Archive for category Show Them the $$$
A Tragedy of the First Proportion?
Posted by Lance Haley in 2010 Election, BP oil spill, Business and Money, Campaigns, Capitalism, Energy, Environment, Government, House of Representatives, How and Why We Get Screwed, Oil, Politics, Republicans, Show Them the $$$, White House on June 17th, 2010
No, the heading of this post is not a reference to the tragic deaths of the eleven men killed from the horrific explosion and fire on that Gulf oil rig. Nor is that heading alluding to the environmental devastation being wrought upon Gulf coast region by the oil spill. And it is not even a commentary on the hardships the people of the Gulf coast are experiencing.
Quite to the contrary.
That statement was Texas Republican Representative Joe Barton’s characterization of the outcome of the meeting between BP executives and President Obama in the Oval Office on Wednesday – where BP voluntarily agreed to pay $20 Billion into a fund to cover legal claims for the oil spill. Barton seems to think that BP had no choice in the matter – describing it as a political “shakedown” – and then openly apologized to BP’s embattled CEO, Tony Hayward, as more Congressional hearings got underway this morning. Here is what Barton had to say:
“I’m ashamed of what happened in the White House yesterday . . . [it's] a tragedy of the first proportion, that a private corporation can be subjected to what I would characterize as a shakedown, a $20 billion shakedown.”
Furthermore, Barton attempted to insinuate that BP was denied it’s right to utilize the legal system by invoking the constitutional doctrine of “due process and fairness” - thereby concluding that BP entered the agreement under duress, thus ostensibly elevating it to the level of “a tragedy of first proportion”; at least in Barton’s obviously warped world-view.
If anything, Barton’s response is so remarkably disproportionate, it begs the question as to how he could reach such an extraordinarily nonsensical conclusion? Want a not so little clue?
M-$-O-$-N-$-E-$-Y!
Barton – who is the top Congressional recipient of almost $1.5 million in political campaign contributions from the oil industry over the past 20 years – is just another shameless Big Oil shill in Washington, who is willing to do the bidding for their interests; all while placing the interests of average Americans at the bottom of the barrel.
Barton may be the only Republican brazen enough, or outright stupid enough, to say what he really thinks. I guess money and power will do that to you. Other Republicans simply insinuated that it was another Obama-style government takeover, of sorts. Their “measured responses” are just a veil for the same manner of thinking.
Meanwhile, as I am just finishing writing this post, Barton has suddenly issued a retraction of his earlier apology to BP CEO Tony Hayward – not so ironically, under duress from Republican leadership. In Barton’s mind, that is probably compounding the “tragedy of first proportion”? But even soul-less politicians have to compromise from time-to-time.
Nevertheless, don’t be fooled. After all, defending Corporate America is the primary business of the Republicans. Meanwhile, the small business owners of the Gulf Coast are cast afloat on a proverbial sea of oil, all going to Hell in a hand-basket together.
Let’s just hope the voters remember that come November.
Massive Document Spill in Washington by Goldman Sachs
Posted by Lance Haley in Bailouts, Banking, Business and Money, Capitalism, Congress, Financial Crisis, Financial Terrorists, Government, House of Representatives, How and Why We Get Screwed, Show Them the $$$, Wall Street, financial industry on June 17th, 2010
WHERE’S WALDO?
Lost in the news cycle that has been inundated with stories regarding the Gulf oil spill, there was another giant “spill” that is overwhelming Congressional and SEC watchdogs.
Goldman Sachs is playing a classic legal game of “Where’s Waldo” with the Congressional Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission by first refusing requests for documents related to the commission’s inquiry, and then suddenly dumping (delivering) hundreds of millions of documents all at one time - a legal maneuver intended to obfuscate and hide the proverbial “smoking gun” documents that may be lurking beneath that mountain of paper.
