Andrew Cuomo, New York’s Attorney General, was investigating the banking financial crisis and has recently released his findings for the original 9 banks that received government funds to bail them out of ruin.

Every taxpayer who reads the report should be angered by it. In a time of financial crises, the banks “good ole boy” system rewarded thousands of execs with multi million dollar bonuses so they could keep up their lush lifestyles through the financial pinch. WTF?

In Citigroups case.. the bank reported losses of 27 billion plus or $5 plus a share to stock holders, yet Citigroup paid execs over 5 billion in bonuses. So where did the 5 billion come from? most likely the 45 billion from taxpayers.

Meryll Lynch got 10 billion in help, lost 27 billion and paid 3.6 billion in executive bonuses

Goldman Sachs 2.3 billion in earnings, 4.8 billion in bonuses and 10 billion in bail out funds

Anyway, sure we all see the trend. Banks droping like flies? I wonder why? Doesn’t every company pay bonuses in excess of earnings? What, stockholders actually expect a return on investment?

Andrew Cuomo had this to say in respect to the US banking system paying for failure.

“There is no clear rhyme or reason to the way banks compensate and reward their employees. In many ways, the past three years have provided a virtual laboratory in which to test the hypothesis that compensation in the financial industry was performance-based. But even a cursory examination of the data suggests that in these challenging economic times, compensation for bank employees has become unmoored from the banks’ financial performance.”

The following numbers are the banks that received taxpayer dollars and the bonuses that they paid out to their execs after getting the money.

The first number is bonuses over 3 million, second is 2 million and third is 1 million.
B of America 28 65 172
Bank of New York Mellon 12 22 74
Citigroup 124 176 738
Goldman Sachs 212 391 953
J.P. Morgan Chase over 200 - 1626
Merrill Lynch 149 - 696
Morgan Stanley 101 189 428
State Street 3 8 44
Wells Fargo 7 22 62

The Wall Street Journal did publish individual numbers for the various banks. Below is B of A and how much money they received, their reported earnings and bonuses. B of A reported earnings of 4 billion, got 45 billion in taxpayer bailout money, then paid 3.3 billion to execs in bonuses for a “job well done“?

Tarp funds received: $45 billion ($15 billion on the Capital Purchasing Program on Oct. 28, 2008, $10 billion on Jan. 9, under the Capital Purchase Program for Merrill Lynch; $20 billion on Jan. 16 under the Targeted Investment Program).

2008 Earnings: $4 billion, or 55 cents a share.

2008 total bonuses: $3.33 billion in cash and stock ($2.9 billion of the mixed cash and equity bonuses were discretionary, and $337 million were guaranteed).

Top four recipients received a combined $64.01 million.

The next four received $36.85 million.

The next six received $31.39 million.

Number that received more than $10 million: 4

Number that received more than $8 million: 8

Number that received more than $5 million: 10

Number that received more than $3 million: 28

Number that received more than $2 million: 65

Number that received at least $1 million: 172

Total work force: 243,000.

the full report

I say scam because I feel that the city of Los Angeles totally scammed it’s population, here’s why.

We here in Los Angeles have been hearing how the city is strapped for cash for years now.  A few points I have noticed..

• My kids school xeroxes pages from books rather than actually getting books for the kids.
• Some schools have a Xerox limit on paper and teachers need to supply their own.
• This year, there is NO summer school for the kids who need it.
• The city is putting up “no Parking” signs on the fly and giving tickets to entire blocks 2 mins after signs went up (my street)
• I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting for a pothole to get fixed
• anyway… you get the point.

And now this?

When a city can no longer afford summer school, you would think that a big party for a performer’ death by self destruction (not scientist, not doctor, not teacher, not fallen cop, etc.) would be out of the question. right? wrong.

