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Ex-Goldman Exec Comes Clean On How A "Toxic And Destructive" Goldman "Rips Its Clients Off"

Tyler Durden's picture




 

Stop us when this confession from Greg Smith, a now former executive director and head of the Goldman's United States equity derivatives business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, sounds exactly like everything we have said about the firm over the past 3+ years (and why we just can't wait for the next trading "recommendation" from Tom Stolper).

Excerpts from the NYT. Highlights ours.

Why I Am Leaving Goldman Sachs

Today is my last day at Goldman Sachs. After almost 12 years at the firm — first as a summer intern while at Stanford, then in New York for 10 years, and now in London — I believe I have worked here long enough to understand the trajectory of its culture, its people and its identity. And I can honestly say that the environment now is as toxic and destructive as I have ever seen it.

To put the problem in the simplest terms, the interests of the client continue to be sidelined in the way the firm operates and thinks about making money. Goldman Sachs is one of the world’s largest and most important investment banks and it is too integral to global finance to continue to act this way. The firm has veered so far from the place I joined right out of college that I can no longer in good conscience say that I identify with what it stands for.

It might sound surprising to a skeptical public, but culture was always a vital part of Goldman Sachs’s success. It revolved around teamwork, integrity, a spirit of humility, and always doing right by our clients. The culture was the secret sauce that made this place great and allowed us to earn our clients’ trust for 143 years. It wasn’t just about making money; this alone will not sustain a firm for so long. It had something to do with pride and belief in the organization. I am sad to say that I look around today and see virtually no trace of the culture that made me love working for this firm for many years. I no longer have the pride, or the belief.

...

I knew it was time to leave when I realized I could no longer look students in the eye and tell them what a great place this was to work.

When the history books are written about Goldman Sachs, they may reflect that the current chief executive officer, Lloyd C. Blankfein, and the president, Gary D. Cohn, lost hold of the firm’s culture on their watch. I truly believe that this decline in the firm’s moral fiber represents the single most serious threat to its long-run survival.

...

How did we get here? The firm changed the way it thought about leadership. Leadership used to be about ideas, setting an example and doing the right thing. Today, if you make enough money for the firm (and are not currently an ax murderer) you will be promoted into a position of influence.

What are three quick ways to become a leader? a) Execute on the firm’s “axes,” which is Goldman-speak for persuading your clients to invest in the stocks or other products that we are trying to get rid of because they are not seen as having a lot of potential profit. b) “Hunt Elephants.” In English: get your clients — some of whom are sophisticated, and some of whom aren’t — to trade whatever will bring the biggest profit to Goldman. Call me old-fashioned, but I don’t like selling my clients a product that is wrong for them. c) Find yourself sitting in a seat where your job is to trade any illiquid, opaque product with a three-letter acronym.

Today, many of these leaders display a Goldman Sachs culture quotient of exactly zero percent. I attend derivatives sales meetings where not one single minute is spent asking questions about how we can help clients. It’s purely about how we can make the most possible money off of them. If you were an alien from Mars and sat in on one of these meetings, you would believe that a client’s success or progress was not part of the thought process at all.

It makes me ill how callously people talk about ripping their clients off. Over the last 12 months I have seen five different managing directors refer to their own clients as “muppets,” sometimes over internal e-mail. Even after the S.E.C., Fabulous Fab, Abacus, God’s work, Carl Levin, Vampire Squids? No humility? I mean, come on. Integrity? It is eroding. I don’t know of any illegal behavior, but will people push the envelope and pitch lucrative and complicated products to clients even if they are not the simplest investments or the ones most directly aligned with the client’s goals? Absolutely. Every day, in fact.

 

....

And so on - the picture is more or less clear to anyone who has read our endless rants against the tentacular financial monopolist of scale. Also, maybe it is time for all those media "critics" to offer an apology to Matt Taibbi?

While this comes nowehere close to redeeming the massive ills the firms and its peers have inflicted upon society, this kind of self-reflection is critical, not only at Goldman, but everywhere else, if the world has some chance of stopping before it slides right over the edge.

We leave readers with some appropriate sketches on this now closed matter courtesy of the inhouse artistic genius, William Banzai.

 

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Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:06 | 2253413 JPM Hater001
JPM Hater001's picture

Welcome to the machine TDB.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:22 | 2253453 TrillionDollarBoner
TrillionDollarBoner's picture

Thank you. Been watching the ZH show for quite some time. And what a show it's turning out to be...

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:40 | 2254074 Bastiat
Bastiat's picture

+1 for the name!

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 07:43 | 2253355 Element
Element's picture

"... it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. ..."

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:22 | 2253451 El Viejo
El Viejo's picture

More likely, "The deceitfulness of riches".

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:38 | 2253650 Element
Element's picture
The Turn of a Friendly Card (part 1) - Alan Parsons Project

 
There are unsmiling faces and bright plastic chains
And a wheel in perpetual motion
And they follow the races and pay out the gains
With no show of outward emotion

And they think it will make their lives easier
For god knows up till now it's been hard
But the game never ends when your whole world depends
On the turn of a friendly card
No the game never ends when your whole world depends
On the turn of a friendly card

There's a sign in the desert that lies to the west
Where you can't tell the night from the sunrise
And not all's the king's horse and all the king's men
Have prevented the fall of the unwise

For they think it will make their lives easier
And god knows it's been hard
But the game never ends when your whole world depends
On the turn of a friendly card
No the game never ends when your whole world depends
On the turn of a friendly card

But a pilgrim must follow in search of a shrine ...
... As he enters inside the cathedral.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=8dFFO2z6gXg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=7y9Eri5J-kQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Y5HQM9190o4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=hDsVn_ujHt4

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 07:45 | 2253358 Esculapius
Esculapius's picture

Such people, making hard decisions and telling the truth, make me believe in mankind's future. Walk ahead Mr.Smith, be proud, you just left the dark side of the Force.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 07:47 | 2253361 slewie the pi-rat
slewie the pi-rat's picture

learning curve deluxe

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 07:47 | 2253365 EL INDIO
EL INDIO's picture

GS clients are “muppets”  Haaahahah

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 07:59 | 2253390 francis_sawyer
francis_sawyer's picture

"Elephant Muppets"...