You can be certain most of those documents that were delivered have nothing to do with the Congressional inquiry. Moreover, it will take years to scour through them to find the one’s that really matter - assuming they haven’t already been quietly deleted and/or shredded. By the time this thing is over – years from now - Goldman Sachs will have likely have made enough money to pay a “small fine”, and then buy the remaining portion of Congress that they and the rest of Corporate America don’t already own.
The message from Goldman Sachs: we worked diligently at providing the documentation that you have requested, and we can ensure you that we left nothing out (except maybe the sh!t that really matters). Oh, and good luck finding what you are looking for,
If this was the Pecora Commission, you could bet that Lloyd Blankfein and Company – you know, those guys on Wall Street that are doing “God’s work”- would be a lot more cooperative. Yet, Lloyd’s betting this dog ain’t got no teeth. I hate to admit it, but Blankfein is probably right.
So the question should not be ”Where’s Waldo”?
Americans should all be asking “Where’s Percora“?
JP Morgan Apologizes for Saying What They Think, So You Don’t Think About What They Said
Posted by Lance Haley in Bailouts, Banking, Business and Money, Capitalism, Economics, Financial Crisis, Financial Terrorists, Government, How and Why We Get Screwed, Senate, Show Them the $$$, Wall Street, economy, financial industry on May 5th, 2010
YOU CAN’T UNRING THE BELL . . .
A top executive and economic analyst at mega-bank JP Morgan Chase trashed U.S. senators in a company memo to the bank’s clients - stating that they showed “an unnerving ignorance of fundamental principles of market economics” regarding the Goldman Sachs hearings, and said “it’s time for the grownups to step in” regarding financial reform.
Interesting . . .
These same banks showed an unnerving ignorance of fundamental principles of market economics when coming to the taxpayers for bailouts; which suggests that it’s time for the grownups to step in, and teach them a lesson about what happens when you demonstrate an unnerving ignorance of fundamental principles of market economics – you lose the privilege to have such a powerful influence over OUR economy.
The grownups need to make TBTF (Too Big To Fail) = TSTM (Too Small To Matter) – break up these childish Big Banks.
P.S. After a spokesperson for JP Morgan Chase issued an apology for the memorandum – stating that it “does not reflect the views of our firm” – you could here the collective chant from JP Morgan headquarters as they covered their ears . . . “THE BELLS, THE BELLS, THE BELLS.”
Republicans Suddenly “Get Religion” On Financial Reform?
Posted by Lance Haley in 2010 Election, Bailouts, Banking, Business and Money, Campaign Finance Reform, Campaigns, Capitalism, Congress, Financial Crisis, Financial Terrorists, Government, How and Why We Get Screwed, Politics, Republicans, Senate, Show Them the $$$, Wall Street, White House, financial industry on April 26th, 2010
Several weeks ago Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell and Senator John Cornyn, leader of the National Republican Senatorial Committee – a principle Republican campaign fund-raising organization – flew to New York City to meet with Wall Street. Looming on the “dark horizon” was another long and bitter battle with President Obama and the Democrats over the proposed financial reform bill. It was safe to assume that Republicans would drag this one out like they did health care reform so as to impact the coming Fall mid-term elections.
True to form, McConnell and Cornyn made their pitch to the money-changers sitting in the temple – which was 25 Wall Street executives and hedge fund managers. The two powerful Senators made it very clear that in order for the Republicans to have any chance to take back control of the Senate and the House, they would need Wall Street’s assistance. As one anonymous Wall Street executive in attendance so eloquently put it, “There was no arm twisting, but they did say that we should feel uncomfortable living in any country where one party has unfettered ability to pass anything [legislation] . . . President Obama dreams up.”
I hope I don’t have to spell out what the Republicans quid pro quo was? $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ . . . and lots of it.
So upon the Senator’s return to Washington, McConnell immediately announces that the Republicans are united in their oppostion to the Democrats’ financial reform bill, and they will utilize every procedural move to block the proposed regulatory-laden legislation because it will risk future tax-payer bailouts. That was just two weeks ago.