The city of Los Angeles spent 1.4 million dollars for a few hours of Michael Jackson tributes and parade… WTF? Rumor has it that law enforcement and other city workers were paid double time to do the gig. Again, WTF?  I am so tired of politicians who are supposed to represent the general public care more about what the law enforcement and other unions think. The unions always come first, kids summer school, not even in the top 10.

So now the city is down 1.4 million and is asking for donation. The city couldn’t even get that right.

The city of Los Angeles has only received $17,000 of the $1.4 million it cost to put on Michael Jackson’s memorial – but it’s not because MJ fans are cheap … it’s because of the complete failure of the official donation website.

Seems the City of L.A. is too broke to afford a half decent web server or a staff to keep it up.

The mayor is begging for private donations and they have gottan some, but far from the 1.4 million they need to cover the bill. Seriously now, we all love MJ, but do we want to pay for a memorial we never had a choice over?

MJ was once one of the richest entertainers around. We know he blew much of that in settlements to little boys families, maybe one of them should step in and foot the bill for the man who made them wealthy. Unfortunately we all know the taxpayers of Los Angeles will pay for it in the end.

From the Mayor regarding the Michael Jackson Memorial situation:

The Office of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa released the following statement today regarding online donations for the Michael Jackson Memorial:

“After collecting more than $17,000 from hundreds of donors in support of the Michael Jackson Memorial Tuesday morning, the City’s Information Technology Agency could not handle the high volume of traffic or adequately respond to frequent and prolonged server crashes. Consequently, the City was unable to receive contributions for several hours Tuesday afternoon. The server also failed for at least 12 consecutive hours Tuesday evening, from 8:00 PM (PST) through 8:00 AM (PST) the next day, and periodically throughout Wednesday morning.

The City apologizes for the inconvenience to those who were unable to contribute to the memorial costs. The Information Technology Agency is attempting to rectify the problems.

The City encourages donors to revisit http://mayor.lacity.org to make their donation.”

…

BEIJING: The corruption trial of Taiwan’s former president, Chen Shui-bian, opened in a heavily guarded Taipei courtroom on Thursday, hours after Mr. Chen blasted the proceedings as a “tool for political suppression and persecution” by his successor. Read the rest of this entry »

By Kevin Drawbaugh and Glenn Somerville

Wall Street faces curbs on risk taking and the prospect of lower profits under sweeping U.S. proposals to prevent a repeat of the credit crisis.

The Obama administration’s plan to rewrite financial rules, announced on Thursday, would create a single regulator to monitor any firm whose failure could threaten the financial system, while also tightening rules for big hedge funds and private equity firms.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner told Congress “comprehensive reform” was needed to prevent a repeat of the current credit crisis, the most virulent since the 1930s. “Not modest repairs at the margin, but new rules of the game.”More…

The proposals Geithner presented also require large, interconnected institutions to hold more capital, provide for derivatives to be traded on an exchange, and give the government authority to shut down troubled financial firms.

More

Old ass video of some good old fashioned police brutality.

This cop? well, I believe he over reacted just a wee bit. Ya know, a soccer mom in a 4 door sedan is always very menacing, hey, she may throw some leftover sandwiches at ya and really mess ya up.   Seriously, the pistol was not enough fire power against that crazy shit, that fool should have whipped out the shotgun for sure.

This is one of a line of Cartoons from Mickey Cain showing a day in the life of his 2 favorite squirels Starsky and Crockett as they patrol squirel town, serve and protect all squirrels and human citizens.

I really need to stay away from reading the latest about the California Governator and his prison budgets… cuz, it really pisses me off! In a way, I really wanna know what is going on with our money, but then when I find out, I just get upset because its jacked and there seems to be little anyone can do to relieve popular hysteria that is allowing the large prison unions to suck us all dry.

The California Parole system is broken, but it is broken for a good reason, to line the pockets of the correction system unions with 6 figure salaries, people who would only be qualified to work at Jack-in-the-crack without them. I mean, you need tons of people to get tons in overtime and they make sure getting tons of people is no problem. Civil rights? hell, they got trumped by 100k+ salaries to idiots who flunked out of pre-school.

