To Washington, from the Vatican, with love

To legislators in Washington: "...the Vatican called Monday for an overhaul of" the "world’s financial systems and a return to a global economy based on ethical behavior and “achievement of a universal common good,' the AP reports. While the Vatican has, in the past, criticized uncontrolled capitalism, the new call goes further, decrying 'an economic liberalism that spurns all rules and controls.'” "The call for greater control and equality in financial markets comes at a time when Republican presidential candidates — many of whom tout their religious credentials on the campaign trail — have called for the repeal of the Dodd-Frank financial reform law aimed at preventing a crisis similar to that of 2008, and as Republicans in both Congress and on the campaign trail continue to back budget cuts that would eviscerate programs that help the poor. At the same time, protesters spurred by the original Occupy Wall Street demonstrations have brought increasing attention rising income inequality, corporate greed, and tax breaks for corporations and the wealthiest Americans." "This isn’t the first time faith leaders have spoken out against so-called religious conservatives who have prioritized tax cuts for the wealthy and repealing financial regulations over helping low-income Americans. A group of Catholic bishops signed a letter to House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan (R-WI) — both practicing Catholics — during the debt limit fight, denouncing budget cuts that disproportionately hurt the poor. Other religious leaders made similar calls, with Rev. Jim Wallis telling Republicans, 'We did not get into fiscal trouble because of poor people. … The poor didn’t cause this. Let’s not make them pay for it.'” Link to original post: http://thinkprogress.org/special/2011/10/24/351277/the-vatican-calls-for-economic-equality-reform-of-world-financial-system/

Do you know who Phil Angelides is?

If you don't, you'd better learn.

Do you know what the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission is? (Hopefully it's self-explanatory).

The thing is, this commission has started meeting already. They began this week.

Mr. Angelides heads up the commission.

They're looking into the banking/mortagae/loan/investment nightmare that led us down the path to a near collapse of our economic system, both here in the US and around the world.

And I'll tell you, this is going to go on for some time and we'd better all be checking in virtually daily on this thing, to see what new revelations there are.

We need to know what happened in this crisis.

We need to know who did what.

We need to find out what was done illegally.

We need to find out what was done that should be illegal.

And we need to find out how we can avoid this greedy, stupid mess so we don't do it again.

To hell with catharsis. We need information, laws, regulations and solutions.

Ayn Rand be damned.

Banking trivia questions

1) How many banks has the FDIC had to close, to date, so far this year?

140

2) How much has the closing of these banks cost us, to date?

30 billion dollars

The correct answers to the above questions begs the following question:

Should the US more stringently regulate the banks, the banking system and the bankers, here in the US?

It seems the answer is clear.

And yet, check this out:

"The American Bankers Association issued a "Call to Action" on Wednesday, urging its lobbyists and member banks to make an all-out effort to crush regulatory reform in Senate. As part of that campaign, it lashed out at its community-bank rival, charging it with being too soft on bank reform efforts."

"In an unusually frank memo from ABA Chairman Art Johnson, the lobby group congratulates bankers for sending some 300,000 letters to Congress opposing reform, crediting the effort with killing several significant provisions."

What chutzpah.

Contact your Congressperson---Senators, Representatives, both--and tell them we need this regulation back. We used to have it. We need it to return.


Find answers here:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/12/19/fdic-shuts-down-seven-mor_n_398071.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/12/16/bank-lobbyists-launch-cal_n_394673.html