Hudson: Too Big To Jail

[raja]

Re: Hudson: Too Big To Jail

Hudson's solution is for government to take over the Big Banks.
That won't work.

Why? Because there is no incentive for politicians to gut the banks. Their banker golfing buddies give them campaign contributions so they can get re-elected. It's naive to expect politicians to bite the hand that feeds them . . . as we can see from the dearth of bankster prosecutions.

The People -- us -- are the ones that have a stake in getting rid of the big banks, not the politicians. So I suggest that the People do it themselves.

There's a bank on almost every corner . . . plenty of competition.
If the People simply stopped using the big banks, and started using the little banks, they could Starve the Beasts. In other words, Boycott the Big Banks, as I have been advocating in my iTulip signature for the last 5 years.

How difficult is it to open up a new bank account, and write a check transferring funds? Not very.

It's an idea whose time has come.
It needs is to go viral.
People must understand that the big banks are the villains . . . and that shouldn't be so hard to accomplish in the age of the Internet.

I sent Hudson an email saying essentially what I said above -- minus the first two lines.
I'm curious to see his response, if any . . . and will report back either way.

(I used a different email address, so that he will not connect this email to the prior email altercation we had.)

[flintlock]

Re: Hudson: Too Big To Jail

Why not use a credit union?

I joined one, but they are not as convenient as a local bank. At least not where I am. I've started out small over the years several times. They always ended up a large bank. But I certainly agree, go small if you can.

[flintlock]

Re: Hudson: Too Big To Jail

Last I saw for BoA was about a year ago. If I recall correctly, $1.1 trillion was sitting in deposits, $550 billion of which were retail deposits. I think JP Morgan's about 2/3 that size. Even if Americans aren't saving much, there are 300+ million of us. If there's an average of 5,000 in the bank for individuals and families (average, not median), that fits the bill about right. I think there's about $7 trillion totally sitting in deposits. The ratio's probably 50/50, individual/business. At least twice that is floating around as retail credit. Again, I'm working off memory. So take it with a grain of salt. But I think if you poke around, you'll find these numbers are in the ballpark.

It matters. Even now.

Yep. I doubt they'd be spending all the advertising dollars on commercials I see every day if it "didn't matter".

[Polish_Silver]

Hudson incredibly naive

For someone as knowledgeable as Hudson, he is incredibly naive about the government .

The government already makes all sorts of loans, and how well has it come out?

Think Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac.

(some of the older loan programs, like for Veterans, apparently have very low default rates).

What government banking would mean, is that politically well connected groups got loans for their constituency, at the expense of tax payers.

Governments are for things like law enforcement, public sanitation, schools (locally controlled and funded, hopefully). Things which have free rider problems or moral hazards such that they cannot be done by the private sector.

He thinks the pre-war Germany was a model of financial behavior. But that was not a democracy, but a monarchy.

There are ways to reform banks without making them part of the government.

See Kotlikoff's "limited purpose banking"

[raja]

Re: Hudson: Too Big To Jail

I sent Hudson an email saying essentially what I said above -- minus the first two lines.
I'm curious to see his response, if any . . . and will report back either way.

(I used a different email address, so that he will not connect this email to the prior email altercation we had.)

Just to follow up . . . Hudson never did answer my email.
Too busy . . . or just not open to a competing point of view that differs from his own?
I think the latter . . . .

[reggie]

Re: Hudson: Too Big To Jail

Just to follow up . . . Hudson never did answer my email.
Too busy . . . or just not open to a competing point of view that differs from his own?
I think the latter . . . .

Hudson has to be careful with suggested actions, as he's become quite a visible public figure who has a large bullseye on his chest. Derailing the big banks could be seen as inciting destabilization, and hence, used to attack Hudson as irresponsible and a threat to our social systems. Ultimately, Hudson's walking a fine line in how much he can say and what he can suggest, so I can understand him not responding to an email where his response can be posted publicly.