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:08 | 2253590 williambanzai7
williambanzai7's picture

SHITTY DEAL STREET

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:15 | 2253620 GetZeeGold
GetZeeGold's picture

 

 

I just hope that term doesn't come up in a Congressional hearing.

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 19:06 | 2256154 MsCreant
MsCreant's picture

Clients = Muppets

Congress = Muppets

Golden Sacks = Muppet masters

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 07:47 | 2253366 alexwest
alexwest's picture

this shit wont fly

#irst as a summer intern while at Stanford, then in New York for 10 years

he needed 10 years to get it.. is he kind of slow? or just MONEY ARE NOT WHAT IT USED OT BE..?

sucker
alx

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 07:48 | 2253368 youngman
youngman's picture

His last name is SMITH......that says it all

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 07:51 | 2253372 cnhedge
Wed, 03/14/2012 - 07:54 | 2253376 pazmaker
pazmaker's picture

Greg, while I applaud you for wrting this, you may want to dig deeper and ask yourself some more questions.

 

Was it really different 12 yrs ago when you joined the Goldman or has it taken you 12 yrs to realize it?

 

It may be easier on yourself to say they were great when you started and the culture has now changed, but I would challange you to dig deeper and ask yourself if that is actually true?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 07:58 | 2253386 K_I_T_T_Y
K_I_T_T_Y's picture

It is true and the change has happened in all big banks and the whole economy. Only the greedy are successful nowadays and it cannot work for much more....

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:02 | 2253402 pazmaker
pazmaker's picture

Kitty,  I believe it is true, but my point is that it has been true for a lot longer then 12 yrs.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:53 | 2253530 K_I_T_T_Y
K_I_T_T_Y's picture

I do not know about GS, but in other banks I feel things changed faster after 2008...

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:13 | 2253611 Dugald
Dugald's picture

He knew long ago what was going on, just could not tear himself away from the pipeline of large rewards, just  think how many more there are just like him, they are no better than remora's sticking to a shark, are not these just some of the people who should be decorating lamp posts?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 07:55 | 2253380 davood
davood's picture

"I don’t know of any illegal behavior . . ."

A bald-face lying son of a bitch trying to suck up on his next gig. JPMorgan Chase maybe?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:07 | 2253417 JPM Hater001
JPM Hater001's picture

Actually it was a move to cover ass.  If he did know of any and didnt report it to their Ombudsman (required at all these firms) then he is complicit in the act.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:28 | 2253994 Gene Parmesan
Gene Parmesan's picture

Isn't a breach of fiduciary duty illegal? And isn't that what he's writing about in this letter?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:43 | 2254088 Bastiat
Bastiat's picture

Isn't a breach of fiduciary duty illegal?

How quaint!

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 16:08 | 2255600 DaveyJones
DaveyJones's picture

their only "duty" is to our corrupt government (along with others) In that respect, they've remained loyal

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:40 | 2253498 azzhatter
azzhatter's picture

If he admitted to illegalities he would be implicating himself so he glossed over that part. Fraud is illegal, whether DOJ thinks so or not

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:15 | 2253619 Ponzi Unit
Ponzi Unit's picture

Davood, if he makes such a claim he is besieged by an army of GS attorneys.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:39 | 2253701 davood
davood's picture

Exactly!  He is trying to cover his ass and make his shite smell sweet.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 07:58 | 2253384 Miss Expectations
Miss Expectations's picture

My brother-in-law, when he worked at Salomon Smith Barney, recommended that I buy Lucent, Enron and WorldCom and that I sell Celgene at $5.00.  Had I ignored him, I'd be a millionaire.  Don't believe anyone who wants your money, ANYONE.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:14 | 2253431 JPM Hater001
JPM Hater001's picture

Yeah.  Problem with brokers at any firm is what we have seen here in 2 cases:

1) Analysts tell the broker what to push instead of looking at the data themselves.

2) Brokers are still convinced asset allocation is "responsible for 80% of gains" as they used to tout.

In a normal market...yes.

These broke ponies are not normal.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 07:58 | 2253388 alt-shift-x
alt-shift-x's picture

Dear Anonymous may we have the internal mails where GS managers refer to their clients as muppets?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:15 | 2253434 JPM Hater001
JPM Hater001's picture

Please.

 

Dont for get the please.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:34 | 2253482 alt-shift-x
alt-shift-x's picture

pretty please?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:14 | 2253896 JPM Hater001
JPM Hater001's picture

See now you just look desperate...why not icecream on top... lol~!

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:00 | 2253392 grunk
grunk's picture

By the way, can I use you guys as a reference?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:00 | 2253395 El Viejo
El Viejo's picture

Does this mean he will be giving back his bonuses???

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:01 | 2253397 sethstorm
sethstorm's picture

Likely story of the future:

Former Goldman Sachs executive Greg Smith found dead on his way to work due to accident

(If it is bad enough, I'd think an "accident" is likely to happen)

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:02 | 2253399 non_anon
non_anon's picture

unraveling of the Golden tower where Paulson and Geithner came from, come on!

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:02 | 2253401 Short Memories
Short Memories's picture

"Humility"  ????

I remember a GS guy saying to me "We'll, of course I'm clever, I work at GS"

God I'm glad I'm out of the finance industry!!

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:15 | 2253908 JPM Hater001
JPM Hater001's picture

You should have met the guys at Merrill before the crash.

Asshandle's all of them.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:47 | 2254116 Bastiat
Bastiat's picture

LOL! Right on!  Back in the 80s I was describing a deal to one of them on the phone, his response: 

Him: That's really interesting but it won't work 

Me:  Why not

Him:  Because we have the smartest people in the world and if it worked we would have already done it.

 

My first vivid lesson in pure Wall St. arrogance.  BTW, the idea did work--they probably didn't think of it because it didn't screw anyone.