Fast forward one week, with one big freakin’ revelation about Goldman Sachs’ “gaming the system” to the $1 Billion detriment of several of their institutional clients, as well as proposals for much stronger derivatives regulation coming out of another Senate committee – and the Republicans are caught in a trap that they set for themselves.
Yet, in spite of the fact that the Republicans suddenly reversed course and were quickly backing away from supporting their Wall Street financiers, appearing more conciliatory towards President Obama and the Democrats than they have in more than 14 months, Mitch McConnell would have you believe that he has the Democrats on the ropes.
McConnell seems to think he should get credit for forcing the Democrats to negotiate. Senator Chris Dodd, Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee and author of the pending legislation, responded to McConnell’s baseless bragging, saying this:
“That is like a rooster taking credit for the sunrise.”
YEP!
UPDATE: Now after two days of filbustering and holding up floor debate on financial reform, McConnell got those Democrats to negotiate again – or was it get the voters to forget about the GOP’s siding with Wall Street by November?
SEC Diddles While Rome Burns
Posted by Lance Haley in Banking, Business and Money, Capitalism, Financial Crisis, Financial Terrorists, Government, How and Why We Get Screwed, Legal & Justice, Politics, Republicans, Senate, Show Them the $$$, U.S. District Courts, Wall Street, financial industry on April 26th, 2010
DID WATCHING PORN CAUSE THE FINANCIAL CRISIS?
This author was highly critical of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) limp-dicked response to the Bank of America bailout scandal – here, here, here, and especially HERE - which was finally settled several months ago.
Federal Judge Jed Rakoff was incensed at the SEC’s handling of that case – and he publicly admonished SEC lawyers and regulators in a series of blistering critiques at their apparently cozy relationship with BoA executives and lawyers in trying to reach a settlement in that matter. Click on the link above to read the judges comments.
At least Judge Rakoff demonstrated that he has balls, and he vicariously told the SEC in no uncertain terms that they need to grow some testicles. I guess they got the message, in light of their recent case filed against Goldman Sachs.
And speaking of SEC testicles . . .
While Bernie Madoff was screwing his investors out of $50 Billion, and Goldman Sachs was screwing the rest of the world out of whatever money remained, SEC lawyers and high-ranking officials were watching porn stars screw one another.
And then we all got screwed – up the A$$!
Responding to the scandal, SEC spokesman John Nester released a statement that said, “each of the offending employees has been disciplined or is in the process of being disciplined.”
WAIT A MINUTE!?!
Doesn’t SEC Chairman Mary Shapiro realize that is exactly what these naughty boys want - punishment? Wonder if she used her bare hand, or a whip?
“Oooh, Mary baby . . . I’m a such bad boy. Pleezzze, spank me real hard. Pleeezzze?!?”
What a bunch of jack-offs – both literally and figuratively speaking.
On a final note: one of the SEC porn-watchers was a female staff accountant . An chance someone from the SEC can send me her email address and phone number? :)
P.S. To Senator Chuck Grassley and all of you other Republicans trying to use this as political fodder for undermining financial reform - this porn scandal happened on former SEC Chairman Christopher Cox’s watch. He was a Bush Republican appointee, confirmed by a Republican-controlled Senate!
NCAA Announces “Much-Needed Assistance” to Perpetuate Duke Dynasty
Posted by Lance Haley in Business and Money, CBS, CBS Sports, Humor, Media & Communication, Show Them the $$$, Sports on April 22nd, 2010
As has been widely anticipated, the NCAA will now expand the men’s national basketball championship tournament from a field of 64 teams to 68 teams. There was speculation that the field could be expanded to as many as 96 teams.
However, every little bit of help will be greatly appreciated by CBS, Duke and the NCAA.
Moreover, all of the games will be televised from beginning to end. So Jim Nance, Clark Kellogg, Bill Packer and Dick “Dukey” Vitale can cover all six Duke games on CBS, and push the other #1 seeds’ games over to Turner Broadcasting while they get knocked out of the tournament. See how much sense this makes?
