By Richard (RJ) Eskow, Our Future.org

“Please allow me to introduce myself, I’m a man of wealth and taste …”

“Some people,” my mother used to say, “are just no damned good.” This was from somebody who rarely used bad language around us, and it was usually said with an air of bemused resignation rather than white-hot rage. I’ve always leaned a little more toward the possibility of redemption myself. But the more I learn about Wall Street,the more I see the wisdom in Mom’s words.

The latest lawsuit against Morgan Stanley raises the question again: Are a whole lot of Wall Street executives “just no damned good”? The evidence is overwhelming: They cheated. They lied. They used racial discrimination to make a fast buck at the expense of African Americans, ripped off their own investors (including working people’s pension funds), and then took a huge bailout from the American people.

Then, once they were safely ensconced back on their plutocratic perch and raking in more unearned wealth, they quickly deployed huge amounts of that money – to subvert our political process. That way they can loosen regulations on their ownindustry while forcing us to accept an austerity program like the “Simpson Bowles” plan, which imposes even more hardship on the majority while offering even more tax breaks to people like Morgan Stanley’s executives.

Did we mention that Erskine Bowles, co-author of that plan, is on the Board of Directors of Morgan Stanley?

“Pleased to meet you, Hope you guess my name …”

[OUR FUTURE]

Image via: flickr.com

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