Don't Fuck With Robin Hood, Sheriff of Bankerham

Yesterday, a friend in the UK posted a link to her Facebook page for a project she's involved with: The Robin Hood Tax. Go check it out. There's a nice little video featuring Bill Nighy as a douchey banker trying to explain why this tax is a bad idea. (It's not a bad idea, by the way.)

The short of it is that by taxing banks 0.05% on non-consumer speculative trading, billions of dollars could be raised for, well, good things for real people.

So this project launches yesterday and people can vote on whether or not they think it's a good idea. The broad assumption from the people involved is that most regular people will agree with the sentiments. Supporters invite their friends and they outnumber the people who think it's a bad idea.

Well, within hours, people who thought it was a bad idea were voting at the rate of six votes per second. The Robin Hood Tax people thought something was a little strange with this scenario, so they shut down the site for a while to investigate.

This morning, the computer team had traced the IP address for the rapid voter back to... shocker of all shockers... a Goldman Sachs office in London. Goldman Sachs says it's "investigating the matter fully."

My UK friend assures me that the Robin Hood Tax movement will be making its way to the United States before too long. I like simple, good, easy-to-understand ideas. Well done, coalition-of-UK-organizations.

Steal This New Year's Resolution

Hey, B&E readers! Do you remember how at the end of the aughts (aka the Jack Bauer years, aka the 9/11 years, aka the fuck-the-public years, aka etc.) the United States government totally gave like billions of dollars to the very institutions that caused the financial crisis and then those institutions went right back to behaving exactly how they wanted? Yeah, that was a good time.

In general I'm not the biggest fan of New Year's as a holiday. I think I've said before that my birthday always feels like more of a well-defined marker for looking back on the year and setting some goals and doing all that other reflective stuff (yay, reflectors!) people do when they want to assess the general state of their lives.

So yeah... New Year's resolutions... I don't really make 'em. And although the Huffington Post is touting this as a New Year's resolution, I just think it's a Very Good Thing To Do.

It's called Move Your Money. And it makes a lot of sense to me. Read the essay and watch the movie (Look! It's a Wonderful Life!). The moral argument is pretty clear.

The missus and I are putting our money into a credit union. The missus has kept the minimum amount of money in there for a bunch of years, just so that she wouldn't lose her standing as a member. She never really knew why, but it just didn't seem like a good idea to give it up. How fortuitous!

When I first moved to Sunnyside, I put my money in Greenpoint Bank. I did it mostly because it was on the corner. Greenpoint was a large-ish community bank. It got eaten by a larger community/regional bank, North Fork, which had barely changed the signs before it got gobbled up by Capital One. Capital One isn't exactly the beast that Wells Fargo, Citigroup, Bank of America, and JP Morgan/Chase all are, but it's close, and I certainly can no longer call it a community bank.

My biggest concern about moving into the credit union was convenience. Do they have online banking services, cash cards, etc? Yes. They do. And yes, a community bank or credit union is insured by the FDIC, which means if the bank or credit union fails, the government still guarantees your deposits up to $250,000.

The only thing that will change in our everyday lives is that our credit union's ATMs are somewhat less ubiquitous. And most of their ATMs are located within McDonald's restaurants. I haven't been inside a McDonald's in New York for more than a decade, I would guess. So that'll be weird.

It'll probably be a month-long process to change everything over. I'll need to fill out a new direct deposit slip at my job; we'll need to reorganize all the bills that come out automatically, etc., etc., but a little bit of footwork (particularly footwork largely being done by the missus) seems worth it.

The fact is, our tiny amount of money doesn't make much difference to a bank that doles out millions of dollars in bonuses to the employees that screw us hardest. But it could make a difference if large amounts of people get involved. I mean, those monsters will always have the big corporate accounts, but then they'll be taking all those risks with corporate money instead of our meager savings.

Plus, those big banks wouldn't spend so much time and money advertising for our business if they didn't need a whole lot of us.

But meanwhile, our meager savings can actually make a real difference at a community bank or a credit union that, say, serves your neighbors.

Best of all, I feel like it's the most satisfying way to give the finger to the financial institutions that have fucked us right in the ear. The finger in exchange for getting fucked in the ear isn't much, but it's a start.