Everyone makes more $$$$$$.
So let’s see, the NCAA basketball tournament selection committee can now take a few more of the higher-seeded teams that would have been in Duke’s bracket, spread them around to the other three brackets, and take the new 67-68-69-70 teams and put them in Duke’s bracket – “for procedural reasons“, of course.
There, that should “fix it” even better.
Goldman Sachs’ “Fabulous Fab’s” Fabulous Fraud
Posted by Lance Haley in Bailouts, Banking, Business and Money, Capitalism, Economics, Financial Crisis, Show Them the $$$, Wealth Disparity & the Ultra Rich, financial industry on April 20th, 2010
“THERE IS A SUCKER BORN EVERY MINUTE”
- David Hannum [no, it was not P.T. Barnum]
Confidence is the single most important element of any fraud.
That is why fraud schemes are called confidence games or confidence tricks.
Ever heard of a “Three Card Monte“? It is the most classic con game run on the streets. This is a card game that initially inspires confidence in the “mark” – the person who is the target of the fraud - by showing them how easy it is to make money by making the correct bet. Both the dealer and another person pretending to play the game conspire together in order to make the “mark” feel confident that he will win game. In other words, the game is already rigged before the “mark” even plays.
Moreover, it preys on several elemental human flaws: greed and ego. That is why it works. We always think we can do better than other people – that we are smarter than them; and, once we start we cannot stand to lose money, so we keep upping the bet to make up for our rising losses. That’s why Vegas makes so much money. They rely on our greed and ego to lead us to the tables. As does Goldman Sachs (GS) down on Wall Street.
Except in Goldman Sachs’ case – just like a “3 Card Monte” - they create a fraud. At least that’s what the SEC is now alleging. And the allegations are not looking too good on paper. Nor in the national business media, as numerous business journalists - here, here and here - weigh in on the matter, gleefully watching as GS twists in the firestorm of their own creation that appears to be developing.
The best response came from Dylan Ratigan, former business journalist for CNBC and current host of The Dylan Ratigan Show on MSNBC. After GS posted its press release authored by company spokesman Lucas van Praag, Ratigan fired-off a serious of questions for Goldman Sachs to answer. If you want a preview of the cross-examination in this case, this will be as good a template as you will see.
What’s even worse are the emails that the young Goldman executive who was setting up these deals was sending when the parties were deep in the midst of putting this together; deals designed to benefit his company – resulting in a very large bonus for him – and virtually ensuring that many of Goldman’s own clients were going to be left holding the bag, while one client profited handsomely . Fabrice Tourre, the self-proclaimed “Fabulous Fab”, sent the following message to someone:
“Only potential survivor, the fabulous Fab standing in the middle of all these complex, highly leveraged, exotic trades he created without necessarily understanding all of the implications of those monstrousities!!!”
So Goldman is circling the wagons, and denying any wrong-doing. However, what Goldman is conveniently omitting – not ironically, given their business practices at issue - is that they failed to disclose to clients investing on one side of the “confidence game”, that Goldman was actively working for another client on the other side of the confidence game whose interests were diametrically opposed to the first parties’. And they said nothing, while making huge fees off both clients. It’s a classic conflict of interest scenario – which is tantamount to fraud if they breached a duty to disclose that fact – and the fact was a material issue central to the transaction.
Moreover, Goldman Sachs’ claim that they “lost money” on this deal may be tenuous, at best. The fact that the value of the investment may have dropped over time does not account for the fact that GS had purchased huge insurance policies to mitigate those losses, as well as buying “shorts” in order to make money as the value dropped – which could actually result in a hefty profit.
Nevertheless, Goldman Sachs insinuates that it will never admit they have done anything wrong; that “it will be a cold day in Hell. After all, it was Goldman Sachs’ CEO, Lloyd Blankfein, who was quoted in The Times :
“I’M DOING GOD’S WORK.”
Frankly, Lloyd, I think it was Satan’s work.