 

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 16:11 | 2255616 DaveyJones
DaveyJones's picture

Herodotus would have a field day

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:12 | 2253412 SillySalesmanQu...
SillySalesmanQuestion's picture

Reggie, Reggie, Reggie...

Is Mr. Smith going to Washington...like many other ex-GS brethren?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:43 | 2253716 resurger
resurger's picture

F.I.R.E

Reggie would be GLAD today, i think soon will be his day.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:10 | 2254255 Greater Fool
Greater Fool's picture

SEC pays well. Not GS-well, but if he wants to do a little public service to atone that's, to one way of thinking, a way he might do it. They and several other agencies are anxious to hire people who know which particular back alley the hoods are working at any given moment.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:09 | 2253419 johny2
johny2's picture

muppets is a right word for the people trusting GS advice. 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:30 | 2253423 El Viejo
El Viejo's picture

Future 'honest' Wall St. Lobbyist?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:49 | 2253523 espirit
espirit's picture

Greek Finance Minister?  Doing God's work.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:11 | 2253426 Gromit
Gromit's picture

Disappointing bonus?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:18 | 2253440 theorist
theorist's picture

Interesting "Confession." I guess we ahve to give he guy the benefit of the doubt. However, in my years of experience this sort of rant does not usually come from someone trying to do the right thing, but trying to get back at their employer. Mr Smith might be aggreived for a whole host of ppossible reasons: Ddin't get an expected promotion, lost his role to a rival, or a new boss was put above him that he didn't like, someone promoted over him. Could be anything. Although we all love to hate Goldman Sachs, I have usually found them to be reasonably professional in their dealings. There are of course, a***les in there, but all organisations have these kinds of people. I am also willing to concede that Goldman has more than the average number of such people, but that wpould appear to be mostly on the trading side. It is a fact that a firm does not get the depth and longevity of clietn relationship that Goldman has without looking out for clients to some extent. Don't get me wrong I am not saying Goldman looks after the interests of clietns in the absolute sense, but they are probably better than the other investment banks out there. It is amazing that virtually all of the Investment Banks engaged in Goldman Sachs types of trades, and potentially more destructive things but they have got away with it. The only thing that might have kept an Investment Bank from doing such trades was not a lack of willingness or moral rectitude, but one of capability. For instaance JP Morgan was least affected by the subprime debacle not because their CEO was smart but because they just could not break into that market despite trting hard. You really think that Goldman Sachs was the only one helping Greece understate its debt? Come on, they were all at it. In fact I would hazard a guess that the Greek Government wanted to do these trades as much as the banks. I am surprised that it is Goldman that always comes up and gets the most flack. What about Deutsche Bank? They have a terrible culture towards the treatment of clients as well as staff. What about Morgan Stanlet, Merrill Lynch, UBS, Credit Suisse. In fact how about Lehman? These guys were perhaps the worst, and I would dare to argue that they made Goldman Sachs look like a paragon of virtue. Their clietn relationships were between and slim and nothing and slim was nowhere to be found. Their employee culture was awful. The treatment of shareholders was atrocious. If anyone deserved to go out of business those guys did. However, that culture is now alive and well at Nomura and Barclays, the two who bought these banks. I am surprised Dick Fuld is not in jail for what he did. 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:02 | 2253561 Terminus C
Terminus C's picture

I am surprised Dick Fuld is not in jail for what he did. 

Really?  You are surprised?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:14 | 2254275 theorist
theorist's picture

Actually, I am surprised. Taking into account that Paulson, Little Timmy Geitner and Ben decided not to save Lehman but did save everyone else, I would have thought that they had a grudge. Having said this, he did deserve to go to jail, probably more than the others. But they all need to be sent to jail in the end along with the great money printer!

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:22 | 2253647 Melin
Melin's picture

please

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:38 | 2253696 resurger
resurger's picture

GS Fraud Fund chief resigned last month too ... there is something wrong there

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:53 | 2253444 non_anon
non_anon's picture

ha ha, schew you all!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mO0aCqMDutg

 

edit: I've fallen behind, you bitchez are too good!

edit edit: you mofo's are way ahead of the game!

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:21 | 2253446 Wm the Shrubber
Wm the Shrubber's picture

I was at Goldman for 5 years in the Private Wealth Management Division.  I managed over $200mm on behalf of private clients.  In 2008, I began liquidating proprietary, illiquid GS investments in clients' accounts and moving to cash as a defensive measure.  I was not investing as per firm guidelines.  I was not maximizing fee revenue to the firm.  I openly challenged the strategy teams with their macro assessments and recommendations.  And....I was subsequently terminated in a broad down sizing.  GS rapaciously solicited my book of clients, advising them that I had moved on for personal reasons.  They care about the marginal dollar at GS and nothing more.  All the talk of culture is simply remembrance of days gone by.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:37 | 2253687 resurger
resurger's picture

P.S : can you call your friends at the fraud and get to know when they are liquidating, we deserve some insiders information too....

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:18 | 2253928 JPM Hater001
JPM Hater001's picture

If you havent worked with these frauds broker reduction is another name for "redistribute someone elses sphere of influence and hard work."  Even marginally successful brokers become so because of a natural market.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:23 | 2253455 Implicit simplicit
Implicit simplicit's picture

They don't just offer screws. They will automatically die you inside and outside for preperation both literally, figuratively and mechanically. Just ask Greece.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:24 | 2253460 youngandhealthy
youngandhealthy's picture

Why spew sarcasms over him? He is doing a very good thing regardless of him being there for 12+ yrs or whatever.

Welcome out Mr Greg Smith!

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:25 | 2253462 Svener
Svener's picture

Who are the seriously deluded yaaahoooos that invest with this company?  Talk about putting your millions at risk!

