Goldman's call to arms: Bankers seeking gun permits ahead of bonus season
Filed under: Goldman Sachs , American International Group, INC.
Goldman Sachs Group (GS) is at the focal point of the American public's rage against Wall Street -- and probably for good reason. The firm's former chief executives have populated the highest echelons of American government, which has turned around and given Goldman -- and its partner in the current financial collapse American International Group (AIG) -- billions of dollars in taxpayer money.
Now, as bonus season draws near, Bloomberg News reports that nervous Goldman Sachs partners are arming themselves. According to Bloomberg, some senior Goldman bankers are applying for gun permits ahead of the holidays for fear of the public's reaction once they start receiving their year-end rewards.
It's almost enough to make me feel sorry for these titans of finance. Goldman's bankers have already been denied holiday celebrations and the freedom to gather together in groups of more than 12. And, of course, they are also being denied a chance to flaunt their wealth.
It's not as though Goldman hasn't done anything to try to change the public's mood. Goldman recently announced a $500 million fund intended to help small businesses through a combination of training and lending programs. Yet, the announcement hasn't done much to soothe the public's anger -- an anger that I'm sure all of the hedge fund honchos that are set to out-earn Goldman's partners are relieved to see targeted elsewhere.
Once news of the final tally on Goldman's bonuses breaks, the bank is going to face an even tougher public relations campaign. Goldman's partners are expected to receive record bonuses this year. Some bankers fear a repeat of what happened in March to the AIG Financial Products employees who received $165 million in bonuses. Once word got out about the bonuses, demonstrators went to the employees' homes and protested on their front yards.
What Goldman execs need to remember is that the firm wouldn't be doing so well if it weren't for the public's munificence. After all, $12.9 billion of the AIG bailout money went to Goldman. And it is still enjoying $52 billion in low-interest loans from the U.S. government to finance its trading profits.
I am afraid the guns won't protect these Goldman partners. Perhaps a better weapon would be for Goldman to pay reparations for its role in securitizing sub-prime mortgages -- as I suggested last month, maybe it could deposit five years of bonuses in a fund to help people who have been displaced due to foreclosure.
Peter Cohan is a management consultant, Babson professor and author of nine books, including Capital Rising (due in June 2010). Follow him on Twitter. He owns AIG shares and has no financial interest in Goldman securities.


























Reader Comments (Page 1 of 20)
12-01-2009 @ 2:21PM
Rose said...
God, is our government and the American taxpayer stupid. I mean just stupid! How on earth did we let this happen? I am speechless. Except for this... if someone does whack one of these a$$holes who gets millions in bonus money, I hope he robs him too.
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12-01-2009 @ 3:28PM
mickey said...
Record breaking bonuses????? When people are losing their houses by the millions??? I'm freaking speechless!! This is totally INSANE.
12-01-2009 @ 3:45PM
dang1067 said...
Shiiit, not just shoot'em all, I want to fvcking NUKE'M all...
The "Money Changers" gain their wealths MOST when wars, chaos, world economic collapse, depressions, terrors are all in motions... These Money Changers, then comes in guised as friends offering and "LENDING" billion$$$, Trillion$$$" in pretencely stabilizing way of life for a short duration of 3 to 5 years. Then, when all the mortgagees and everyone are not expecting, Ka-BOOM!!! At instant, the Money Changers manipulates and CRASH the world economies, foreclosing, repossessing "ROBBING" all prime businesses and prime properties at almost FREE costs... That's the SCHEME natures of the Money Changers AKA: World's Central Banks. And Goldman Sachs is just one of the tentacles of the 12-World Central Banks...
All these wars, terrorist, including the 9-11, the chaos in all the regions in the middle east, Africa's, this world economic disasters are all artificially "ARCHITECTED" by these world "Money Changers."
Follow the "MONIES" and you'll find that Trillion$$$$ of MONIES are not lost at all. Instead, they have just been shifted from one place and into another's giant stashes >>---->>> Siphoned into the "Money Changers" AKA: 12-World Central Banks' secret giant loot banks!!!
Below are the main 12-Money Changers of the world:
- Rothschild Bank of London
- Rothschild Bank of Berlin
- Lazard Brothers of Paris
- Israel Moses Seif Banks of Italy
- Warburg Bank of Amsterdam
- Warburg Bank of Hamburg
- Lehman Brothers of New York
- Kuhn Loeb Bank of New York
- Goldman, Schs of New York
- Chase Manhattan Bank of New York
- including the U.S. Federal Reserve which is "ISN'T" Federal at all. It's a "PRIVATELY owned" and "NOT" part of the U.S. Government. The Federal Reserve is only using the name "FEDERAL" only as "DISGUISE" to FOOL, ROBS and ENSLAVE all Americans!!!
12-01-2009 @ 3:56PM
Fed-Up said...
If you continue to send the same ones back to Washington what do you expect?
12-01-2009 @ 3:56PM
Loving this price said...
ha ha.... a stupid banker would hesitate with or without a gun.... the last time someone pulled a gun on me I took it away from them..... these punks better stick to hiring real men to defend them as bodyguards....
12-01-2009 @ 4:29PM
Fletch said...
The bonuses are a thank you payment from Rockefeller for a job well done. Watch your back.....David!!!
12-01-2009 @ 4:48PM
Boetica said...