And maybe Hell will freeze over . . .
UPDATE: Here is a guide to the Goldman Sachs issue from U.S. News and World Report.
Dick Vitale Bribes 2010 NCAA Committee for Duke’s Bracket Bailout
Posted by Lance Haley in Capitalism, Show Them the $$$, Sports on March 16th, 2010
ALLEN FIELD HOUSE - HOME OF MODERN DAY COLLEGE BASKETBALL
How else could you explain the NCAA selection committee’s decision to give Duke a Wall Street-sized Bracket Bailout when establishing the other #1 seeds’ Road to the Final Four?
After all, Dick “Dookey V” Vitale, as he is known in many circles, is a shamelessly biased shill for Duke, and CBS’s favorite “color man” for college basketball. I can just hear Vitale’s phone conversation with the NCAA Selection Committee setting Duke’s easy wade through the South bracket to the Final Four. It was fait accompli. Besides, according to him and much of the East Coast media and sports writers, that sixty miles between Durham (Duke’s home town) and Chapel Hill, North Carolina (North Carolina’s home town) is the center of the college basketball universe.
OK, seriously now.
Kansas is the #1 team in the country, and the top #1 seed in the tournament; that entitles them to play in the “softest” bracket – starting with the weakest seed (#64). They earned that right. That is the standard operating procedure for any sports tournament – unless, of course, you have an agenda. Dan Guerrero, Chairman of the NCAA Selection Committee, gave the lamest excuse when it came to the rationalizing placement of the Top #2 seed, Ohio State, as well as an over-laden bevy of talented teams in Kansas’ bracket: he said it was a “procedure” decision. Guerrero and his shameless NCAA peers’ transparent bias for Duke is made even more apparent by the fact that the 64th position (the weakest seed) is being decided in a game tonite. Guess who the winner of that game plays? That’s right! Duke. WTF?
Maybe it’s jealousy and irreverant contempt for college basketball’s Midwest roots. Never mind that Kansas University and Allen Field House is the center of the college basketball universe. Duke and North Carolina basketball are not even in existence but for the legacy of Kansas University, where the Father of Basketball, James Naismith first brought his newly-developed game into the limelight near the turn of the 20th Century.
Moreover, you have the revered and deeply feared Allen Fieldhouse - opposing players and coaches hate playing there because of it’s unprecedented college basketball history and the deafening crowd noise – the place which gave birth to modern college basketball; as in the likes of Adolph Rupp (Kentucky), Dean Smith (North Carolina), and “Phog” Allen - the namesake of the field house – who coached both of them. Legend even has it that Allen and many other old ghosts like Wilt Chamberlain haunt opposing teams who step into “The Phog” – where the longest current home-game winning streak is held.
As for the opinon of the national sportswriters and baskeball analysts who seem to think this whole deal was rigged – here is just a few snippets of their condemnation of this apparent bias:
Stewart Mandel of Sports Illustrated (SI.com) said “For reasons known only to the 10 people in that room, the selection committee tapped Kansas its No. 1 overall seed, placed it in the Midwest, then inexplicably stuck it with the most loaded field of any region, hands down.”
Mike DeCourcy’s piece for Sporting New’s College Basketball segment’s headline reads “NCAA gives Duke cupcake draw in South Region“, and he was also quoted in NBC’ Sports’ “Beyond the Arc”, stating that ”The Devils couldn’t have gotten a greater gift from the committee if the entire tournament were moved to Cameron Indoor Stadium.” He was referring to the Duke Blue Devils and their home-court.
But nationally syndicated sports writer Jason Whitlock just cut right to the heart of the matter: Duke is television ratings gold, and the NCAA is in the process of negotiating a new TV contract for its prized tournament . . . [t]he NCAA needs another bump.” That would be spelled M$O$N$E$Y.