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:29 | 2253472 Everybodys All ...
Everybodys All American's picture

There is no way that Goldman is alone in this behavior. With the leadership at the Fed and the complicit media this is a culture rot with this type of corrupt trading. Watching CNBC for five minutes tells you all you need to know about the scale of corruption. IMO the retail investor will never come back to this stock market because of their lack of trust in the system. Bare in mind Goldman is a primary dealer of the Federal Reserve system. If it is a acceptable behavior at the very top of the food chain by regulation or culture you know it's very likely everywhere in the system. 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 16:18 | 2255635 DaveyJones
DaveyJones's picture

nice post - but the whole place is rotten, every industry.

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:32 | 2253476 LawsofPhysics
LawsofPhysics's picture

Translation;  I made my billions by being a greedy corrupt mother fucker, now, in order to get into heaven, I must appear or try and repent in so much as I define what repent is.

All this talk is just that, more talk.  The culture will not change until there is real fucking consequences, prosecute the fucking fraud, restore the rule of law, period.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:33 | 2253477 j0nx
j0nx's picture

Same as it ever was bitches. Same as it ever was.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:01 | 2253556 LFMayor
LFMayor's picture

Look where my hand was!

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:34 | 2253484 El Viejo
El Viejo's picture

Phase 1: Exuberance, then competiveness, then suspicion, doubt, disbelief, delay, bargaining, pleading, anger, resignation, more anger, helplessness, confession and a vow to never let it happen again. Repeat.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:32 | 2253487 Money 4 Nothing
Money 4 Nothing's picture

Peak oil, Peak income, peak food supply, Peak life span.. Good luck diming out GS. Toxic and destructive is there business Moniker.

Go long on Mossberg shotguns? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/12/01/goldman-sachs-staff-buyin_n_375106.html

Live by the sword, die by the sword. How does it feel to do G.O.D.'s work tool? He should do what every other whistle blower does, go write a book then go disappeared.

Long Gold, Oil, Drugs.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:41 | 2253500 tabasco71
tabasco71's picture

The problem is that this culture has likely leaked out into governments. I doubt the 'culture' only started eroding with the arrival of Blankfein. 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:41 | 2253506 Coldfire
Coldfire's picture

What a fucking ingrate.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:06 | 2254234 orangedrinkandchips
orangedrinkandchips's picture

THANK YOU!! Yes....my thoughts exactly.

 

AS IF Goldman was NOT doing this shit before?

 

WAIT....WAIT....IT WAS OK WHEN I WAS BROKE AND NOW THAT I HAVE MADE A FEW MILLION IT'S BAD!!

 

wow....look at what money can buy.....ETHICS!!!

Mr. Smith......just stfu you dirty bitch

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:44 | 2253509 lizzy36
lizzy36's picture

Be first, be smarter or cheat is what keeps one alive on Wall Street.

First job of any desk is to protect the book. Second is to maximize it.

Don`t like it, don`t work on wall street.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:56 | 2253512 Money 4 Nothing
Money 4 Nothing's picture

+10 for you. I can only vote once though.

Comming to terms with denial: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denial

Cocaine and hookers only mask the problems over temporarily, is it possible he grew a conscience? I don't think so = Banker stooge.

http://www.addiction-intervention.com/addiction-intervention/10-tell-tale-signs-someone-needs-an-addiction-intervention/

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:46 | 2253514 pupton
pupton's picture

ZH just got a mention on CNBC by some guest. Not sure who he is. He said he wrote a post on ZH today...

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:46 | 2253516 saycheeeese
saycheeeese's picture

Goldman's clients on the sell side like to be screwed and on the buy side think they've found someone who's gonna sell their shit at the best price.  let them be.     But... WE.. should beat the hell out of them since they have been using our tax money.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:50 | 2253524 the not so migh...
the not so mighty maximiza's picture

He should still be shot in the head

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 08:54 | 2253534 rosebud
rosebud's picture

AOL buys zero hedge-  price?  what its worth    a nickel

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:07 | 2253582 Terminus C
Terminus C's picture

if it is worth so little why waste your time here?

Oh, maybe it is so you can help increse its value with your informative posts...

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:35 | 2253629 GetZeeGold
GetZeeGold's picture

 

 

Wow.....the talent pool over at GS really is declining!

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:17 | 2253631 lizzy36
lizzy36's picture

If you want to look at the fallacy(ies) of any of Tylers posts, in a logical and coherent manner, that would be fantastic. Seriously if you disagree with something on the merits, that is value added.

If you wish to pull his pigtails, make silly derogatory remarks, and generally act like a 7 year old, can you move along to Business Insider. They post those comments on twitter, you will become twitter famous.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:42 | 2253711 williambanzai7
williambanzai7's picture

It's called moron sourcing.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:00 | 2253551 truont
truont's picture

Hat's off to the Tylers!  They have been saying this all along about Goldman. 

I am only surpised that there is a GS exec that has an ounce of soul left in him.

"God's work," indeed, Blankfein...

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:02 | 2253564 PaperBear
PaperBear's picture

Gold getting whacked more than silver - very strange.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:21 | 2253614 Money 4 Nothing
Money 4 Nothing's picture

I warned about this 2 months ago. It sux, but TPTB do not play nice with investors / savers, Mo Fu Global set the example. Who peg's the ultimate price for PM's anyway? think about it. Paulson straight up stole 700B from the citizens of the USA, where is the outrage?

Free men are armed, slaves are not.

OT. http://rome.mrdonn.org/spartacus.html

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:37 | 2253689 Acet
Acet's picture

The wacking started right at London open, before that it was steadilly going up.

The last couple of days give me a feeling that there's some kind of central bank manipulation going on, with ups being steady and sustained while downs are sudden plunges on zero news.

The whole 100 year bonds idea going around makes me think that central banks are about to massivelly monetize government debt (buying their own 100y government bonds). With a 100y maturity - so the principal will not to be repaid during the lifetime of anybody alive today - by buying that debt, central banks will do the equivalent of paying up debt with printed money, only with a thin veneer of plausible deniabilty. In such a scenario, keeping Gold down maintains the perception by the unwashed masses that Gold is not a safe alternative to the soon to be massivelly devaluated paper currencies, thus reducing currency outflows.

