Matt Taibbi: The Conspiracy To Destroy Our Pensions

[@dentonfender8872]

Now, the big question everybody is asking: WHY ARE THESE BANKSTERS NOT IN JAIL?

[@geezerdombroadcast]

I think I can answer that for you. They aren't in jail because metaphorically there are two kinds of people: those who's entire life, and psyche revolves around themselves. Dick Cheney comes to mind. They feel no "empathy", no need to act in any sort of moral way, to feel compassion, or the need to build a just system. They will do anything, including torture, rape, and murder that doesn't cause them to suffer in any way, or inconvenience them. They seek only wealth, bling, and power to subdue their enemies which are many, because they have made them. Their motivation is to spread their Satan spawn, and strut like peacocks looking down their noses at the rest of the sane people who they actually believe are inferior subhumans, which includes you. and me by the way. The other type feels compelled to act morally, justly, compassionately, empathetically, taking only what's needed to support a modest life, and secure some small advantage for their offspring who are expected to build their own life, and career on the own initiative. They have neither the capacity or the inclination to "murder" or bring harsh judgement on others, even though the other people may deserve the death penalty, as most of the top dogs on Wall Street, and Dick Cheney do by the way. Those of us who fit the second group must come to the harsh realization that our parents / grandparents generation had to confront on the beeches of Normandy, and Iwo Jima. That is the inescapable reality that there comes a time when you must "either kill or be killed". Sadly I feel our pampered, over fed, over entertained, under educated, out of touch, unrealistic, undisciplined society, seems to be incapable of facing this terrible reality with sufficient force to subdue this fascist enemy in our midst. Until such time as we can muster the fortitude to take the lives of our mortal enemies "metaphorically" we will never subdue them. We must harden ourselves, and gather our strength to take from these vile murdering thieves what is ours by right. We must crush them, destroy them, and dismantle the system of power that feeds them off the aristocratic assembly line. Overturning (Citizens United) is the very first step. We must first completely , and utterly destroy the the Republican party, and it's infrastructure, by brute force, and by statute. Then we must continue to rout the filthy (Blue Dog Democrats), and initiate some form of (direct democratic rule) made possible by internet technology. This is already being discussed. Hundreds of billions of dollars are traded smoothly and successfully around the world every day by credit card companies, and banks. There is no valid reason that can't be done with votes, including a vote to jail and even execute white collar criminals. Until their cohorts, and coconspirators smell the rotting carcasses hanging from lamp posts by piano wire on the hallowed halls of Wall Street, and the capitol, the message will never be understood. That is the sad fact of why they aren't in jail.

[@bruceswearingen7718]

+Peter Mullen ; 👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@rd264]

They prefer their yachts and private islands; jail is really unpleasant.

[@andrew_owens7680]

Because the banksters own all the lawyers and the judges and the Senators and the Representatives and the Supreme Court and the president and the police. Next question.

[@andrew_owens7680]

Let me paraphrase what you said. We must completely defeat a system built on money by the richest people in the world who gain their money via means that we have no stomach for and then game the system to make sure nobody else can make money. And we must do this by raising money from the poor. Is that about it???

[@foodope]

Was sure the interview would start with the words: "On the phone - it is a pleasure to welcome to the program - Matt Taibbi."

[@josephscott3096]

Anyways, I'm off to bed. I'm glad we were able to get past the clutter and have a real discussion cause I think you made some really good points about a lot of things. I wouldn't mind discussing other topics down the line if the oppourtunity presents itself. Take care.

[@geoffdearth8575]

I used to be an "investor" in the Alger Fund. I put like $15k into it and after 20 years got out maybe that much. Come to find out they were doing all sorts of crooked shit that whole time. I got a notification that there was a class action against them and I ended up getting maybe $400. I figured that they probably stole ten times that from me.

[@geoffdearth8575]

Update: I recently got another $900 from that class action so there is some justice.

[@exenrontexas]

I was in the room when the CEO of the largest US bank told a group that their exposure to risky and speculative derivatives was SEVENTY TRILLION dollars. They also marketed those derivatives to retirement funds as high performing, secure investments. One of the reasons that there is now a pension fund crisis is the collapse of the derivative markets in the crash of 2008. Call your Congressman to reform the criminal code to give these scum punitive and confiscatory penalties.

[@tmcthree]

This is possibly the most depressing thing ever.

[@josephscott3096]

Why can't we, or at least some, work towards a society where we take care of the poor ourselves not because we have to, but because we want to?

[@tgreaux5027]

because the elites have driven the basic human element of compassion from the peoples (especially people on the right) minds. They have to in order to keep their predatory capitalistic economy going. You have to care about yourself and your family and NO ONE ELSE.

[@Belloran24]

Screwed six ways from Sunday....so sad..

[@gha23ify]

We as a species have proven ourselves not intelligent enough to make are economy work in an fare and equitable manor , perhaps this is do to are propensity to spend way too much time looking down are noses at one another.