Moreover, the inevitable expansion to a 96 team field for the National Championship tournament has to be a dream come true for the NCAA and Duke. Duke head coach Mike Krzysewski said in a recent interview, he supports the expansion. Of course he does. And so does CBS – or whatever network buys the future television rights. Every year, the NCAA Committee can put even more cupcake teams in Duke’s bracket, and load the higher seeded teams with a truckload of the more difficult teams. Thereby significantly increasing the probability that Duke makes it the finals.
The bottom line for the NCAA’s March Madness is “the bottom line”.
As for the NCAA Committee, here is hoping the most famous ghost of college baskeball comes back to haunt all of you . . .
Pay Heed . . . Beware of “The Phog”.
Harry Markopolos’ $50 Billion Dollar Failure
Posted by Lance Haley in Bailouts, Business and Money, Capitalism, Congress, Crime & Punishment, Economics, Financial Crisis, Financial Terrorists, Government, How and Why We Get Screwed, Legal & Justice, Politics, Sarah Palin, Show Them the $$$, Wall Street, Wealth Disparity & the Ultra Rich, economy, financial industry on March 2nd, 2010
![dumb and dumber [2]](http://screwedus.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/dumb-and-dumber-23.jpg "dumb and dumber [2]")
S.E.C. LAWYERS’ GRADUATION CLASSES: 1999-2008
If you hired a security guard to watch your house, and it kept getting burglarized – even after someone told him countless times who the thief was – would you let him keep his job?
Stupid question, you say? Really?
So why do we keep the same morons on our government payroll to watch the financial markets? Now that is a good question. And there really is a simple answer. The foxes make sure to instruct their under-lords to have those dumb sharecropper farmers whom they pay beggars wages to for working their land, to keep that same old deaf and blind dog guarding the chicken coop. This metaphor should not be lost on anyone.
Bernie Madoff may be a household word – and one of Time magazines 2009 Top 100 people who affected the world. But Harry Markopolus is just another quiet hero in a global financial market run by pimps and whores. Markopolus has a new book coming out today called, “No One Would Listen“. The book chronicles the story of how Markopolus doggedly pursued a fraud case against Bernie Madoff from 1999 through 2008 by trying to get the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lawyers to investigate Madoff’s House of Cards. All to no avail.
WTF you might ask? At least that’s what I have been saying since this story first broke in early 2009 when Markopolus testified before Congress (you can read his testimony right here), and then was interviewed by CBS’s 60 Minutes.
This is beyond a comedy of errors. This is Dumb and Dumber, The Three Stooges, and Beevis and Butthead all working in concert to unwittingly thwart one another while the criminals continued to steal from us with unbridled impunity. Now is that not a terrifying image? Meet your S.E.C., America. Wall Street owns these guys.
Starting in 1999, Markopolus made several attempts to give the most fundamental proof of Madoff’s fraud to numerous investigators at the S.E.C. - all of which was either willfully or woefully ignored (Markopolus calls them “idiots” – that is too kind, don’t you think, Sarah Palin? I would have called them retards). By 2007, he was fed up with their wanton stupidity, and decided to document it by submitting a nineteen (19) page memorandum to the S.E.C. outlining the basis for his claim. That too, was ignored.
View the complete 60 Minutes interview with Markopolos - or just watch the real BOMBSHELL from minute 7:25 to 8:18 of the interview. That brief one minute segment is incomprehensible. And you wonder why so many investors were “Madoffed” by Bernie?
So after all this, has anything changed?
Hell no!
Harry Markopolus is still trying to settle his first big whistle-blower case, he has spent years living in fear, and yet he remains undeterred in his dogged pursuit of financial racketeers and corporate fraudsters. Of course, his new book should help keep his wife and young boys fed until payday comes. Ironically, Markopolus refers to himself as a “$50 Billion dollar failure”- because he could not get the S.E.C. to listen. One might conclude that he is being flippant, since he all but beat them over the head with his evidence. However, he is serious about characterizing this as his “failure” - he honestly takes it very personally that all these people were hurt by Madoff’s fraud in the face of the S.E.C.’s utter incompetence.