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 16:31 | 2255681 MeelionDollerBogus
MeelionDollerBogus's picture

could it be that lately silver underperformed its normal trend with gold?

http://flic.kr/p/bq9aZw

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:04 | 2253569 ReactionToClose...
ReactionToClosedMinds's picture

Sorry Greg ... you're wrong on one historical point ..... things started to go wrong at GS under the 'esteemed' "leadership" of  Rbt Rubin and his subaltern Jon Corzine.   But then you were not at GS probably back then.  Lloyd B was just their bag carrier ......

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:05 | 2253576 boooyaaaah
boooyaaaah's picture

Some one send this to Rush Limbaugh.
For a rather observant commentator he is a
novice when it comes to the squid.

Either through ignorance or convenience.

What everyone ignors is the tremendous advantage
Given to prime brokers like GS.

One in patricular is naked short selling to create liquidity.
And the ability to lend this privlege to
Selected hedge funds.

And then the captured government through alumni.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:06 | 2253577 AN0NYM0US
AN0NYM0US's picture

odd he didn't talk about how he pays less tax than his secretary - this is one slick PR piece, with the contracts these dudes have not a chance he would have written this without the blessing of management and the NYT left wing mouthpiece for the administration

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:07 | 2253586 Atomizer
Atomizer's picture

Sounds like someone is clearing a guilt ridden conscience prior to a financial implosion. Just my take on it.

Mr. Smith: I warned the Capitan about the iceberg ahead, then buggered off to my lifeboat.

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:48 | 2254120 CoolBeans
CoolBeans's picture

Well, I would've stuck around but I FELL INTO the lifeboat.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:12 | 2253601 hangemhigh77
hangemhigh77's picture

And NOW we're supposed to feel Sorry for this asshole?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:12 | 2253603 monopoly
monopoly's picture

Amazing response here about this editorial. I am surprised the NY Times even allowed this in print. While reading my news I was wondering how long it would take Zero Hedge to find and post this. And as I log on. Should have known, already there with a multiple of comments.

Think I will keep all my gold and silver.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:14 | 2253615 hangemhigh77
hangemhigh77's picture

So, all these 12 years GS has been above board and the culture was sooooo wonderful?  Paulson was a guy who would NEVER do anything illegal right?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:38 | 2253694 semperfi
semperfi's picture

In my experience, when you are new to a company, you don't see the dirt - everything is good, especially when you are a green college grad.  You start to see the dirt after a few years of getting to know the place, then you realize that the dirt has been their all along, its just that it was masked by your lack of knowledge - and you naturally feel betrayed and played - well, you actually were.   And when you switch companies, you realize they all have the same dirt - different name on the outside of the building, same old shit inside.  And then maybe if you actually studied history and remember it, you will then realize that its been like this throughout all history everywhere.  And then you say, "aw fuck it - I'm going to happy hour!"

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:18 | 2253634 bugs_
bugs_'s picture

I am thinking Greg might not be atypical.  Perhaps there are many more that have been voted off the island and left quietly.  Good luck to all of you.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:18 | 2253637 westerman
westerman's picture

I remeber in 2007 when I sat with my advisor from a big bank and had a lot of liqudity. I mentioned one of the banks products and the banker smiled and said those are fantastic! Buy those, lots of 'em. Those investments completely tanked a few months later (luckily I didn't buy). But what scared me was that the banker had no problem with me putting a years pay into a risky bad investment since it made money for the bank. The loyalty was completely gone. Naturally I switched bank and no longer pay for advice.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:51 | 2253754 chindit13
chindit13's picture

Among sell side sales staff, the number who truly understand the nature and risks of the products they are schlepping is very small, though that doesn't prevent them from trying to get customers into them.  Salespeople are not hired for their intellect or product knowledge, they are hired for their ability to sell.  Their first objective is to generate revenue, though on balance they would prefer the client makes money, since a happy client is likely to remain a client.  Only those who work directly with origination desks or structured products groups probably have some insight into what the real risks are and what the product actually is.  Those who do understand probably are not particularly concerned if the product is good or not.  In some cases (the Abacus deal is an example), a firm has customers on both sides of a deal, so they are happy getting paid twice.  Obviously they will cater to the side who they believe will generate the most revenue over time.  In Abacus, John Paulson was the favored client, and the Bavarian Landesbanks were the chumps.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 16:44 | 2255722 MeelionDollerBogus
MeelionDollerBogus's picture

just on gold bullion & short-term holdings of silver miners (all gone now) I way outperformed any "paid" advisor I would have found. I'm glad I have none.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:19 | 2253639 barroter
barroter's picture

Fiduciary responsibility...what's that?

One should never deal with these two legged insects like you can find at Goldman.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:27 | 2253664 Withdrawn Sanction
Withdrawn Sanction's picture

Wow, the negative karma these guys have amassed is truly staggering.  Even if sincere, his mea culpa doesn't even come close to righting the wrongs committed over the last 12 years.  If it's not sincere, it's one more weight on the wrong side of scale that is already badly tipping.  Either way, it couldn't happen to a nicer bunch of con-men.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:31 | 2253672 Fur Trader
Fur Trader's picture

Notwithstanding the possible naivety, or sanctimonious underpinnings (or sour grapes), here's what I read between the lines:  It was great, and I could look customers in the eyes.... and now it's not, and I therefore I can't any longer (for the reasons given).

