Thursday 17 September 2009

I couldn't face it after comment four

Anthony Evans has a corking article here on the need to de-regulate the banks, in which he makes a couple of thought-provoking points:

1. Legalise insider trading. The regulators have failed spectacularly. They did not foresee the systemic risk created by excess credit creation and over-leveraging, and it would be naive to expect any single organisation to steward an entire industry. Demonising hedge funds and banning short-selling miss the point since these are the ultimate protest vote for market participants. The meltdown of a year ago would not have happened had protesters been truly able to act on their knowledge; legalising insider trading would allow asset prices to integrate as much information as possible.

2. Repeal legal tender laws. When sovereigns control currency, they debase gold coins to augment their own coffers. When politicians control currency, they print money to monetise their debts. Even by giving control to independent central banks, we haven't found a way to protect the value of money, since there is still a monopoly provider with an incentive to inflate. The best form of consumer protection is competition, and commercial institutions should be allowed to offer currency to allow markets to determine the most effective medium of exchange.

3. Eradicate crony capitalism. The official narrative is that when Lehman Brothers failed, it sparked a crisis of such proportions that state action was the only way to prevent another Great Depression. But as we start to learn more about what went on behind closed doors, things become murkier. The haphazard manner in which some banks went bankrupt and others were bailed out probably has more to do with personal networks than economic necessity. But even if you have faith in the government to exercise its powers in the public interest, it simply doesn't have the knowledge to act. It's understandable that Hank Paulson put more emphasis on Wall Street than on conservative banks that spend less on lobbying, because that's the world he lives in. For the rest of us, these deals create regime uncertainty and weaken the power of markets.



Needless to say, this is eye-popping stuff for the average Graun-reader. In fact, my eyebrows raised at the idea of legalising insider trading, but I can actually see where he's coming from. However, the commentards over there are so fucking dumb than I couldn't get past the fourth comment:

The total de-regualtion of the market os what has allowed this pproblem to happen


Ignoring the functional illiteracy of this cocktard for a second, just relish the idea that he thinks the market is totally de-regulated. The financial institutions that were at the very heart of all this were and are so heavily regulated, they employ entire buildings full of people to make sure they are compliant with UK regulations, EU regulations, US regulations, industry standards, security standards, "plain English" standards, diversity standards, BASEL regulations, PCI requirements, ... the list goes on for ever.

It is this kind of dream-world, literally fantastical approach to life that makes me sometimes wish, just for a moment, that I could actually remove these people from the gene pool forever. These fucking twats represent the uncritical, woolly, bovine thought processes of the average government policy influencing, LibLabCon voting, soft-centrist cuntstain that has encouraged all this fucking irresponsibility from corporates sucking up to the government and allowed the government to continue with its "something has to be done" agenda.

These fucking morons are as much to blame for the current financial crisis as the fucking board of Lehman Brothers.

Get out of your fucking copy of the Guardian and go have a chat with a bank manager if you don't believe me, you useless oxygen thieving goat anus.

7 comments:

Snarky Basterd said...

I don't think such idiots can talk to their bank manager, Obo. Anyone who makes that kind of statement has already been lobotomized.

Bob's Head Revisited said...

Ha ha ha! Brilliant.:)

Old Holborn said...

Obo spotted in Barcelona

Nick said...

Its been held by a few cerebral people for sometime now that it wasn’t lack of regulation, quite the opposite it was over regulation that caused this latest round of Soviet style panic and nationalization. What ever happened to removing barriers for all too enter the market, creating a playing field where hard work, endeavor and intelligence get you far and laziness does not. I feel regulations that are aimed against the financial sector are a bit like most regulations we have in our society they punish the innovative and the hard worker and they reward the stupid and lazy. Less regulation, less government and less people trying to spend my money on things I don’t want need or even know about.
http://newslion.blogspot.com/

Ed P said...

Oxygen-thieving goat anus!

Absolutely brilliant (apart from the mouthful of coffee I spat all over the keyboard when I read it).

I'm using this witty label on the next waste-of-space I encounter.

Keep up the invective!

Mark Wadsworth said...

Whether banks were regulated or not is a moot point, but they were certainly subsidised like topsy (whether directly or indirectly).

Anonymous said...

In Praise of Insider Trading