The HuffPo article doesn't (yet) discuss credit unions. Credit unions have different rules regarding disclosure that I admit I don't completely understand. But you can read more about them here. And I think we can invite a few locals to ours, if you're not already qualified to join it.

I need to give credit (unions) where credit (unions) is due. It was the missus who fully engaged with the idea and explored options. I sat by, shouted out a few concerns, which she mostly shouted down, while taking care of the logistics.

Thanks and Happy New Year, missus. You are, as always, tremendous.

And Happy New Year to my six faithful readers. You are the best readers in the world.

An Appropriate 10th Anniversary Celebration?

Well, the Huffington Post reminded me that today is the 10th anniversary of the repeal of Glass-Steagall Act.

You see, during the Great Depression, the government decided it would be a good idea to separate the commercial banks from the riskier investment banks. It protected consumers. Gosh, those New Dealers were so cute in their determination to help people. Silly New Dealers.

But the free marketeers of Reaganomics hated that shit, and the free-marketing Clinton administration repealed it, to much celebration within the Republican Party and, let's face it, the bulk of the Democratic Party, too. Free market good! Regulation baaaaaaad!

So what's the best way to celebrate the government's monstrous sellout of the people ten years ago, the sellout that almost certainly caused the current (monstrous) financial crisis?

Well, I don't know. But it sure as hell makes me want to do what the Swedes do and burn some fucking bunnies for fuel.

(I admit it: I've been looking for an excuse to share that link with you all for weeks.)

Oh, My Aching Back

I've largely stayed clear of commenting on the current health care debate for a couple of reasons: 1) The bill changes too rapidly to keep up, and I would go crazy tracking the details; 2) I'm a believer in a single-payer system, which has never been taken seriously as a solution by our corporate-owned political parties.

In other words, ideologically, I support reform. Real reform. Not bullshit reform. If whatever plan they end up passing (or not) doesn't include a robust (and I mean fucking robust) public option, it's bullshit reform.

This week, my ideological support for reform turned practical. I have what is generally considered to be "good insurance." My employer contributes toward my insurance costs (job perk!), but (especially since my wife is also covered) I pay for the majority of it myself (taken out pre-tax! Thanks, Republicans or Clinton (I assume)!)

It's got relatively low deductibles, the co-pay to see my primary doctor (whom I like quite a bit) is not outrageous, and I'm covered (I think) should something terrible happen, such as a stabbing on the subway or a massive coronary.

When I yanked my lower back last weekend, I went to see a chiropractor, also known by my insurance company as a "specialist." Well, the co-pay for a specialist is a hell of a lot higher than my co-pay for my "primary care physician." If you have to see a specialist once, say, to get a mole removed (as I have before), it's no big deal.

But when you need to see a "specialist" with some regularity... Dude, the shit adds up. I mentioned having some concern about being able to shell out this kind of money, and the chiropractor said, "Ah, I see you have [evil insurance company]. Your co-pay pretty much covers the cost of the session. We get another four or five bucks from them for you."

So I put in my several hundred dollars a freakin' month, and when I really hurt myself, [evil insurance company] covers four or five bucks. [Evil insurance company] is making a shitload of money off of me and the missus. I'd like to meet the person who gets my insurance contribution as a bonus. And I'd like to poke them in the fucking eye.

This, B&E readers, is the way things are with "good insurance." People opposed to single-payer or health reform are afraid that the government will stand between them and their doctors.

Well, people... Perhaps you haven't had the experience yet, but insurance companies stand between you and your doctor. And their motive is profit.

It is not the government's job to protect the market for health insurance. But so far, I have yet to see them do anything else.

So That Didn't Happen

Long-time readers may remember that a friend's mom predicted the end of the world in April 2009.

All that work on the underground bunker, all the prayers getting ready for the Rapture, all that time I spent skipping my 2008 taxes... wasted. Totally wasted.

My friend's mom better have a good goddamn reason for being so freakin' off-base... She was wrong. Completely wrong.

I'm completely unprepared for May's expenses: rent, bills, student loans, food... I'm hosed. Utterly hosed.