 

For the record, and I say this with heavy heart, I a man old IBMer, and I could write this same resignation letter by simply changing the company name.  I guess I'm naive too. 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:33 | 2253677 lincolnsteffens
lincolnsteffens's picture

As I recall, last year wasn't there a judge that retired from the CFTC who made a public confession after a 20 year well paying job? He went along to get along with regulator fraud in favor of the big firms. Then he retires and tells all.  Kind of like taking part in mass murder or a career of house break-ins, after you resign from the military or leave the gang then blow the whistle. Gee, I know I did it too but now I don't think the others should still be doing it.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:38 | 2253695 digalert
digalert's picture

In this lawless land today, we can only sit and wait for the bastards to turn on themselves.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:40 | 2253705 EmileLargo
EmileLargo's picture

I am not shocked by this stuff. But really, doesn't everyone already know that the big banks have become highly levered gambling funds that can take the kinds of leveraged gambling risks that even T Boone Pickens would balk at? The debauchery of banking started with the debauchery of the currency. One followed the other. When people can make vast fortunes overnight by having a priviliged access to fiat, things change very rapidly. What we have today is a handful of banks that have disproportionate access to fiat money which they can employ at zero cost. It is a perverse world we live in.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 17:01 | 2255790 MeelionDollerBogus
MeelionDollerBogus's picture

The debauchery of banking started with the debauchery of the currency. One followed the other.

but before government fiat currency there were other systems, there were other bankers, and I really think they had a reptutation for being bastards who steal. Am I wrong? Or am I just not looking at it right, it's another debauchery orgy, not this debauchery orgy, and that's just a detail to remember for the history books?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:45 | 2253720 Vlad Tepid
Vlad Tepid's picture

I think you are being a bit hard on the guy...there probably is a bit of the "hand grenade over the shoulder" mentality here, but at least he's getting out now before his former co-workers get Mussolini-ized in a few years.  I read John Perkins of "Economic Hitman" fame and it took him decades to work up the brass to walk away and lay a stink bomb in their direction - after his company had collapsed due to the same moral decay this guy reports (and was obvious to all outsiders) above.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:58 | 2253725 williambanzai7
williambanzai7's picture

This guy has his reasons for posting the letter.

But the bottom line is these are not ridiculous ramblings of a disgruntled employee.

It is all consistent with the data we have accumulated during three years of hearings, investigations, law suits, consent decrees, botched PR etc.

Welcome to the Shitty Deal Zone.

Y U LEAVE

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:47 | 2253730 Son of Loki
Son of Loki's picture

"Why steal less, when you can steal more."

 

(BTW, it's a rhetorical question so don't strain yourself trying to think of an answer. However, if you said,"It's the Wall Street Mantra for the 21st Century," you definitely earn points.)

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:50 | 2253744 kindape
kindape's picture

He is spot on, other than one key thing. I left Wall St for these SAME reasons 15 years ago.  And turned down jobs at Goldman in 1992 and 1994 for same reasons. So this 'treating of clients as muppets' is not a new phenomenon.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:53 | 2253769 stoverny
stoverny's picture

Goldman Sachs only concerned with making money.  In other news, water is wet.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 09:53 | 2253771 roccman
roccman's picture

took him 12 years to figure this out.

 

hmmm...sounds like he was fired

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:05 | 2253848 aerial view
aerial view's picture

While GS and most other TBTF banks regularly commit fraud on their naive investors, it really comes down to the lack of regulation, prosecutions and incarcerations by our political leaders and representatives that is the real tragedy here: criminal sociopaths cannot control other criminal sociopaths!

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:09 | 2253875 Bunga Bunga
Bunga Bunga's picture

He wants that people trust him. And then same story.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:29 | 2253933 haskelslocal
haskelslocal's picture

WHO are GS clients? Everyone? Seems GS must be doing business with all outfits that holds everyone's money. It's an indirect fleecing and not just wealthy individuals who dial direct yet lose deal after deal and stay with it.  

Also, this story strangely resembles something manufactured by the inside. It was a great place for 134 years but then, when I got there, some people soured? Lets fix it? BS. If this guy was serious he'd have a cache' of documents and some of those insider emails.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:22 | 2253955 LarryDavis
LarryDavis's picture

This guy is bitch.........Integrity? It is eroding. I don’t know of any illegal behavior, but will people push the envelope and pitch lucrative 

You workd at GS for 12 years and don't know of anything illegal??? Get the fuck out of here you gilted ho. This exposition is NOTHING that has not been stated, intimated, charted, and clowned ad naseum on Zero Hedge who is always ahead of the curve. If there were a Zero Hedge firm on Wall St. as much as I hate finance I would work there in a heartbeat (although having two degress from an Ivy would probably make for an awkward interview-thankfully despite a formidable education I have never made it out of the lower middle class). FUCK GOLDMAN SACHS AND FUCK THESE WALL ST. JERKOFFS.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 12:02 | 2254506 dynomutt
dynomutt's picture

Then, let's all start one.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 13:56 | 2255091 Dolar in a vortex
Dolar in a vortex's picture

"...I don’t know of any illegal behavior ..."

 

He's sending a message to the SEC, I don't know anything so don't subpeona me.

And simultaneously

a message to GS, I won't talk so don't kill me.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:24 | 2253969 Downtoolong
Downtoolong's picture

Self regulating service industry, my ass.

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:30 | 2254005 digalert
digalert's picture

Let's see here, this is Wednesday. I suspect next Monday would be a good time for the useless fucking lawmakers in the district of criminals to announce a "Blue Ribbon" panel to investigate any possible wrongdoing. That ought to give banksters at least a weekend to clean up debris.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:30 | 2254006 yogibear
yogibear's picture

Jon Corzine is the poster child for the vampire squid. In the meantime the SEC is busy watching porn and FINRA is dumping any incriminating evidence. There should be no surprise of  the cheating and fraud. The vampire squid's clients deserve everything they get. 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:33 | 2254032 Shizzmoney
Shizzmoney's picture

Now, I am happy that Greg Smith got a conscience to leave this vampire firm, but this all seems a bit late to me.  Like, didn't this motherfucker realize this shit right AFTER the 2008 bailouts?  You know, considering the fact that 40-70% of the fucking Treasury Dept, Congress, etc. are former Goldman employees?

As FinAdd said on twitter, this all reminds me of a wife who throws her rich husband under the bus for cheating behidn her back for 5 years ,and then she leaves after he just says, "fuck it, I'll do it in front of her face" for a year.....all while cashing her alimony check.

