First things first...

Let's start with an easy one: Modern Banking

If there is one thing that recent events have taught us is that the money supply in this country -- and worldwide for that matter -- is truly controlled by less than 100 people. Focusing on the U.S. for a moment, and we see that number is even smaller. Obviously our president and the Fed Chair and Secretary of the Treasury get most of the credit but who do you think they really talk to every day when they are not parading around in front of the cameras? They consult the heads of the very companies who have been deemed "Too big to Fail." Yes, the elite club of middle aged men and women who are so bad at there jobs and/or so driven by greed that they either can't see or don't care what is going on outside their gated communities, plush country clubs, private jets and chauffeured rides to and from their $100,000 offices and multi-million dollar homes, vacation homes, resort bungalows and getaways.

Granted, not all of the elite rich are bankers, but it is with and in the banking and financial industry that the real money is made. Do you really think that an organization like JPMorgan Chase cares whether my measly salary get direct deposited to them or not? or if Wells Fargo really cares about my puny mortgage? NO. The real way these organizations make money is through their work with the ultra rich and there companies. 6% on a $125,000 mortgage isn't quite as exciting to a bank as 6% on a $10 million house or 6% on a $100 million merger.

Thats not to mention all these "Troubled" assets, Credit Default Swaps and other exotic financial products that no one can unravel, understand or even assign an actual value to. Does anyone know what its called if the average citizens makes a financial certificate and passes it off to other people as something of value?? Counterfeiting and Fraud; but how do we hear newsmen and women from CNN, MSNBC and Fox News describe it? They do the new American cliche, they pass the blame to others by referring to a lack of oversight, an underfunded and understaffed SEC, a lack of laws, or they simply say nothing underhanded or illegal was done, this was all just a case of bad timing.

Check back for future commentary on Mark to Market Rules, Defense Contracting, Taxes, and anything else that popsup on the radar...