Madoff Justice

As you know, the Bernard Madoff ponzi scheme took center stage earlier this year and thereafter a lengthy prison sentence ensued. But where were the regulators when millions of Americans where duped into risky mortgages by lending officers and their respective companies? Justice for Madoff victims, but what about the subprime folks? Where is their justice?

As we've always said, in America there are "different rules for different people." The Madoff scandal got coverage because it affected whom? Wealthy people. Whereas, the subprime victims were passed over because somehow their losses were deemed "less worthy" or otherwise less egregious than that of their more affluent counterparts. Yet, again the poor were screwed. Essentially, left out in the cold.

What's more is nobody in the mainstream media brings this point up! And it's so blatantly obvious what happened yet not a word is said about it. So, yet again we see a perfect example of the "uneven scales of justice" in this country. For some victims one treatment, and for yet another any lack of serious prosecutorial effort expended. Folks, let's face it, a crime is a crime. Securities fraud (or risky lending practices) are all crimes, whether they "technically" fit that definition is a matter for lawyers, but both were practiced by very unscrupulous people in the financial services arena and as such should be treated in a more uniform, even-handed manner. Again, instead what we get is a small sample size (Madoff victims) which is being handled by the courts at the highest levels and a much much larger catastrophe (subprime) which has largely been passed over in silence save a few cursory Congressional hearings meant to placate or place lipstick on blatant abuses within the system.

Clearly, somebody, anybody, needs to be held for account for subprime and its ongoing macroeconomic wake, but for the most part it's too late. What we must do now, is learn from the experience, promote greater financial education (and responsibility), and move on so that future (economic) crises can be adverted altogether. Unfortunately, as we have seen in the past, when the rubber hits the road, our lawmakers run for the hills rather than finally putting their foot down to corruption at the highest levels, particularly when it turns out many had their hands caught in the "cookie jar" (e.g. Countrywide sweetheart deals). This needs to stop, but unfortunately it won't. For Congress, it's incumbent upon us--to call them out--for their hypocrisy, early and often.