I applaud the guy too.  I mean, I have left jobs completely disgusted in the culture and you have to express it or it will never be questioned or change

I think the guy pretty much sums up what 80% of corporate America has become.  My company is built off the backs of Chinese slave labor; it kills me sometimes to deal with hearing about the BS I get from my contacts over there on how vendors treat their workers (or how I have to pick up the pieces of fixing things on my end due to the Chinese slave laborers not giving a fuck about the product due to turnover/low pay). 

But really, Greg is SO lucky he was able to make some coin and had the luxury to leave.  Nice white man's burden, there.

The rest of us, like me? Still struggling to pay down debt, still struggling to deal with rising costs of life, in general.  And since the job market has been a buyer's market since 2007, and has gotten worse (despite what MSM tells you), you can't just quit and expect to get a job within 20 weeks (hell, not even 40 weeks!).  You have to suck it up.  As Dylan Ratigan says, social mobility which used to be CHAMPIONED in this country, is fastly eroding.  All of the jobs are in high competitve areas with high costs of living.  Not exactly a society built on sustainability.

I'm just glad I'm 70% deleveraged.  Once I'm completely paid down, then I won't need to bow down to the sickness of the Corporate system, and have negotiating power to choose where I want to work, and how much I get paid...even if that takes a while to find a job that picks me.

That's what I tell young teens/kids thinkin about college now - get a degree thats cost effective that guaruntees a chance of employment (and I went to a liberal arts school; there is value in that degree, just not $100K of it!). 

If you are NOT in massive debt, the employer does NOT have you by the balls. 

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:33 | 2254033 AgShaman
AgShaman's picture

I'd really like to leave the sinking ship....and not get a Hot tub party thrown on my behalf.

I know, I'll write an article about how I've evolved as a person....and no longer fit the mold to be in the employ of Vampire Squids.

(Whew....it's hard to ride off in the sunset....and avoid the "mandatory retirement plans")

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:44 | 2254093 DavidC
DavidC's picture

Is it possible that thes TBTFs might be brought down, not by the other elephants, but by ants? One can only hope.

DavidC

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:41 | 2254408 roccman
roccman's picture

not a chance

 

since the beginning of man-time a global oligarchy has ruled man - eugenics is the script.

 

us lower races are not worthy

 

and when the kill-off is complete - these mutants will emerge from their bunkers...chip those left standing - shoot those who don't want to be chip...and spin up the global new world order (READ Us and Them) for the next 200,000 years. in which time they will have numbed the slave class mind into a maggot infested gruel as they get to read Plato on fresh spring mornings under the shade of an apple tree.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 18:43 | 2256085 MeelionDollerBogus
MeelionDollerBogus's picture

chipping is SO yesterday. Now there's DNA lab-on-a-chip coming & DNA-computing, you can expect every place of "business" / check-points to be, not long from now, a DNA-identification station. If you don't comply, you must be a terrorist. If you do comply, you DNA serial number that you're born with can't ever be removed so that puts you between a rock & a hard place.

http://www.netbio.com/

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:45 | 2254104 bagpiper
bagpiper's picture

Time to throw out the baby with the bathwater...time for judgment.

The Great Experiment is an epic fail, the same as all other empires, fallen on the altar of corruption and greed.

America, because of scumbag bankers like this, and their political enablers, has pissed off the rest of the world.

Our 'Empire of Debt' will get what it deserves; we already got The Dark Man, soon time to make The Stand.

Burn baby burn.

Kill the rich. (and that includes some of you)

Start over.

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:47 | 2254107 goforgin
goforgin's picture

goforgin here!

 

Let's put this op piece in perspective. It's toxic and destructive to ripoff your clients. But its totally rejuvenating and creative to ripoff  'the little people' like retail public.

To put this in another way:  "its wrong to enrich yourself at the expense of your clients; but, it's totally acceptable to ripoff the public for the benefit of your clients."

 

Greg Smith you my idiot, win the hypocrite award of the day.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 10:49 | 2254123 optimator
optimator's picture

And I gave up my 800K a year job because what I was doing just didn't feel ethical.  (Sarc)

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:02 | 2254185 orangedrinkandchips
orangedrinkandchips's picture

BUT Goldman WAS JUST FINE BEFORE MY MILLIONS!!!

 

shit fire, he was so money struck in college he didnt want to see it when he's BROKE but now he's RICH....IT'S BAD!! Nothing has changed with them over the entire life of the firm!!!

 

STFU you ungrateful bitch

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:04 | 2254215 Outlaw Of The W...
Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:07 | 2254239 Bastiat009
Bastiat009's picture

A bank that accepts a bailout is by definition opposed to capitalism. A bank opposed to capitalism is like a doctor opposed to life.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:11 | 2254261 NoMoreBull
NoMoreBull's picture

I applaud you Mr. Smith for coming forth and speaking out against the criminal regime you were once proud to be associated with. Since you have now demonstrated you have a soul, you can no longer continue to lie daily to your clients about the virtues of Goldman.  Despite the many derogatory remarks in this forum suggesting everyone at Goldman is a heartless criminal, their are many good people that work tirelessly to do the right thing for their clients under enormous pressure from the firm to push junk product on them.  You have however, taken a very public confession to the world that unfortunately has exposed you to contracting a sudden case of the Andrew Breitbart heart disease.  I speak from experience. In the spring of 2009 I resigned from Merrill Lynch after spending most of the previous 18 months apologizing daily to my clients for the slimy antics of that firm.  I too knew it was time to go when I found myself recommending bright young interns to choose smaller boutique firms for their careers.  I didn't go public, but naively spoke out internally about the junk products we were urged to push on to our clients. I was suspended by management until my thinking could be cleared up and I could once again rape my clients financially on their behalf.  I promised to be a good soldier, was reinstated, and resigned 60 days later.  Oh by the way, there were never any bonuses along the way either.  You see I only generated a mere $750,000.00 a year in revenue for Merrill, by doing the right thing for my clients.  My bonus was having $500,000.00 in a forced 10% company stock purchases through payroll withholding over 16 years go to "0" when CEO Stan O'Neal ran Merrill into the ground and walked away with a $161 million retirement package.  Hopefully, your open confession will prompt those others with a conscience to simply walk away from the criminals they work for. 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:14 | 2254276 tony bonn
tony bonn's picture

ah yes confession is good for the soul.....i now expect a torrent of insiders to publish obsequious memoirs of what a wonderful, elevating, and poetical place to work is goldman sachs....

fuck you blankenfiend and all the rest of you blood sucking financial terrorist squids....

