The Business of Business
By
Ron Steinman
We are not nearly out of The Great Recession and already the usual entrenched interests in the world of finance are on the verge of putting up roadblocks to stifle changes in how they should run their businesses. It comes as no surprise that some in the Congress and on Wall Street seem to be in cahoots over the new regulations the Obama administration is developing in its effort to oversee the once runaway cowboys in the world of finance.
As usual there are members of Congress who are starting to pull back from what some in that august self-serving body think will be over-regulation. Apparently, these men and women whom we elected in the hope that they will do our bidding prefer a more a benign approach to regulations. They want to allow the markets to eventually settle themselves without anyone getting in the way. This is nonsense.
If one reads the financial pages closely there are new articles every day about how Wall Street firms, their lawyers and lobbyists and too many in both houses of the legislature in Washington are looking for ways to create a new status quo favorable to its needs – making money no matter the consequences. There are also rivalries between government agencies such as the SEC and the CFTC (Commodities Trading Commission). Neither agency seems ready to give up its power. In the past both were weak in the pursuit of their duties. Now someone, probably the White House and Congress, has to decide who will have more, stronger and direct oversight over derivatives or any new instrument of finance yet to develop. Talk on the Street and stories in newspapers discuss how to control derivatives in an effort to keep them, not how to ban them. I am not an economist, but I must ask is there not a better way to make, move and create money than using derivatives? Why don’t I read about someone working on that?
The moneyed interests in our society worry little about the man in the street. These people and the institutions that control much of the wealth in this country never have thought of anyone but themselves. Despite the financial crunch, as long as these “movers and shakers,” at least in his and her own minds, get high pay and can fiddle with new, mysterious “instruments” they create to make to make them rich, they, the Wall Street denizens will be happy. That should be no surprise. These are people are still seeking high paydays and the bonuses that accrue to them in the course of their bleeding the public for its every last cent. And they want do all that without any regulations or regulators looking over their shoulders. The public is damned. Of course.
I know it sounds overly dramatic, but for me these individuals have gold dust in their hearts instead of red blood. Only visions of riches dance in their heads. Not bad in itself if there is more to their lives than just making money and squeezing an already deeply stressed population. Don’t believe for a moment that many on Wall Street, and legislators everywhere care for any barely functioning industry and the hundreds of thousands workers struggling to survive, or on unemployment. If a major investor can make a buck out of failure, bet the house, he or she will.
As citizens, we must watch carefully every move some of our elected officials make. To survive, we have to be aware that many of our elected officials are at heart elitists and blind to the realities of the crisis in the economy. Listen to many Republicans in the House and Senate and it is easy to see how deeply entrenched they are in the old ways of economics and politics. For instance: No government interference. No bailouts. In time markets will settle themselves. Lower taxes. Keep our hands off the economy. The list goes on.
As citizens we need help. Business news editors should be more vigilant and play financial stories higher for everyone to see instead of burying them in dusty and dry business sections of most newspapers or Web sites. Editors in general, should start playing these stories in the front instead of the back so all can see them. They should also write them clearly and explain carefully each proposed move, especially when someone wants to return to yesteryear and the wild west of investing and making money. We need something of a revolt in this country that will allow people to see behind the curtain to help them know what is going on with their money. Who is walking away with what? What new and mysterious financial “instruments” are suddenly in play that was not there yesterday?
However, I remain cynical. Until I see a transformation that benefits everyone, I will remain unchanged.
