OWS's Beef: Wall Street Isn't Winning It's Cheating
When was the last time the government stepped into help you “avoid losses you might otherwise suffer?” But that’s the reality we live in. When Joe Homeowner buys too much house, essentially betting that home prices would go up and losing when they drop, he’s an irresponsible putz who shouldn’t whine about being put on the street. But when banks bet billions on a firm like AIG that was heavily invested in mortgages, they were making the same bet that Joe Homeowner made, leaving themselves hugely exposed to a sudden drop in home prices. But instead of being asked to “suck it in and cope” when that bet failed, the banks instead went straight to Washington for a bailout — and got it.
