Letters to the Editor
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A Few Comments about the WSJ Article and Salon's Piece
First off, I agree that smoking pot is no big deal. It should be legalized, or at least decriminalized, in this country.
Also, to be fair, the WSJ article outlines several other complaints about this guy's performance during this summer's hedge fund crisis. Let's not blame the pot for everything here.
Also, this whole thing pulls back the curtain a little bit to show how America's financial titans of really behave. It's not the first time the head of a company was MIA during a meltdown. But it does give the lie to the illusion that the Wall Street wizards operate on another plane of existence from the rest of us.
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DAYUM!
I THOUGHT ALL THOSE WALL STREET GUYS WERE COKE FIENDS AND PILL POPPERS.
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Stoned Head and Bare Stern
Is this about Britney Spears?
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Yeah I'm with the other anon
I thought they were all damn cokeheads? Pot actually makes me feel better.
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Focus of the WSJ article
Regardless of what the focus was, the marijuana seems to be the part of the story that is getting people talking. I have already seen that portion discussed/joked about on CNBC.
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They're punishing him, simple as that
The guy was asleep at the wheel. It cost people money. They're going to look for something and they are going to punish him for a long time. That is how business works. If you screw up, people are going to find something about you and rub your face in it, usually for years. He could have been a three martini guy or been cheating on his wife, but he's into the herbs.
By the way, that is still illegal, isn't it? I personally think we should be allowed to grow it in our planter boxes, but it is illegal, so I don't do it. One would think that a guy in a position of authority (in control of assloads of money) would learn to be more circumspect and find more trustworthy people to indulge with.
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Yeah let's lionize/feel bad for
A guy who awarded himself a bonus last year roughly the size of the GDP of Belgium. What will the persecuted pluotcrats do?
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Bear Stearns Potdummy
I smoked pot when I was a kid, myself. Then I grew the f@ck up. I'm middle-aged now, and I don't know a single adult chronic pothead who doesn't exhibit signs of lazy thinking, lack of judgment, and overall irritating personality quirks.
F&ck adult pot smokers. Seriously, f@ck 'em. Bear Stearns shareholders and all those foreclosed homeowners should be calling for this dummy's smoke-filled head.
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I'm a real @sshole, sorry
I just went back and reread my post above (anonymous 1:23), and I realize that I must be a champion d%ck to write something like that. My regular drunken behavior has annoyed people too (left a few bruises and blood too), so I have no right to criticize the potheads. I just get clammy when I haven't had a cigarette for 20-30 minutes, and my Oxycontin script ran out too (what a bad day!). However, now I've had my Red Bull, and I can think clearly again.
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Lessons Learned
I suppose everyone walks away with their own interpetation of the facts, but to me, the key thing is that Cayne/Bear let the two hedge funds go broke. Other than a bridge loan to help the less leveraged fund liquidate its assets in a more orderly fashion, the funds were simply liquidated. The investors lost their money. And they are wrapping things up in the Caymons - a nice touch designed to level the playing field when the inevitable litigation begans.
Speculators in the Enhanced Leverage Bear Stearns High-Grade Structured Credit Strategies Fund got exactly what happens to capital exposed to "enhanced leverage" when something goes wrong. They lost it.
Bear's reputation took a hit, but everyone was consenting adults here. Exactly what did the investors not understand about enhanced leverage?
In contrast, Citi has no legal obligation to prop up its SIV's. Yet they are bleeding credibility by the minute as they equivocate regarding their obligations. It's off balance sheet, so why not let it go? Or if they are going to bail it out, then put it on the balance sheet. Or if they are merely going to double down with another SIV, then give everyone a break. Especially their abused shareholders.
Meanwhile, just who is Meredith Whitney of CIBC and why does she show up on Fox and how should she have the inside on whether C will keep their dividend. And why did she wait until today to bash the stock. I'm not sure anyone cares about any of it.
Still, at least Cayne wasn't so stoned that he thought that managing a hedge fund meant that the firm was on the hook for losses due to enhanced leverage.
C has to decide if it cares about its owners, the shareholders, or letting the SIV's prove their off balance sheet status. Before they bleed to death.
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I thought...
I thought it was 'splif'...
I had someone ask for a 'lid' and I commented that I haven't 'done a lid' in years. I was surprised that some older guy cracked a grin and nodded.
All of the sudden I wondered what 'lid' stood for now now. Especially after many years ago saying that 'I needed a trim' and getting dirty looks from some black women standing nearby... After learning what that meant, I was surprised I only got dirty looks.
I inhaled. I lived a life. I've moved on. Don't miss it...
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This is exactly what is wrong with the enforcement of drug laws in America.
White boy Jimmy can puff away in private without consequence. Meanwhile, the black guy who happens to give dope-dealing friend a lift, will end up with 10 years in jail. Rich white kids can snort, pop or puff away without fear of police harassment. By contrast, black kids are disproportionately searched and jailed. Working class whites also wind up with their homes being ripped apart in drug raids just by virtue of associating with known drug users.
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Cute
"I just went back and reread my post above (anonymous 1:23), and I realize that I must be a champion d%ck to write something like that. My regular drunken behavior has annoyed people too (left a few bruises and blood too), so I have no right to criticize the potheads. I just get clammy when I haven't had a cigarette for 20-30 minutes, and my Oxycontin script ran out too (what a bad day!). However, now I've had my Red Bull, and I can think clearly again."
Cute, anonymous poser, very cute. I don't drink, smoke, or do drugs, but that's really besides the point. If I were someone in charge of billions of other people's money, untold thousands of people who were relying on me to take good care of it, I would take my job pretty seriously and keep my head as clear as possible. Let me guess: You are in charge of.... nothing?