Obama and his chronies control Goldman. What is George Soros doing these days? Oh, having a very good crisis, making a billion dollars while Americans lose jobs and homes. I bet he talks to Obama everyday. Obama and Geither approved of all of these bonuses and then pretend they know nothing about them. Elitests are pillaging our country and turning us into serfs. Every American should read 'The Road to Serfdom' by Friedrich von Hayek. Time for a revolt!
12-01-2009 @ 6:13PM
Mike said...
Can you spell `Corrup Government...? Its not ` we the People' anymore. Its `We the Corporation'
These problems are not going to go away on their own unless the PEOPLE get off their dead A$$$ come together, throw the bums out of DC and demand that our Constitution be returned to its original form, intent and followed.
The US government has no Constitutional rights in corporate america except as a regulatory advacate of the `People'
If we do not remove the special interests from our government we won"t (don't) have our country (freedom) much longer.
Also; make the ones responsible (the ones tha sold loans to irresponsable people, and who ended up with the money.
It ($) didn't just disiapear you know, follow the paper trail)
Uncle Sam Quit Lying to us...! We are not stupid. We don't want aother Revolutionary war! But, we will if YOU force us too!!!!
12-01-2009 @ 7:10PM
webby said...
Goldman was pumping and dumping some of the very instruments that crashed our economy. Then they are rewarded for their outstanding performance....
12-02-2009 @ 1:20AM
DAVE said...
I think they all deserve thier bonus money.. So they should publish a list of all these great businessmen, include thier Name, address,a picture to identify the body ooops , I meant to identify how great they are.
12-03-2009 @ 7:43AM
noyb said...
The Mistake stems from voting in a Democratic President whose stupid!!! Or is he? Maybe he was hoping to just bankrupt America by killing of Jewish Bankers?
12-02-2009 @ 10:12AM
dajt57 said...
it will be easy to figure out who they are because they are going to need to carry a pretty huge gun that can fire multiple rounds to defend themselves from the mobs.
12-02-2009 @ 4:17PM
pete said...
I'm always amazed at how upset the average uniformed moron gets - To say Goldman received $12 billion in AIG bailout money is ridiculous. AIG is an insurance company - the gov't bailed out AIG so they would stay in business. Basically most people in government and the private sector believed the economy would collapse if AIG failed because they insured so many companies critical to our economy. It's AIG you should be angry with - not their customers. The business of an insurance company is collecting premiums and then paying out claims to those who purchased insurance and have covered losses. Goldman bought AIG insurance (wisely, I might add) and AIG had to pay the claim - that's what insurance is for.
The gov't . has approved TARP funds for life insurance companies. If your loved one dies and you had been making life insurance payments all along and you then receive a life insurance check do you think it fair to have your neighbor claim you personally were receiving taxpayer bailout money? That would be just as ridiculous as claiming that the AIG insurance claim to Goldman was a taxpayer gift. It was an insurance claim - pure and simple. By the way I don't work for Goldman or anywhere else in the financial industry.
12-01-2009 @ 2:23PM
Brian said...
You've got to be kidding. How, how, how can Goldman legitimately provide bonuses to the men that brought down America's financial system? The very people that are keeping them afloat are the ones being evicted from their homes and put on the streets. Buy your guns dudes, with any luck you'll all be in Intensive Care by the end of the holidays. A call to all citizens: DO NOT PROVIDE ANY BUSINESS TO GOLDMAN SACHS OR IT'S SATELLITES.
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12-01-2009 @ 2:50PM
IMHO said...
They can do it because they have our government members in their back pockets. No one has been penalized for their crappy lending that has collapsed our economy. Heck, shoot em all!!!!
12-01-2009 @ 3:14PM
Lee said...
I would think it more likely that they would be buying the guns to use on themselves over the guilt of ruining so many people's lives. But then again these Wall Street types probably have hearts as cold and hard as stone. They'd rather steal every penny from the American people and then shoot them dead when they protest.
12-01-2009 @ 3:28PM
Simzee said...
Remember Goldman Sachs....It's fun to dance with the devil.......till ya have to pay the fiddler.
12-01-2009 @ 4:04PM
gleeminghope said...
Google: George Soros and then his relationship with Goldman Sachs (George Soros Goldman Sachs). Soros increased his Goldman Sachs Group holdings by 40.63% to 18,000 shares in 2008...great timing ...or what? Obama's number one financial bundler was Goldman Sachs/George Soros. Now they are paying record bonuses...something smells here..follks..we have a whole bunch of banksters manipulating our economy and our taxes...and it isn't pretty. Don't you find it odd that just during this whole crisis, Soros invests in Goldman Sachs and AIG takes its tarp money from the government and pays Goldman Sachs...we are all being used by Soros and Obama.
12-01-2009 @ 7:36PM
David S. said...
Gleeming, get off the high horse about Obama. Goldman Sachs was a favorite of Bush and his GOP cronies too.....if you believe otherwise, you believe in the Easter Bunny. Both parties are in the back pocket of these idiots and have been for decades......they just haven't been caught in such a glaring way -- until now.
12-02-2009 @ 4:42AM
Ed said...
Brian,
I agree with you 100%. If these companies had to bailed out with taxpayer money, then at least they should have put it in writeing that no employee makes more than 250K and no bonus can be paid out until all of the bailout money is paid back to the government. It's absoutley crazy how the bailout money is being used. These executives ran their companies into the ground and now they are going to get record million dollar bonuses for doing a bad job . Nuts!!!