

1. Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., $103,100
2. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., $101,332
3. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., $59,499
4. Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., $35,965
5. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., $24,750
6. Former Gov. Mitt Romney, (R) Pres $20,850
7. Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., $19,975
8. Rep. John Larson, D-Conn, $19,750
9. Sen. John Sununu, R-N.H., $18,500
10. Former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani (R) Pres $13,200
11. Rep. Paul Kanjorski, D-Pa., $12,000
12. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., $11,000

I am sure you will recognize some of the names on there. Funny, now they are the ones most outraged by the bonuses. Hypocritical?

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The Hoopla over AIG

These days, we do not have to look too far to see hypocrisy. It is plastered all over the news. Each time we see a member of Congress open his or her mouth, it is being thrust upon us like a dagger. I am witnessing a lot of "do as I say while ignoring what I do".

Everyone seems outraged over the bonuses that AIG paid after receiving billions from the government. Now, the politicians are grandstanding about how taxpayer money is being wasted. Hello. Didn't we just have Congress pass and the President sign a bill which had over 8,000 pieces of pork in it? These people are as hypocritical as they come.

The fact is that AIG is contractually obligated to pay these people. That is a fundamental tenet of the private sector; the contract. When two parties agree to something in writing, that is known as a legally binding document. Now, the Feds, in their infinite wisdom want to take the money back. Once again, the corrupt are exercising their abuse of power.

We have Barney Frank blowing (pun intended) hot air about all the money going to these corrupt executives. How about we look into Frank blocking reforms into Freddie and Frannie long before they went broke? Then we have Christopher Dodd double talking out his mouth. Of course, he is the one who gets favorable rates without his knowledge. Yeah, right. And lets us not forget Timothy Geitner, the man who couldnt figure out his own taxes. Now, he is up in arms over AIG's behavior.

This is what happens when government gets involved; everything gets screwed up. The fact that 535 politicians who seem to major in stupidity, corruption, and lying are meddling tells us how dire the situation has become. Government is an entity that will fail each time. Presently, we are moving in the direction where we need to overthrow it. Those who are in power are out of control. The time is nearing.

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The Capabilities of the Government

This sums up how imept the government is. After reading this, I feel less certain about them being able to run the banks, AIG, or a car company. Perhaps they should focus their attention somewhere else.

Read article here.

Anyone else scared now too?

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G-Men Dont Get It

I am not quoting Chris Berman of ESPN in referring to the "New York Football Giants". G-Man refers to those people who are employed, thus think like, government cronies. The bailouts of every industry is creating a clash of the private sector versus the public.

At the core of this mess is AIG. So far, it is one of the largest recipients of money from the government. Presently, they are fighting a conflict of trying to do business while appeasing the cronies in the government. The way I see it, this is an impossible task.

I just came across an article that emphasizes this point. Here are a couple of paragraphs from that story which show the point.

In recent months, scores of AIG veterans have departed for jobs at competitors around the world. Companies such as Ace Limited and Zurich Financial Services have snatched up AIG executives with increasing regularity. Other companies, such as New York-based Allianz Aviation Managers, continue to receive resumes from employees at AIG.

“In a climate where daily we hear about people in the financial sector being laid off, you mean to tell me we can’t find folks to replace some of these people?” said Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), a vocal critic of the retention pay program. “The other question is, where are they going to go?”

The story outline how many AIG people left and went to competitors. Even the CEO of Zurich acknowledged the hiring of AIG employees. Yet, Congressman Cummings shows his ignorance when it comes to private business. He asks "where are they going to go?". The answer is to Zurich obviously.

Here is a situation where a G-Man has no clue what is happening. This is not an abstract idea that leaders at AIG are trying to promote. They are not saying that key people could leave or might leave. They are already leaving. If they are to pull out of this free fall, they are going to need top people to do it. That is the only way that the taxpayers will get their money back.

Once again, the government employed assault tactics with no plan. We heard about this for the past 7 years regarding Iraq. Bush (and his people) had a great plan for getting rid of Sadam. However, they had no idea what to do once he was gone. The Treasury had a plan to save AIG without a plan how to manage it once they got it.

People like Congressman Cummings have no clue what drives success in the private sector. Corporations are made up of people. The human commodity is the most valuable resource a company has. Lose key people and an entire organization can be dragged down. Many are wondering where Apple will be without Steve Jobs. He is the major asset that drove that entity.

The government made an "investment" in AIG. Yet, because of politics from people who have no clue about succeeding in the private sector, we are seeing a diminishing of the chances of ever seeing a return. The government is known for mediocrity. Any talent in the financial arena is going to shy away from AIG if this trend continues. I only hope the G-Men get their noses out of it and let the people in charge take the actions to return to profitability.

And this is a preclude to how badly they will mess up healthcare.

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