A few things to say about bankers.

[Zan]

I perfer a "plague".

Well, I prefer puns.

I don't get it.   

[Aggie]

A wunch of bankers?

[Bluenose]

Not only is that a (bad) pun, but it's also a Spoonerism!  Well done young hero!

[Aggie]

Actually, after wiki'ng Spoonerisms, I'm not sure it's actually a pun.   

A play on words, nonetheless....  I've been trotting this one out for years, although I think I actually did coin it.

[Opsa]

It's brilliant.

Let's not get our knickers in a wunch!

Actually saying "people are dumb" 300 times is alot like how my brother does his screaming.

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

My personal view is that bankers by definition are evil (a group of guys making money with somebody else's money and willing to strip you naked in order to get their share are hardly good guys), but while they were the conduit for the mess they hardly are the only party at fault.

You mention a true base cause: the race for short term earnings/stock rise, a terrible incentive to do idiotic things that fundamentally transforms capitalism in a risky form of gambling for the ultra-rich.

But you can't forget the incentive to go further provided by the Fed with ridiculous interest rates. They didn't stimulate the economy as much as provided the temptation to the bankers to loan where they shouldn't had to, to the agents to pack the loans, to the mortgage agents to push, trick or outright lie to their clients, and to the consumers to forget the golden rule of business: if it looks too good to be true it likely is.

I had a very bad row of arguments with my wife (who studied finances, of all things) a few years back because I didn't want to sell our apartment to buy a $400/500K house. I had to do the bloody numbers with her until she realized that it was unaffordable.  Obviously a happy mortgage agent had been selling her the coolaid she drank at the time, and likely try with me had she had the opportunity.

It was easy money. It was too easy.

Then the bailout. The most idiotic and at the same time necessary measure taken. The right thing to do would have caused a level of angry no politician is ready to endure: nationalize one or two banks, not bail them out, outright nationalization, and then, pump the bloody money into the system themselves through those same banks. The other banks? Either you lend or die. Too many conflicts of interest get in the way to do the right thing, and that was indeed the case.

In fact the next thing to do is something that also will not happen: change antitrust laws forcing critical industries (read banks, insurance and others that apply) to own a maximum of 20% of any particular market for a period of time and a regular limit of 15% of any particular market. That way no one is "too big to fail".

The banks have too many friends on high places (what was money for again?) and even the basic regulation that should take place will be seriously watered down, to avoid bother those happy campaign donors.

Heck if the f$%^&ing democrats are voting against the public option for healthcare thanks to the juicy contributions from the healthcare industry you can imagine how is it with banks.

I am very skeptic, cynic and overly pessimistic on the subject, although I don't believe on the doomsday scenario you paint, at least not in the short term.

As for eating them, see the line below my username. They should be fed with themselves.

[Opsa]

Well, I'm a vegetarian, and besides- some of those guys aint Kosher.

I know people who are employed by banks. Some hotheads call them bankers because they work at banks, and are giving them a hard time. These people aren't running the banks or profiting from crafty behavior. They are just employees, and not paid much much, either. They would love to be working elsewhere, but they're stuck at the stupid bank during a period of sore feelings against bankers. One of them is a bank manager and he doesn't get paid more than a drug store manager. He is just employed to run the store.

If you want to keep your cash under your mattress, you certainly are free to do so. If you want the convenience of having your earnings looked after and the luxury of having checks to use instead of cash, or pay for things without the use of paper, you have to pay the bank a fee for their work. It's not free. Some of these soreheads need to get a grip on reality.

I know you're not talking about the poor saps who work at banks because they are stuck with a knack for accounting and need a job, but I needed to blurt this out, all the same.

[beagle]

Actually, after wiki'ng Spoonerisms, I'm not sure it's actually a pun.   

A play on words, nonetheless....  I've been trotting this one out for years, although I think I actually did coin it.

Sorry to disillusion you, but it's been around here since at least the 80s, and I don't think it was new then.

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

I know people who are employed by banks...

A bank employee IS NOT a banker.

My definition of banker is someone in a VP position or upwards, a member of the board or a shareholder with enough shares to have a voice with management. I'm talking about the guys who propose upping the fees for overdrafts when everybody is hurting, or the lawyers that write the small print on your credit card agreement that ensure that you'll be paying a bigger APR than advertised, you know, the b@$tards that create the policies that deny a loan re-negotiation to 90% of qualified mortgage owners.

The lady on the phone/register hardly makes a living to be called a 'banker'; she most likely is another of their victims.

[Zan]

A wunch of bankers?

Oh, right, right.  Very nice.  My suggestion retracted.

[Zan]

It's brilliant.

Let's not get our knickers in a wunch!

Actually saying "people are dumb" 300 times is alot like how my brother does his screaming.

Hmmm...sounds like his rage gland might be blocked.

[Zan]

These people aren't running the banks or profiting from crafty behavior. They are just employees, and not paid much much, either.

Not talking about these guys.  They're just working stiffs.

[Opsa]

You'd be surprised at how many people will yell at a bank employee out of sheer frustration. Or maybe you wouldn't.



_{PS: Mind the multiple posting, please. We have ways around it. The following was done by using the Insert Quote button on various posts from the Topic Summary box under the Post Reply box when replying. You will have to enter them one by one, but it saves having to post each time.} 

Oh, right, right.  Very nice.  My suggestion retracted.

Hmmm...sounds like his rage gland might be blocked.

Not talking about these guys.  They're just working stiffs.

[Zan]

Okay.

But I am curious - and I'm not trying to start a ruckus, mind you - what difference does it make, between several small posts, and one larger post?

[Bluenose]

It's probably just matter of style, and the fact that within the HOT you can make large posts.  In my experience the forums that commonly have multiple posts often seem to be those that have character limits on the size of a post.  We don't do that here and so our culture has evolved into a more or less no multple posts one.  BTW when replying to more than one post, you can separate the individual messages with a horizontal line, just press the button above the edit box that has a horizontal double headed arrow on it.

The other thing about multiple posts is that to some extent it can be seen to run counter to one of the main ethics here, that of humbleness and respect.  Making a series of posts one after the other can be seen as drawing attention to yourself in an untaddy way, a bit like saying "look at me, look at me, look at me!".  We do not think this of you, after all you are new here, so this is not criticism of your posting style.  Instead we are trying to ease you into the way we do things.  We know that this little corner of the interwebs is different and it can easliy come as a bit of a culture shock to htose used to the way much of the web operates.  Humbleness does not mean cowering in the corner, or abasing yourself, instead it means accepting that you are no better than others - and no worse (important).  We are equals here, we respect each other and we try to not set ourselves, or our siblings one above another.  No multiple posting is just a little thing, and not really all that important in the scheme of things, its just the way we do things here.  You'll get used to it.