Obama, hedge funds and moral bankruptcy

In a very short time it seems almost certain that America will be led by President Barack Obama. Janet Daley, columnist for the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph states today that 'America is about to elect the most inexperienced candidate at a time of great international risk and unprecedented economic instability'. In what appears to be a mere echo of the warning of Senator McCain that it would be 'too risky' to entrust the Presidency to Obama at this time, Daley has entirely missed the point. Putting aside the fact that the very same question could equally be asked of Bush and many other Presidents, it is precisely this 'experience' which needs to be rejected by the American voter.

The looming financial hurricane, which threatens to plunge millions of ordinary, hard-working Americans into poverty and hardship was allowed to occur by the current administration. Fuelled by greed, monumental incompetence, and an almost corrupt alliance with wealthy financiers, these so-called 'experienced' leaders have done more than any group of terrorists could ever hope to achieve in placing the USA, and indeed much of the world itself, into grave danger. Dreadful as the terrorist threat may be, it almost pales into insignificance when put alongside the scale of damage that has been, and probably will be, inflicted on countless millions of American families. This was not engineered by Bin Laden or crazed Muslim fanatics but by the folly, greed and colossal conceit of unscrupulous individuals who have made obscene profits and personal gains at the expense of the taxpaying man and woman 'in the street', the genuine 'Joe-the-plumber'. These individuals contributed nothing to the real economy but exploited lax or non-existent regulations to impose what was essentially a type of pyramid selling fraud on the financial systems of the Western world. Warnings from the more level-headed economists were routinely ignored while billionaire financial exploiters courted and feted the politicians, officials, and the leaders of hitherto reputable financial institutions who had taken leave of their senses in their desire for obscenely inflated salaries, bonuses and profits.

And of course it is the modest tax-payer who may well face financial bankruptcy to pay for the moral bankruptcy of these 'experienced' leaders. It is the school-teacher, the policeman, the secretary, the nurse and the taxi-cab operator who will suffer the consequences of this hubris and greed. These are the very same people who politicians have determined should pay a greater proportion of their small salaries in tax than the hedge-fund billionaires who reap millions of dollars in a year for manipulating the financial systems of the world. Within America, where the housing sub-prime scandal triggered the crisis, there are now millions of homeless and dispossessed people whose expectations for a better life were cruelly raised then shattered by the so-called 'Masters of the Universe' who have ruthlessly manipulated and exploited the world economy for their personal gain.

George Monbiot of The Guardian newspaper has colorfully referred to the rulers in Washington as 'gibbering numbskulls'. They are not alone. Indeed, they can be found to populate the elevated positions in many countries, and especially the boardrooms of many banks and other financial institutions around the globe. But it is not so much a lack of intelligence which has permitted and driven this financial catastrophe. Incompetence and negligence are certainly there in bucketloads but above all else there has been greed and ambition allowed to run unchecked in a moral vacuum.

The long suffering public cannot, alas, expect that those responsible will ever be held accountable but they can at least give their vote to those who have not been part of a tainted and discredited administration. They can demand that regulations and oversight prevent the financial 'snake-oil' salesmen and their dupes from again inflicting their crass greed, irresponsibility and incompetence upon them. And there is something else that can be done. While it may well that the financial exploiters and the grasping chief executives of many culpable institutions cannot be prosecuted or punished as they undoubtedly deserve, some of them at least can be named and shamed, if only to let the public of America and the world know just who these people are who have wreaked such havoc in their cynical gambling with the money generated by the hard work of millions.

What better place to start than with some of the unscrupulous hedge-funders? We intend to place a spotlight on some of these secretive people who have accumulated vast fortunes unfathomable to ordinary people, not by producing any useful product or service but by gambling with, and severely damaging, the money of genuine industries which are the very foundation of our modern society. As we shall subsequently see, these unscrupulous speculators frequently dwell in opulent tax-havens, develop complex systems for the avoidance of tax, seek and obtain political patronage in return for 'favours', and through wielding the enormous power and influence which their great wealth provides, circumvent the rules and conventions which ordinary people have to abide by.

The first of our candidates who will be scrutinised in subsequent posts is Louis Bacon, a controversial figure even amongst fellow hedge-funders and who, it is reported, is secretive to the point of being paranoid. Judging by the inside information provided by our sources this is hardly surprising. The disparity between private lifestyle and public persona, such as it is, shows that Mr. Bacon has a great deal to want to hide, not the least being his reported recent acquisition of Austrian nationality, despite being a US citizen who is much favoured by the current political administration. More to follow.