Reply #18

1) The beginning quote is highly suspect and has been in circulation for some time on the internet without any verification or citation of original source material. It cannot be trusted at this time. You can make your case without it.

2) JP Morgan did not make his fortune selling faulty guns to the military although it was one of his early deals that enhanced his wealth. He actually bought guns from the US military and then sold them back at a huge increase. The fact that some guns may have been faulty cannot be blamed on him.

3) Jack Morgan (JP's son) hated Germans and particularly Nazis. However the Morgan bank was asked by the US government to prop up the post-WWI German economy so it would not devolve into further chaos. As we now know, Hitler then defaulted on paying the loan back and used the money to build up his military. Not a good foreign policy decision for the US.

Again, I agree the republicans have done zero for the economy and have blocked good economic initiatives but I also blame Democrats for allowing free market ideology to trump regulation. It was the 1999 Financial Services Modernization Act under Clinton that repealed the basic separation of banks and investment houses, known as Glass-Steagall, that eventually destroyed the economy in 2008.

Worse though, we had a chance with the Dodd/Frank bill to right the wrongs of the past and re-regulate and we didn't. We got a watered-down bill heavily influenced by Wall Street lobbyists... And this was with a Dem Pres. and Congress after the worst financial disaster since the depression. Therefore we cannot just blame others for all of the horrible decisions and lack of initiative.

We must actively engage our team (Democrats) to do a better job of regulating the industry and ensuring stability, fairness, and transparency. This includes re-instating Glass-Steagall, breaking up "too big to fail" banks, and insisting on specific benchmark terms for credit lending when doling out stimulus funds.

That Republicans do not support these efforts is not surprising. They are a party of the wealthy, for the wealthy. What is surprising, is that some Democrats may not fully embrace these measures.