Seriously, the California prison system is one of the largest on the planet with the highest rate of paperwork and parole violators on the planet to match. The Governator just asked for billions more to build more California prisons so California can hire more cousins as guards and give people prison time on their parking tickets so more guards can buy those gas guzzling Hummers they seem to love. Hell, almost makes you wish you were related to a California prison guard, no need for education or even 1/2 a braincell, they take care of their own, ya know.

There is a family I know, if it wasn’t for the correction officer union they would all be on welfare and there is over a dozen of em. They make me sick, always saying how great it is to be able to vote for your own raises and be able to hire all your friends and family. Yep, they claim they vote on whether to get a raise or not… ahh, let me think about that one… “I vote not. California is in a budget crisis ya know… my new Maseratti can wait! DUHHH!”

The sad fact is that the California parole board makes it very hard for parolees to NOT get violated. Getting pulled over for a traffic ticket may get you a year and 3 years of parole no matter what the original sentence, is mandatory. Many people do more time on violations than the original offense, keeping the union fat and happy.

Many parolees are forced into crazy restrictions, even though they are now “free”. I just saw a story about a block of houses in the ghetto. It seems that the parole officers are FORCING the parolees to live there. Once there, they are not allowed to get back to work and are made to file for welfare, whether they want to or not. The welfare is to pay for the housing and the fleet of BMW’s (and all the gold teeth) the cousin, sorry, I mean the home owner wants.

They stack bunk beds 10 deep in the bedrooms and force the “free” men to stay there and pay rent with the welfare money that gets sent directly to the cousin, sorry, the homeowner. If the men have a home and a job to go to and actually leave… well, it’s a violation and another year in prison.

I talked to this kid, he was about 21, he told me he refused to go on welfare, he said he had a wife and child to take care of and if he did the welfare, they would take it out of HER paychecks from work (his wife), he was actually allowed to work (after many complaint letters) and tried to work but the job was 50 miles away from house and it took 2 hours on a bus to get to work. He said they refused to allow him to live closer to his job, seems it was just too much paperwork. Anyway, he is now back in prison because he was late coming back twice… 2 to 3 hours late… Once because of the bus and once because his boss needed some overtime. His wife and child? well, seems their home is now in foreclosure because she just can not pay all the bills alone. Child support? she gets none because “cousin” takes the welfare check. He needs a few more 140″ flat panel plasma tv’s, to give as gifts to the union members that set him up, fat, collecting welfare checks for 30 fools living in his 3 bedroom house. All thanks to the Governator and the State of California!

Here is a quote regarding this issue..

Whoa! Take a deep breath for a minute. I happen to be a Correctional Officer in a state institution that holds about 7200 inmates. I must say (and I am a progressive) that you don’t want these men back on the streets. Many can barely read, don’t have a work ethich other than selling dope, and are prone to violence. God knows what people are capable of doing while under the influence. Be careful what you pray for, you just may get it…

Funny how “ethic” is mis-spelled above from the original quote. That attitude sums us the California budget crisis in regards to the bloated prison population. “God forbid that someone who can not read, be taught how to read, hey, they would then be able to read the paperwork, point out the mis-spellings and maybe some other bullshit being spread on taxpayers.

Just throw them into the bottomless hole where they belong and do everything possible to keep them there for years after the original sentence was completed, drain dry the struggling taxpaying families, schools and social programs to lock up as many people as possible for as long as possible “. Speaking about being prone to violence… I saw some news piece some time back about the Coecoran prison guards who were setting up prison fights to the death for the sake of their own entertainment and gambling… Does that qualify as violent? Criminal sentencing needs to stay where it belongs, with the justice system, NOT the labor unions and their kin.
Unrealistic parole rules set as a blanket, regardless of the individual situation is insane. What is sick ass shit is that the only reason they make it impossible for the parolee’s to get back into society, work and family is to make sure the prisons stay FULL. Without full prisons, there would be no need for tons of overtime! It sickens me that every other state wants parolees to get to work and become self-sufficient while California forces them into insane conditions, all set up to bring them back into prison for the 3 years! WTF Taxpayers? We need school books NOT welfare for parolees that are not allowed to work.

