Thursday, March 5, 2009

Another jolt of Perspective...

...try this one on for size.
(H/T - Pops in FL)

Full Government Ownership of Citigroup to Commence

President Barack Obama said Wednesday he had “determined the necessity” of the nationalization of the remaining holdings of the U.S.-based banking giant Citigroup and is considering the same for similarly-embattled Bank of America.

"This process is already begun with Citigroup through repeated bailout payments," he said in a press conference in which he accused the company of investing in specialized forms of equities in an attempt to evade the tax increases of his upcoming budget.

The president called the company's practices "a flagrant violation of everything that we have been doing."

Mark Klein, a spokesman for
Citigroup, said the New York-based company "is committed to providing banking and investment services that comply with all laws and regulations."

He said the specially-structured equity investment cited by Obama "was designed exclusively for investors who want a slower, more secure gain over a longer period of time, which the company has provided in the US for the last seven years and elsewhere in the world for 13 years."

Klein added, "Citigroup expects the opportunity to clarify the situation with the government and is respectful of President Obama’s arguments."

Citigroup, which is publicly traded, has been doing business since 1812, with operations ranging from personal banking and international finance, and reaching into every aspect of finance worldwide.

It has over 200,000 employees in nearly every country in the world, according to its Web site.

About Bank of America, Obama said, "The extensive width and breadth of their need for a bailout clearly demonstrates a system too unstable, left for too long in the wrong hands. There will be lawyers and arguments saying that this is a governmental overreach and a violation of the constitution. Well, it's not about the government, it's about the good of the people!"

Horrifying.
... with negative repercussions to be felt for years to come.

But surprising?

If you opened the New York Times tomorrow and saw this story, would you be all that surprised?
(consider your answer carefully, and be honest)

And now consider what your answer says about how far toward real Big-"S"-Socialism our country has slid in an amazingly short time, ...

...when I tell you that this is actually a story about Hugo Chavez nationalizing Cargill in Venezuela...

...retouched with only a woefully light hand.

- MuscleDaddy

(apologies to any caught in a 'War of the Worlds' - loop by this exercise)

5 comments:

  1. You had me going there. It was entirely too believable.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Same here. Scared the crap out of me.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Like I said - scary, horrifying... and we've slid so far already, that it's far too easy to believe.

    - MD

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  4. I almost crapped myself and wondered if I had enough ammo

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  5. What had seemed a year ago as impossible to imagine from a possible leftist
    Obama-style administration has been far surpassed. I'm not surprised in terms of the programs/policies but rather surprised by the speed of implementation. The anti-business, class warfare speeches DURING a severe
    recession certainly steps up the concern level.

    pops in FL

    ReplyDelete

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