Doing God’s work in Greece

So is anyone shocked to discover that Goldman Sachs was actively conspiring with the Greek government to load additional debt onto the country that didn’t look like debt to outside financial analysts? No? Me either.

How about that Goldman, knowing that the Greek treasury was in much worse condition than everyone thought, was an active investor in financial instruments that bet on a further deterioration of the Greek economy?

An analogy would be if I sold you a used car that I knew had seriously bad brakes, and then I went out and bought a life insurance policy on your life with me as the beneficiary. This is apparently what Lloyd Blankfein had in mind when he told Congress that Goldman was “doing God’s work.” I guess God is diversifying his portfolio.

Not that Goldman is alone. Merrill Lynch paid Harold Ford Jr. a $2 million salary – more than the salary of Merrill’s CEO, for some amorphous marketing duties. That was a pretty good first job in the securities industry for the former Tennessee Congressman who is now contemplating a run for a New York Senate seat.

We already have Chuck Schumer as the Senator from Wall Street, but it’s never enough for those guys. As long as there is even a hint of an unrigged game or a sucker getting an even break, they’ll be looking to put in the fix.

For a deeper look at how they do it, the most recent Matt Taibbi piece on Goldman for Rolling Stone is a great read. (thanks Birdman). Taibbi writes with great clarity about complex issues. In this piece he likens various Goldman strategies to con games from old movies, and makes even complex transactions understandable for laymen.

He is also the only journalist I know of who is willing to call these guys what they are: con men and thieves. They are the kings of the “I drink your milkshake” school of business.