[@terriej123]

Is Pew still doing what they were doing back when this interview was recorded?

[@josephscott3096]

Last response to dead peasant insurance, that is despicable and it shouldn't exist. Don't work there and don't buy their products.

[@josephscott3096]

I think we all want a fair system that will ensure the most happiness for the most people. I think that get's lost in a lot of our discussions, and I'm really afraid that if things ever get bad (which I think they are going to, I don't think the current economic system which isn't liberal or conservative in my mind can last) that the left and right are going to blame each other instead of blaming the political, financial, and military elites that have taken over everything.

[@genebaughbba]

Alternative investments are not hedge funds.They are investments in which all profits flow through to the shareholder. Alternative investments include MLP's, REIT's, Mortgage REIT's, Oil Royalty Trusts, and BDC's. They produce a high cash on cash return for the money invested. The problem with pension funds is that they have required bond allocations and do not receive adequate interest income due to artificially low rates. Yet a pension funds investment ranking will be damaged if they don't hold government bonds or if they decrease bond allocations.

[@josephscott3096]

Oh, and it's also true that money doesn't need to hold value. Just spend and print as much as you want, it's the humanitarian thing to do of course.

[@josephscott3096]

Isn't dead peasant insurance taking out an insurance policy on someone else without their consent? If it is against someone else's consent, that should be against the law on the fact that it is not a voluntary agreement between the two parties, it is involuntary and shouldn't be allowed.

[@josephscott3096]

I would say that any law is a regulation if you want to talk brass tax, but I would consider fraud to be theft and would therefore be unconstituional meaning it could be enforced through law that already exists.

[@josephscott3096]

I'm not a libertarian, but they would counteract low taxes (libertarians, at least as I understand them, believe that revenue needs to be collected. Just not through people's income) would be directly alligned with LESS SPENDING, so people would be able to keep,spend, and save the money they earn. It's a philosophy that believes that the voluntary distribution of capital is the best system to ensure the highest amount of employment and competition which gives lower income people the best chance.

[@mikefitz3470]

Cleaning my guns

[@rd264]

Thats not much use. One question not yet pursued and answered is why did so many big pension funds and investors buy huge chunks of bad debt from Citibank and other slimy big banks solely according to these guys on the basis of some hokey AAA rating? Did they really do so without a due diligence review of the debt offering which would require more than a cursory review of a balance sheet? Are these fund buyers not liable for gross negligence and breach of trust etc? Where are the public interest lawsuits? Are these pension fund buyers not insured such that the screwed pensioners and shareholders etc are made whole thereby?

[@brianremington6049]

The ERISA act guarantees pensions through the PGRC, according to the video and a previous comment. The money is managed through a hedge fund, which makes investments. It was Pew foundation authorization that satisfied state officials.

[@josephscott3096]

One thing I will rebut is the idea that if other people were armed in the theater they would just start firing with no purpose. Aurora also took place in a gun free zone, people were obeying the law by not carrying. The shooter was not.

[@josephscott3096]

Laws exist to protect the individual and cops serve the purpose of upholding those laws to maintain a free and just society, that is an apples to oranges comparison. Laws are designed to protect against coercion, a voluntary exchange of money to buy a service is not breaking a law unless it is hurting someone else. If it is hurting someone else, charges should be brought like any other crime.

[@josephscott3096]

Yup, because Libertarians don't believe in personal charity or communities helping one another. It's not like some Libertarians believe that we should society could be much more efficient in helping people rather than a large government bureaucracy that is typically inefficient, wasteful, and easily corrupted. Stay in your corner Mr. Left Right paradigm, I know how comfortable and soothing it is to feel like you're part of a team.

[@rtaylor0361]

Possession is 9/10 of the law ! You don’t have it until you got it .

[@josephscott3096]

Btw, you still haven't addressed Monsanto which I think shows what you have today is chrony capitalism, not actual capitalism.

[@josephscott3096]

I don't think regulation and socialism can't work, my point is deregulation per say isn't the problem. Repealing glass steaggal was horrendous because of the fractional reserve system and low interest rate policies that inflated MASSIVE bubbles. I think we should help people who are struggling, but I also don't think personal responsibility is nothing. Republicans preach it but they don't mean it. I see it as taking responsibility for your actions and realizing their consequences.

[@josephscott3096]

You make some interesting points, I don't think that all regulation is bad. But I have one major problem, I see you make a comment about capitalists deserving the death penalty, and we start arguing about capitalism and it's effectiveness. All the while, the bill of rights is being shredded. What takes greater precedence, a persons right to speech, being secure in their persons, the right to a fair trial, or dead peasant regulations?

[@terriej123]

Did the unions finally wake up?

[@wilhelmheinrich7502]

terriej123 considering the baby boomers killed them, I think the proper word is resurrect.