You just have to love this man. After all this, the crooks and the “police” shirk responsibility, and the hero feels guilty? And you wonder why it seems the world has started spinning in the other direction?
Meanwhile, back at the S.E.C., they are still re-disorganizing the deck chairs on the U.S.S. Financial Titanic, and there should be smooth sailing on the calm seas of Neo-Capitalism all the way back to port. No need to worry. They have their securities regulation minions fast asleep on night watch while the next massive financial iceberg awaits in the darkness. And brace yourself, because this next one’s really going to be a doozy folks.
In the meantime, bring them some Dom Perignon, the exquisite pate’, and that rare Russian escargot they just had imported, all paid for with your financial bailouts. And don’t forget to put that on a silver platter.
Oh, they almost forgot to mention it. You can ignore the water rising on the Italian marble dining room floor. That’s just from the watered-down financial regulation reform we are about to get from Wall Street’s wholly-owned public subsidiary, Congress. They have the S.E.C working on that minor leak down in the hull right now.
One Final Note: please do not bother counting the number of lifeboats. Those seats have all been reserved.
Enjoy the cruise. 
P.S. They saved several seats in the lifeboats for the S.E.C. lawyers. You didn’t really think the Financial Terrorists were going to row those things themselves, did you?
Golf Writers Association of America Boycott of Tiger Woods’ Press Conference Leaves No Doubt Who the Real Whore is in this Saga
Posted by Lance Haley in Business and Money, Cultural Issues, Economics, Ethics, Get a Life America, Media & Communication, Morality, Show Them the $$$, Sports on February 19th, 2010
Tabloid Sports Writers Resent Tiger Woods’ Muzzling Them From Speaking of Moral Evils at His Press Conference Today
Citing those lofty prinicples of American journalism, the Golf Writers Association of America stated that the ground rules for Tiger Woods’ scheduled press conference today were unacceptable to them, and they then elected to boycott the event. GWAA President Vatan Kupelian said, “To limit the ability of journalists to attend, listen, see and question Woods goes against the grain of everything we believe.”
Bullshit!
“Tiger, you’re now trapped inside the belly of the beast. Capitalism has perverted journalism to the point that fairness, accuracy and privacy are all irrelevant. Bloggers and media corporations working in conjunction with porn stars, strippers and undiscovered reality TV hos can all make money exploiting your personal life.”
Here is the hard truth. Journalists, whether they work for the infotainment industry or the mainstream media, are not just interested in reporting the news anymore. They are often not even so much interested in the truth. Now they want to make the news – as in create the story and be part of the story. That’s how careers and money are made in this business in today’s environment.
Given that reality, Tiger will forever be hounded, stalked, and gossiped about. The media will make news out of the fact he was in the bathroom for longer than five minutes. Truth will no longer be relevant (like it ever has been?). What every little paid bimbo says will become today’s big news story.
Walk away Tiger, before your family gets hurt anymore. Just turn, and walk away. It ain’t worth it. You would have broken Jack Nicklaus’ record of 18 major wins . You are the greatest who ever played the game. There is nothing more worth proving – at least not at any cost. Forget about it. Vanish like my favorite athlete, Barry Sanders. He would have destroyed every rushing record in the NFL. Now he is the penultimate “What IF” NFL running legend? Go be happy, Tiger. They will talk about you for awhile – at least until you are way past your prime. But your true fans will miss you forever – and we will forgive you, if you earn that forgiveness. You have made a lifetime of extraordianary shots in your career. And you have done so much good, as well. You will never be forgotten.
Oh, and for the benefit of you media people, I have taken the liberty of writing the essence of the Tiger Woods sex scandal story in perfect Ernest Hemingway journalistic style:
“Tiger is a slut. You all are whores.”
End of story . . . and I will take a slut over a whore any time.
UPDATE to post [2-23-10]: Let me take a guess at the argument for today’s “journalistic behavior” . . . Tiger brought this all on his family. You self-rationalizing whores are unconscionable!