$18.4B? I guess. I'm a trader and eternal capitalist and even I'M APPALLED.
You're reeling - yes even you Wells - and your insurance brethren may be in a worse shape than you and your argument for paying out out 2006 like bonuses is talent retention?
Here's my .02:
Your Talent: They now holds the honor of worst risk managers ever...literally. And it turns out their success over the last 3 years was bubble driven. Which means, literally, anyone could have done what they did. You know. Make up stuff no one understands. Securitize it. And convince people it's worth more than it is. Talent? I guess.
Retention: In case you didn't notice, it's a buyers market right now. That includes for skilled finance professionals. So instead of paying inordinate bonuses, just let 'em walk. You can get the same skill for cheaper tomorrow. Kinda like your stock.
It seems you are using capitalism to abuse your shareholders and in the instance of TARP funded institutions the American taxpayers. In case you haven't noticed you are not the rockstars of the business world you're the bane of it's existence.
You took a perfectly good product, the mortgage backed security, and pumped it so full of andro that it literally burst. That's like Detroit taking the SUV, putting turbo rockets on the side and watching as the world's highways turn into a bloodbath. And then asking for a bonus. Way to go!
