Think You Have Heard It All? Think Again!

Hi Everyone,

Well, well, well! I am still here and I presume you all are still around. Therefore, all of the doom sayers were completely wrong about the end of the world. It didn't happen and all that has changed is the infamous Mayan long count calendar is now into its new calendar. I told you so....

Anyway, I learned something a couple of weeks ago that should flip your lids and get you all really angry. But first, we need to go back in history to AIG's bankruptcy a few years ago. We were all told that AIG, a huge insurance company conglomerate was too big to fail and it needed to be bailed out. And so it was bailed out to the tune of around $189 billion. What I am "mad as hell" about is that now we learn that HSBC, a huge banking/investment company conglomerate is too big to prosecute!? What?????? What am I missing here? HSBC was fined (settled) to the tune of $1.9 billion, the largest penalty ever imposed on a bank. Why the penalty? HSBC helped launder money for: Mexican drug lords, Iran, Libya and others. So let's make sure I got this right? HSBC agrees to pay $1.9 billion in fines, oh right settlement, because of years of illegal activity and now no one will be prosecuted? What is wrong with that picture? Just the amount of money transfers from Mexico HSBC between 2006 and 2009 was $670 billion!!!! And no one gets prosecuted? The total amount of illegal money transfers between 2006 and 2009 was an astonishing, wait for it............... $200 trillion!!!!! And no one gets prosecuted?

It seems that the story goes, that indicting HSBC could take down our financial system. So we should let people remain in their jobs, in one of the largest banks, where felonies were committed; to keep stability in our financial system? The Attorney General is so very wrong on this issue. My common sense screams at me that all those who were involved, should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Oh, but the office that is suppose to uphold the law says they won't prosecute. I just can't say it strongly enough how so very wrong it is not to prosecute those people. Unfortunately, even the $1.9 billion is just a drop in the ocean to HSBC. They will feel no pain and employees will remain at their jobs and continue to do what they do without repercussions. Is there something that we are not aware of? Maybe, but at face value, HSBC admitted its guilt and then no one gets prosecuted. How sad and how wrong!!! By not prosecuting, doesn't it send the wrong message to other "big" banks? I think so.

Til next week...

Peter