goldman sachs

More news about the boom/bust cyclemakers that doesn’t bode well for the individual investor.

From NY Times:

On Tuesday, a Goldman executive made an unusual admission that, in some cases, the rumors were true.

It bugs me when either party peddles a false meme before a certain event, as was the case last night with the “GOP is making a comeback if we win anything” talking points.

And yet today the media is grabbing it hook, line and sinker.

But why?

Let’s look at the facts…

Goldman Sachs announced Thursday that its quarterly earnings nearly quadrupled from a year ago. The Wall Street bank said it made about $3 billion in the third quarter.

Goldman has emerged as one of the winners from the financial crisis. Not so for Citigroup, which told shareholders Thursday that it lost more than $3 billion last quarter.

And this is for 2008…a year when their failure nearly brought the entire world’s financial system to its knees.

I don’t care if these bonuses were contractual or not.

New circumstances (you know…like BANKRUPTCY!) could allow them to renegotiate with their employees.

From the AP comes the list…

That’s the plan, but color me skeptical. These corporations have too much influence on Capitol Hill. Still, the fact that we’re even talking about it is encouraging.

CNN explains why this issue has reignited…

The Wall Street financial firm reported profits of nearly $3.5 billion in the second quarter. It has set aside $6.6 billion for compensation.

The investment bank has paid back the government money it borrowed during the height of the financial crisis, so it's not subject to limits on pay.

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The Treasury Department will allow 10 of the nation's largest banks to repay $68 billion in government investments made at the height of the financial crisis.

Some of those banks planning to repay the bailout funds are among the healthiest including: Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase and Bank of New York Mellon.

But for Citigroup it is a different story.

On 6 out of 10 issues.

But the most important one right now: the economy…

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 45% now trust the GOP more to handle economic issues, while 39% trust Democrats more.

Harvard urban economist Ed Glaeser, whose work I often cite, recently touted Houston in a New York Sun column: 

New Yorkers are rightly proud of their city's renaissance over the last two decades, but when it comes to growth, Gotham pales beside Houston.

Between 2000 and 2007, the New York region grew by just 2.7%, while greater Houston ??? the country's sixth-largest metropolitan area ???