I Feel Terrible For You. Terrible.

The venerable New York Times has a story today that's got my boxer-briefs in a twist. It's about how bonus cuts hurt those beyond Wall Street.

I was naively expecting to read a little something about how, perhaps, nonprofit organizations, particularly in places like New York City, will see their individual giving reduced by enormous amounts this year. People who work in finance will often balance those giant bonuses with the tax breaks that accompany donations to nonprofits. Perhaps in turn, those donations aren't trickling down to the soup kitchens that feed so many homeless people.

Not so much.

Instead, it's about people who make a lot of money in cities other than New York who are used to getting bonuses larger than most salaries. This year, the poor bastards will have to make do with bonuses of $25,000 instead. The horror! THE HORROR!

Bonuses are rewards for a job particularly well done, I thought. If it's expected money at the end of the year, like it's some sort of regular thing, the company should really be paying it out as part of your salary.

Even if his bonus isn't as irresponsible as the millions doled out by insolvent international banking conglomerates, I find it very hard to empathize with some dude because he'll have to buy a cheaper new car this year, especially when he also says that the bonus money goes to "lifestyle maintenance" and not "frivolity."

My friend, your lifestyle maintenance is frivolity. It's very hard to care about your "plight" when so many people have real problems.

Dude, We Can Totally Go to Iceland!

When I make this whole financial crisis about me (because, after all, what is a blog if not a vehicle for narcissism), I see some silver linings.

The missus and I rent, we have debt, and we have no savings or retirement plans or anything. We do have good jobs with relative job security. Based on bshort's explanation of the economy in the comments below, this puts us in a pretty decent position with regard to this here recession.

Well, there's even better news. Some of you may remember that the missus and I went to Sweden last year. When we were exploring places to go, Iceland was actually pretty near the top of the list, but with the weak-ass dollar and the strong-ass kroner in Iceland, we just couldn't freakin' afford it.

But now Iceland's broke! The Icelandic kroner is tanking, the government has taken control of all the banks, and the Lutheran leaders of this Lutheran nation are calling for a return to traditional values (which I suspect means something a little different in Iceland than it does here).

Bring on the hot springs and long summer days and Ring Road and reindeer meat! Hell, I'm even (culturally if not religiously) Lutheran, so bring on the Lutherans!

Naomi Klein Is Smarter Than You (and Me)

With the collapse of our economy over these past few weeks, I've been meaning to give another shout-out to my journalist crush Naomi Klein. She knows things and explains them well, and she's been making the circuit on the talk shows, from schooling idiots on Fox News to having fun with Stephen Colbert.

For the second post in a row, I also need to give credit to Democracy Now!. Amy Goodman did me the pleasure of playing a full hour yesterday of Naomi giving a speech at the University of Chicago.

You see, the University of Chicago is building a $200,000,000 economics center to be named for free marketeer Milton Friedman. Milton taught at U of C, and influenced several generations of free market economists.

Naomi does a hell of a job of explaining what happens when this ideological economic theory gets played out in practice. (I'll give you a hint: It's not good.)

One would think that the market collapse would be an indictment of the Milton Friedman school of thought, but instead the right-wing followers of his theories are pushing for even less regulation. See "Gingrich, Newt."

Naomi's speech at U of C is wide-ranging, pointed, and smart. She discusses her grandparents, who were rabid Marxists, and their devastation of learning what was happening under Stalin in the Soviet Union. She tells this story to make an important point: the left has been held responsible for what happens to Marxist theory in practice.

Well, we've now reached a time when the right needs to be held responsible for the exploitation, greed, and devastation that occurs in the wake of right-wing, Milton Friedman, free market ideology when it plays out in practice.

Go, Naomi! Boy, I sure do have a crush on you. Maybe the missus will give me The Shock Doctrine in paperback for Christmas.

Another Reason I Wish I Was an Economist

Here in New York we're waking up to worldwide market crashing. So if we assume that...

- the missus and I have no investments,
- we don't own our own home, or any homes at all,
- we both have gainful employment...

Does any of this affect us at all?

And who's the bald lunatic screaming about money and taking it all so personally?

Man, the morning routine without NY1 totally blows.