What Really Happened…?

The financial and economic turmoil of the last three plus years has brought us stories and developments which are almost unfathomable. In fact, in my opinion there is no doubt that Wall Street and Washington would like to keep certain of these stories and developments buried forever.

Will America ever learn where some of these bones are buried? Will America ever learn of these skeletons in the closet? Will the media charged with pursuing the truth dare dig into these stories?

We are living through a time warp currently. The twists and turns on our economic landscape come at us so quickly. In the process, are we able to recall those turns–that is, certain stories and developments–which were never fully explored and exposed?
What Really Happened….?
Let’s take a moment this morning to look back on stories highlighted here at Sense on Cents from late 2008 and early 2009. Each of these stories has a number of questions which deserve to be answered. Will they? Has the government already squashed any pursuit of the truth in these high profile stories? Do the stories themselves and the people involved in them go too high within the circles of Washington and Wall Street?

I strongly believe that without exposing the naked truth in these stories the very fiber and fabric of our national character is eroded. That reality is a very high price to pay by the American public. Are these stories so sensitive and so explosive that America is better off not knowing the truth? Stop it. While selected individuals may not survive the truth and transparency involved in pursuing these stories, our nation will be just fine. On this note, I welcome reflecting on a few stories in which there remain far more questions than answers.
1. How Bernie “Madoff” With $50 Billion…!! (December 14, 2008)

>What was Bernie’s relationship with Mary Schapiro?
>Was Bernie involved with the Russian mob?
>Why did SEC attorney Genevievette Walker-Lightfoot get pulled off the Madoff investigation?
>Why is it that a full two years later there have been few truly meaningful arrests in this fraud?
>Will we ever know if the Wall Street self-regulator FINRA had its own funds invested directly or indirectly in Madoff?

2. Let’s Really Question Ms. Schapiro...(January 16, 2009)

>Will America ever learn the details of FINRA’s liquidation of its own holdings of $647 million auction-rate securities in mid-2007 when the ARS market had started to fail? Did this liquidation rise to the level of front running and/or insider trading?
>Will America ever learn the details surrounding the alleged verbal and written misrepresentations by FINRA executives, including Ms. Schapiro, in the proxy statement utilized for the merger of the NASD and NYSE regulatory arm to form FINRA.
>In which hedge funds, fund of funds, and private equity investments had FINRA invested its own money? Were there any real conflicts of interests between FINRA’s regulatory mandate and its investment portfolio?

3. Allen Stanford and Whitey Bulger: Two Peas in a Pod? (May 11, 2009)

>Was Allen Stanford truly operating as a government informant trying to infiltrate Central American and South American drug trade?
>Was the SEC railroaded by the Department of Justice when the SEC tried to pursue this case?
>Was Stanford given blanket government protection along the lines of the protection offered to noted Boston gangster Whitey Bulger by the FBI’s John J. Connolly?

4. Is Barack Obama Going Tony Soprano? (May 2, 2009)

>Did the White House truly threaten to destroy the reputation of Perella Weinberg if it chose to pursue its contractual rights in a Chrysler bankruptcy action? (The ten minute radio interview with creditor attorney Tom Lauria is embedded in my link and is a must listen!!)
>If the White House did threaten Lauria’s client Perella Weinberg, who in the White House issued the threat? Rham Emanuel? Steve Rattner? David Axelrod?
>Have other creditors in other high profile bankruptcies chosen not to pursue their contractual rights given the noise around this story?
>Have property rights in our nation forever been changed?

So many great questions. As of now, so few real answers.

Will we ever learn ‘what really happened…?’

America deserves the truth. The cost of neither pursuing the truth nor exposing it is not small.

Will future generations hold us in contempt if these questions go unanswered?

What Really Happened…?

Larry Doyle

Comments, color, questions, constructive criticism encouraged and appreciated.

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I have no affiliation or business interest with any entity referenced in this commentary. As President of Greenwich Investment Management, an SEC regulated privately held registered investment adviser, I am merely a proponent of real transparency within our markets so that investor confidence and investor protection can be achieved.

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 28th, 2010 at 11:15 AM and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.