Crazy thing is, that 21 year old kid also said that he tried smoking crack at the house for the first time ever(he was not into drugs, he went to prison over a stupid drunken brawl). He said everyone is so bored that all there is left to do is dope. Thats great, my 28% of income tax is going into starting some kids drug problem and keeping up the neighborhood’s crack house. GO GO Governator!

wanna know more about the governator Arnie and the california budget due to intentional prison overcrowding to make a few rich? read this article about how much money California may waste as our school children lack the funds needed for things like…. books

This sums it all up, comment from another article about needing billions more yearly to build more prisons..

I find California’s prison system to be a “MONEY PIT”. And until they revise the Sentensing process and Parole System and get these parts out of the hands of the Prison Unions their will never be an answer. California has turned the Fox Loose in the Hen house.

Bro, the Union’s foxes seem to have penned up not just the hens, but every rooster, turkey and pigeon for their pluckings.

Making money hand over fist and still taking..

People need to be more educated in the real reason why more prison are being build. I college student and my research has been on the Prison Industrial Compex. PRISONS ARE THE NEW SLAVE TRADE. Fortune 500 and multi-billion dollar corporations such as McDonalds, Microsoft, Boeing, Sprint, Compaq, Toys R Us, and Revlon and Victoria ’s Secret use prison labor for packing, telemarketing, and manufacturing. Hattery, Angela and Smith, Earl. (2006) The prison industrial complex. Sociation Today, 4 (2).

This is on the main site, but WTF, here it is again…

Yep, Some of those hardcore conservatives in Texas may be showing their true color… its red, the same color as their necks.

What the f@ck are these fools thinking in Texas? Not sure if this is real or fake, but it sounds about right for some of the thinking in that neighborhood.
I read today that the Texas GOB(Good Ole Boys) had a GOP meeting and had made

these lovely pins asking the ridiculous question. I gotta admit, with some of the political intelligence that has come from the great state of Texas (GWB and friends), I can understand their confusion.

I have a better question to the GOP. Do you fools REALLY fund that shit or better yet, accept money from the hicks who dared even participate in that meeting? Scratch that, I already know the answer.

You don’t have to dig deep or far to find corruption in non profit organizations. Most people would agree that there is plenty of profit to be made in non-profits for the wealthy supporters, trustees and board members.

Seems the IRS is taking a closer look into conservation land deals. It kinda goes as so… a company buys land for conservation purposes, the land is not historic nor serves much environmental value, they then sell the land at a discount, after adding a few “conservation” restrictions towards its development. The land is sold to trustees at a discount and the trustee then makes a tax deductible “cash gift” to the company in the amount of the difference. The trustee gains the land at a considerable savings due to the “so called” money gift tax deduction they made to the company they purchased it from.

The IRS is having an issue with that procedure because the tax gifts are worth more that the restriction placed on the land.

I gotta wonder what some of the restrictions are…. maybe they only chop down 90%  of the trees instead of all of them. Thumbs up for not for profit conservation groups.

RS Toughens Scrutiny of Land Gifts
By Joe Stephens and David B. Ottaway
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, July 1, 2004; Page A01

TThe Internal Revenue Service announced yesterday that it is cracking
down on improper tax deductions taken by people who give real estate and
cash to environmental groups, warning that taxpayers could face
penalties and charities could lose their tax-exempt status.

The IRS is specifically targeting gifts of “conservation easements” -
deed restrictions that limit some types of real estate development. The
easements have become the environmental movement’s key tool for
preserving fragile ecosystems and millions of acres of open space.

The IRS is focusing on easements that have questionable public benefit
or have been manipulated to generate inflated deductions.