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:17 | 2254291 rfullem
rfullem's picture

My Reuters colleague Robert Fullem had a really bright idea a few days ago: he went through all of Goldman Sachs’s annual reports and counted how many times the word “integrity” was used in each one. And the results are pretty interesting. The reports have been getting fatter and fatter: that’s the red line in the chart. But all those extra pages don’t seem to give the bank any more opportunity to talk about integrity: quite the opposite. In fact, the Goldman Sachs integrity index peaked in 2002, when the word was used 12 times. Since then it has been on a steady decline, appearing just twice in 2008?s 162-page report. Sad. Incidentally, the word “honesty” appears exactly once in every report. But the word “ethics” has only ever appeared once since Goldman went public. And that was back in 2002. http://blogs.reuters.com/felix-salmon/2010/08/20/chart-of-the-day-goldma...

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:19 | 2254302 ElSe1
ElSe1's picture

"When I was a first-year analyst I didn’t know where the bathroom was, or how to tie my shoelaces"???????????????


Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:19 | 2254304 rfullem
rfullem's picture

GS Business Principles "Integrity and honesty are at the heart of our business We expect our people to maintain high ethical standard in everythign they do, both in their work for the firm and in their personal lives" If this is not true, then this is false adverstising and UDAP violation. Yes, being unethical is illegal.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:20 | 2254313 rfullem
rfullem's picture

GS Business Principles (from annual report every year since public)

"Integrity and honesty are at the heart of our business

We expect our people to maintain high ethical standard in everything they do, both in their work for the firm and in their personal lives"

If this is not true, then this is false adverstising and UDAP violation. Yes, being unethical is illegal.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:33 | 2254372 yogibear
yogibear's picture

There are many Goldmans throught the entire industry.  Like vultures they pick at clients accounts and steal. They have FINRA to back them up. The Vampire Squid is sucking their Asian and European clients dry.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:44 | 2254379 pebblewriter
pebblewriter's picture

To anybody dealing with a broker, please know that Smith speaks the absolute truth.  It's especially true on the retail side, but increasingly so on the institutional side as well.  While there are always exceptions, the brokerage business is populated by those with no reservations about ripping people off (veterans) and those who don't yet know they're in the business of ripping people off (FNG's.) 

To become a broker at Merrill years ago, we went through a simulation.  They gave us a list of tasks to complete during the hour -- mostly client service issues such as missing dividend checks, etc. -- and a list of prospective clients to call and sell stock to.  They hired all of us who completely ignored the client service tasks and spent the entire hour pounding the phones to sell stock (I had been tipped by a friend.) 

http://pebblewriter.blogspot.com/2012/03/yelping-for-fun-and-profit.html

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:38 | 2254394 Dermasolarapate...
Dermasolarapaterraphatrima's picture

Clients may have  had "fair notice" when they were handed a tube of KY when they signed up.....

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:41 | 2254407 DarthVaderMentor
DarthVaderMentor's picture

I am heartbroken. The force of evil has left Greg.....I have failed as a mentor......

 

http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/society/why-i-am-leaving-the-empire,-by-darth-vader-201203145007/

 

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 11:49 | 2254441 vincent
vincent's picture

Batter up!

Who's on deck?

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 12:05 | 2254525 vincent
vincent's picture

CNBS....

"An editorial from a disgruntled employee"

"JPM rules"

Oh yeah.. "And Gold Sucks"

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 12:13 | 2254537 Outlaw Of The W...
Outlaw Of The Wasteland's picture

 

Everyone in that fucking jersey studio should be arrested under the RICO act.

LIESman, cramer, ira ross sorkin, faber, greenberg, kaminsky, rovell, finerman, kudlow the born again "Christian", boorstin, melissa francis, "zach" karabell, jane wells.

such a mitzvah everyday, itz!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Itz almost as if they are in place running/protecting a criminal enterprise (fellow "jews)

 

Why hasn't jon (the "episcopalian) corzine been arrested or murdered yet? 

 

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 19:11 | 2256182 MeelionDollerBogus
MeelionDollerBogus's picture

Faber? What did he do? He doesn't normally agree with the pre-paid muppets & normally if he's suggesting something that sounds risky he usually says it's pretty risky. Though lately he has suggested real-estate & I'd never go along with that. Still, he does say to diversify it all. Again, grain of salt, there's a reason people are coining the term "di-worse-ify"

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 12:34 | 2254659 malek
malek's picture

This will also be a litmus test for the NYT.

I have never before seen a serious critique of GS in that paper. Will they now start bashing them on a regular basis, with all their political-correct commentators quickly joining in?

And what will they ultimately demand?
More regulation - which is a euphemism for "let others sort this mess out and find the perfect solution (we from NYT just assume those others are 1. highly intelligent and 2. not corrupt at all; and if that doesn't turn out we have more commentaries to write about!)"
or will some at last see the light that this cannot be solved in a centralized, top down approach?

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 17:08 | 2255812 jmcadg
jmcadg's picture

Lloyd C. Blankfein, and the president, Gary D. Cohn, lost hold of the firm’s culture on their watch

Bullshit. They are more complicit than anyone.

Did Corzine, Abelow and Steenkamp lose hold of the culture at MFG. No they fuckin' created it.

Greg Smith I think you're probably a twat and you didn't get your promotion as promised because you laughed when Blankfein got his tiny dick out.

Move on, next schmuck please.

Wed, 03/14/2012 - 19:08 | 2256168 MsCreant
MsCreant's picture

His name was Greg Smith.

Do NOT follow this link or you will be banned from the site!