You know how, when people are in trouble, they’ll re-tell their story over and over again, hoping it sticks and you’ll see the situation through their tinted glasses, letting go of your own good sense and shrugging off the reason you were ticked at them in the first place; hoping if they talk long enough you’ll just tune them out, nodding in agreement, praying they’ll shut up?
That’s what this makes me think of:
The story of our economic crisis mirrors every great market bubble in history. Clearly, banks were key participants, but they were not alone. Mortgage lenders, borrowers, regulators, policy makers, appraisers, rating agencies, investors and investment bankers all played a role in pushing economic excesses forward. The institutions that gave in completely to the frenzy are no longer with us. Those that balanced the need to compete with the need to lend prudently survive today and are helping to stabilize the system.
Read the rest of Ken Lewis’ Op-Ed in today’s Wall Street Journal here.
This article appears in Mar 3-10, 2009.
As successful as KL may be, I am kind of starting to feel (slightly)sorry for the guy. We may never know the details of the merrill aquisition and how much he knew of the losses, but surely he is only fighting his corner like anyone would in his situation.
I would actually agree with most of what he discussed in his article and I found it quite refreshing for a high-rolling banker to be candid. He could hide and stay silent but to be fair to him, regardless of whether or not his previous business decisions were right, it’s good to see he cares enough to respond with a public article.
Tim, PLEEZE!!!!
Anyone that high in the heirarchy of the financial world cannot claim innocence in ANY format. One choose to deal with the crooks (and believe me he knew & knows who they all are, as you state) or they choose not to. He like thousands of other executives chose to deal with each other. You do recall the phrase; the buck stops here? Its interpretation has been lost in the gray area of the law, but its meaning stands firm.