“We’ve uncovered numerous instances where the tax benefits of preserving
open spaces and historic buildings have been twisted for inappropriate
individual benefit,” IRS Commissioner Mark W. Everson said in a
statement. “Taxpayers who want to game the system and the charities that
assist them will be called to account.”

The IRS warned that it intends to levy penalties on charity executives
and board members who collect or knowingly help secure improper
deductions claimed in connection with such transactions.

The announcement did not name individual taxpayers or charities. It
comes as the IRS is conducting a major audit of the Arlington-based
Nature Conservancy, the world’s largest environmental organization.

The Washington Post reported last year that the Conservancy had
repeatedly bought land, added some development restrictions, and then
resold the properties at reduced prices to its trustees and other
supporters. The buyers made cash gifts to the Conservancy roughly equal
to the difference in price, thereby qualifying for substantial tax
deductions - just as if they had given money to their local charity.

The Conservancy said the sales prices were proper because the
development restrictions reduced the market value of the tracts. In the
wake of the news articles, however, the Conservancy announced that it
would no longer conduct such deals with its board members and trustees.

Sheldon Cohen, a former IRS commissioner now working as a private lawyer
in Washington, called yesterday’s announcement an unusually strong
action. He said, “It is pretty obvious who it is aimed at.”

Conservancy spokesman James Petterson said yesterday that executives
there were studying the IRS action.

“The Nature Conservancy over the last decade has received several legal
opinions reflecting other interpretations of the law,” Petterson said.
“We are reviewing what the IRS issued, assessing its impact on our
programs and determining appropriate actions.”

Read the rest of this entry »

Cop by day, drug lord by night, sounds about right. This fool even had his mother involved in his operation. Why did he do it? He told the judge he was just being stupid. I guess that sounds a bit better than just being greedy and corrupt.

Akron -Former Cleveland police officer Zvonko Sarlog #2343,  police officer, 2nd district, Cleveland,  was sentenced to 10 years in prison Wednesday (2/2008)for moonlighting as a drug trafficker while wearing the badge.

A contrite Sarlog told U.S. District Judge David Dowd during his sentencing hearing that his actions were born of “stupidity, naivety, and foolishness.” The six-year police veteran also said he feared imprisonment because of his law enforcement past.

Sarlog, 37, was arrested in August after a federal investigation exposed his role in a drug ring that brought cocaine and marijuana to Northeast Ohio. Sarlog served as a bagman and coordinator for ring leader and longtime friend Ljubomir Rkman.

Federal prosecutors originally asked Dowd to give Sarlog between 12 and 15 years because the officer breached the public’s trust.

“He’s the only person in the conspiracy who raised his hand and swore to uphold the law,” said U.S. Assistant Attorney Robert Patton.

Dowd, however, gave Sarlog the mandatory minimum of 10 years, mostly because Rkman received a five-year sentence after a plea bargain. Five other co-defendants received sentences between one and four years after plea deals.

Sarlog’s expressions of remorse and shame to Dowd were a far cry from the roguish rhetoric Sarlog used as a drug dealer. During Wednesday’s hearing, prosecutors — in an effort to demonstrate Sarlog’s work as a lieutenant in the ring — played several phone conversations during which Sarlog nervously bossed around his drug-trafficking associates.

Those underlings included his mother Stefanija. After the woman failed to successfully deliver money to a drug courier, Sarlog became agitated and ordered her to try again. “You go and do it,” he said sternly in a phone conversation recorded by investigators.

Stefanija Sarlog, 60, of Parma, was never charged in the conspiracy. Zvonko Sarlog bought a house across the street from his mother’s house and planned to use it as a stash house, according to prosecutors.

FBI Special Agent Brian Young also testified that Sarlog once displayed a gun to an undercover agent and boasted “I run this [expletive]. Over time you’ll see what I’m all about.”

Story from the Cleveland Metro blog