[@josephscott3096]

Well, to be fair your post did say unregulated capitalists deserve the death penalty, so you did say that. But it's okay, I assume there was some satire intended. I think the market principles of not being able to commit fraud and voluntary contracts being enforced. I think most contracts today are involuntary and that's a problem. If those principles were upheld, the government could play a role where the market can not. But I do think the government has done as much harm as big business.

[@mns8732]

not a word on the campaign trail; feed this to Trump, he'll use it just to watch Hillary sweat

[@josephscott3096]

I'm skeptical and worried about gun control for the sole purpose that it was designed to be a deterrent to a tyrannical government. A balance needs to be struck between not giving the government monopoly of power and ensuring we're not living in a wild wild west in my opinion.

[@tgreaux5027]

So youre saying you actually believe that if the people banded together with their guns we could hold off the UNITED STATES MILITARY for even a single day? Are you stupid on purpose or just stupid? Because THEY HAVE TANKS, FIGHTER JETS, HELICOPTERS, etc. The entire population of the middle east is armed with guns for the most part, how are those guns working? You think their AK-47's are stopping the US Military from just rolling over them easily? This is such an outdated and stupid reason to support the 2nd amendment in its current form. All the assault rifles in the world cant stop a single F-22 Raptor. In the meantime how many American kids have been murdered in schools? How many thoughts and prayers are we going to send before we actually do something about it. Guns protect against a tyrannical government about as well as a foam bat protects against a tiger.

[@micoforion]

Sick!!! Tully sickening what that evil woman is doing, she should be prosecuted for fraud and deception, abuse of her office and number of other charges. I'd love to see her end up in a prison for better part of her remaining days, sickening and a so called democrat.

[@josephscott3096]

believe that society*

[@theteach7314]

This reminds me of Faust.

[@samlangford4546]

I'm first listening to this in July 2019, at which point Gina Raimondo has been RI's governor for the past 5 years. I guess crime does pay. This is why Democrats have lost the working class over the last 30 yrs. Bernie 2020 = AOC 2028.

[@eliaspinno8772]

Reading this makes me so angry it's unreal. How can these people even live themselves?

[@josephscott3096]

Sorry, but you clearly researched solely through the prism of positive liberty, while completely ignoring the negative and damaging impact that infringing negative liberty can have no society. I'm not saying you have to believe negative liberty is as important as positive, but I at least acknowledge it as a legitimate school of thought and understand the idea of a society free from coercian. You assume that without government the poor won't be taken care of, why do you make that leap?

[@josephscott3096]

My point is you're blaming the "right wing" when both so called wings are to blame. Of course Wall Street is to blame as much as the Fed is, but who gave Wall Street the cheap easy money? Who gave them the ability to borrow and lend way more than they have? Government did, Government created the bubble. Spending is out of control (both militarily and domestically), deficits are unsustainable, over a trillion dollars a year is being created out of nothing, are you saying this is a good thing?

[@josephscott3096]

You won't get an argument from me regarding founding father hypocrisy. Claiming all men are created equal and owning slaves for example. Fair enough, you never mentioned monopoly, but I do think a citizenry needs, at a certain level, to have access to weaponry powerful enough to form a proper resistance if it ever came to that. I don't fear background checks and those kind of things, the right wing does have a problem with living in the past and understanding that our present is quite different.

[@melodyrecord]

ALREADY HAPPENED...now what??

[@josephscott3096]

I completely disagree with you that it is propaganda that the intent of the second amendment was to act as a deterrent to tyranny, that is exactly the reason. "What country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance. Let them take arms." Thomas Jefferson "Ideas are more powerful than guns. We would not let our enemies have guns, why should we let them have ideas." Joseph Stalin

[@capucchan8]

Sam it's get a real guest, get David Icke on your show... haha haha

[@josephscott3096]

Maybe, but I feel like there are less Rambo's and more responsible people. The problem is the idiots get all the attention and make all the noise. I would just say would I feel better if someone came in shooting a semi automatic if, a) someone or some people in the theater were also armed or b) if only the attacker was armed. I think, more often than naught, other law abiding citizens carrying would help prevent further bloodshed rather than inflame it.

[@bettyblu908]

Question: Do you think that Obama is aware of this?

[@lauramcconney9367]

We all know who the thisves are but no one stops them. A merry-go-round, fools ars us!

[@josephscott3096]

You're still being insuling and all you are doing now is playing the blame game. I was trying to reach common ground with you and create something productive out of this conversation, but I can see you're going to keep being a child and play the blame game. Granting immunity to monsanto isn't about regulation, it's about GIVING THEM IMMUNITY. Whatever, I guess this was just a waste of time. See you.

[@josephscott3096]

At least with capitalism, when someone is stupid their losses are their own. When the economy is collectivized (let's ignore the potential for tyrannies and fascism for a second), mistakes affect EVERYONE. If it is ones own capital at risk, people should be much more careful with their purchases. Those who aren't will suffer the consequences, and I am okay with that. I don't mind helping them out through small, tightly managed aid programs to temporarily pick them back up.