I can see already how the Republicans are going to handle this... misdirection. Ask about Enron, answer about Clinton. J.D. Hayworth R, AZ. appeared on Crossfire and every time Bill Press asked him about Enron, good ol' boy J.D. would answer with an attack on Clinton. Now we see Mary Matalin using the same tactic. I can see it now; Ari Fleischer getting asked about the Bush/Enron connection and Ari answering; "oh yeah? well, well...well what about Clinton?" Don't get me wrong, Slick Willie was a slug. But Clinton's "transgressions" were penny-ante compared with the institutional looting of a multi-billion dollar business, possibly with the full knowledge and complicity of our president and his handlers. Hopefully, the American people can quickly and easily differentiate between technical misdemeanors and out-and-out felonies. The reason for all the defensiveness is that this is the worst possible thing that could have happened to the Bush administration. Indeed, were it not for Osama bin Laden, there would be no question but that the curtain would be coming down hard and fast. What is happening with Enron and the economy and the federal budget is all of one piece. The Enron shell game was exposed by the unexpected deterioration in the economy. Were it not for the recession, they probably would have been able to continue their slimy business operations for the foreseeable future. Similarly, the snake-oil in the Bush economic plan was designed to be masked by its back-loading of its most destructive aspects. Now, the recession and additional spending for defense, means that the deficits that were supposed to be hidden until the out years are revealed way too early for their designers. The Enron issue indicates how bankrupt not only the company is but also the energy policy. This is hardly surprising since the same people who wrote the energy policy wrote the Enron business plan. Sweet deals for fat-cats and corporations with no sense of social responsibility. This is your America today. Peace.
Ain't capitalism and the free market great? Deregulate some more! More free trade! More golden parachutes! Why is it that corporations are eager to transfer operations to where labor is cheaper ... but don't use an equavalent pay scale for the officers of the corporation? Curious Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
The Enron Chain Saw Massacre While I am interested in the links to the Bushes and the damage that this scandal may deliver to the ruling junta, this story goes much deeper than that. Forbes is hitting on a very fundamental issue. The role of auditors is to protect the shareholders. We have a very small number of huge accounting firms whom we trust to make sure that any monkey business is exposed so that shareholders aren't left holding the bag. Sometimes the auditors fail to uncover vital evidence of irregularities and the shareholders lose. That happens, and it is a black eye for the accounting firm in those cases. But this case is something much worse -- something so insidious that it should send a chill up the spine of every investor. It is looking like Andersen didn't just fail in their audit. The early evidence suggests that the auditing firm was actually a partner in crime, and now a partner in the cover-up. What Andersen did destroys confidence in all auditors everywhere. Is it overstating the case to say that Andersen's malfeasance is a direct assault one of the pillars of the free enterprise system? For all the talk of terrorists trying to attack our economic system, Arthur Anderson may have done far more damage than bin Laden could ever hope to do. Save us from our friends -- we can take care of our enemies. Peace.
I get the feeling that none of us will stick to Bush. He's blessed with the same defence Regan used - he didn't know and couldn't remember anyway. And like Reagan, everyone is prepared to believe he didn't have a clue - it's fairly obvious that life simply happens to Jr Bush, and he lines his pocket as the world blurs by. I find it surprising though that a country reeling from Clinton's various transgressions should turn to Bush to restore some ethics to the office. Am I missing something? Did the American people view the election as performance art in order to prove to the world that they do understand irony? Back to Enron though. Timing may be good for Bush. He was probably too busy running for office to do anything seriously illegal. Still, the kids a tryer so you never know. Little section from an article published on www.guerillanews.com:
Take the Money Enron According to an interview in the New York Times, Tom Cole, former chief of staff of the Republican Party, speaking of the Enron scandal to the New York Times said, "... in the wake of Sept. 11, this stuff seems pretty trivial." Republicans are sure quick to whip out the image of those flag-drapped coffins whenever it's convenient. At Enron if you wanted a pension, you invested your funds back into the company or you had no pension. Enron forced its employees to put all of their pension money into an obscenely over-valued stock. The stock's price shot falsely high because of Enron management's fraudulent practices, so the workers were forced to buy stock for $80 per share that is now bringing in close to 30ยข per share. Then there are all the non-Enron employees who invested all or some of their life savings in the now worthless certificates. Enron management cashed in its stock when it was at or near its highest price. So the workers and stockholder got screwed. So what? Those are the little people, the Republican Party represents the rest of the people -- you know, Kenny Boy and his pals. Enron appears central in the rip-off of anyone who bought electricity in California during a price-gouging scandal that forced many businesses to fold and made many families choose between food or electricity. So the consumers of California got screwed too. Those are the little people. Besides, Enron was only doing a little profit taking. That's what capitalism is all about -- buy low, sell high -- and rig the game whenever possible. President Bush calls Enron's C.F.O. Ken Lay, "Kenny Boy." Sort of smacks of familiarity, wouldn't you say? Rigging the game is a cinch if you know the right people, and you can bet that Kenny Boy knows the right people. I think that the Bush administration knew this was coming and did nothing to protect or warn victims... oh, and don't bother chastising Tome Cole for trying to obfuscate these dirty deeds by playing the "September 11th" card. He's just telling the truth -- from his point of view. The simple truth is that chastising Tom Cole for lying to the American public is like beating the cat after he pees on the carpet. He doesn't know what you're talking about and couldn't care less. Peace.
Aint Capitalism great? A bunch of ABC Business school graduates get together and start a company. The company goes public. Meaning they got to play with publc money (just like the government). They inflate the stock price while cozy up to the political leaders (so that no body will smell a rat). Suck as much money out of the till and guess what we are bankcrupt.... Enron knew how to play the game. They learned that if you honestly make tons of money using loophole in the law (like Columbia/HCA) then the government will come after you. But if you play the political game, no body will be the wiser. This happens every year. Hundreds of companies go belly up. The CEO or the senior officials do not want to save it. Because death has more benefits than life. In the last two years, I was involved in 3 companies that the middle managers wanted to save the companies. Their efforts were turned down. Later on all three filed Chap 11 and the CEO, President received tons of money. Because these are public money and money is invested from the retirement accounts of millions of people, there should be a law that says if a company files Chap 7-11 , then no executive shall benefit from stock option or any $ beyond his/her base salary that is due prior to 12 months of said file. The other part is that the same auditor should not do consulting for the same company. It is like the fox is watching the hen house. The American public lost trillions of dollars in the game these public companies play. Unfortunately there is not a better system out there. So, some regulation is needed to keep the poor from getting poorer. It is not good for the country. It will make the middle class disappear in a few short years.
another thread i thought relevant to 911 a lot of the documents surrounding the enron scandal was destroyed when wtc7 collapsed
