Citigroup Radio Piece

1 Minute Radio Piece on the Citigroup / SEC settlement:

A United States district court judge has blocked a 285 million dollar settlement between the financial giant / Citigroup/ and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Jed Rakoff says that a settlement is not the admission of wrongdoing he wants in the case.

Citigroup allegedly misled investors in the housing market prior to the recession in 2008, according to the SEC lawsuit. Of ONE BILLION DOLLARS invested, / 700 million dollars were lost and Citigroup posted a 160 million dollar profit from fees.

Citigroup officials are not happy with Rakoff’s move to block the settlement.

“The proposed settlement is a fair and reasonable resolution to the SEC’s allegation of negligence,” / spokeswoman Danielle Romero-Apsilos said in a statement to Bloomberg News. / “The settlement fully complies with long-established legal standards. In the event the case is tried, we would present substantial factual and legal defenses to the charges.” /

Judge Rakoff remains steadfast in his decision:

"In any case like this that touches on the transparency of financial markets / whose gyrations have so depressed our economy and debilitated our lives, / there is an overriding public interest in knowing the truth," he said.

Time will tell if Citigroup and the SEC can come to a decision before the July 2012 trial.

District Judge Rules Against Citigroup Settlement

Rakoff Makes the Right Decision to Confront Big Banks

On Nov. 28, United States District Judge, Jed Rakoff, ruled against a proposed $285 million settlement between Citigroup and the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The settlement would have allowed Citigroup to get away without admitting to wrongdoing that led to the recession in 2008. Instead, Judge Rakoff is not letting them get off that easy. His ruling means that the financial group will have to pay more. Rakoff is also reportedly seeking that Citigroup admit wrongdoing.

In 2008, Citigroup allegedly misled investors in the housing market to the tune of $1 billion in collateralized debt. The posted a $160 million profit on the investments, while the actual investors lost $700 million.

First off, the use of legal terms should stop. “Allegedly?” No, Citigroup intentionally misled people and profited from it. That would be wrong if they did it for $160. But Wall Street has to do everything big, so they did it for $160 MILLION.

Judge Rakoff’s decision here is crucial to fighting the kind of reckless investment that caused the housing market bubble and the recession in 2008. Wall Street bigwigs just want to buy their way out of guilt. It is tremendous that there is someone in power like Rakoff to effectively say to them: “Not so fast.”

Reading up on the Citigroup response to Rakoff shows that the financial group is clamoring to keep itself guilt free. Here come those legal terms again:

“The proposed settlement is a fair and reasonable resolution to the SEC’s allegation of negligence,” spokeswoman Danielle Romero-Apsilos said in a statement to Bloomberg News. “The settlement fully complies with long-established legal standards. In the event the case is tried, we would present substantial factual and legal defenses to the charges.”

These people have no intention of admitting guilt. They were “allegedly negligent.” Do ya think! They lost $700 million in investors’ money and made $160 in profit. Does that not sound more like stealing?

And theft is illegal. Citigroup should admit wrongdoing. This is crucial because it sets an example for the rest of Wall Street. Rakoff is essentially saying that gambling so heavily with other people’s money is now off limits.

"In any case like this that touches on the transparency of financial markets whose gyrations have so depressed our economy and debilitated our lives, there is an overriding public interest in knowing the truth," said Rakoff.

And he is absolutely right. What Citigroup did to those investors effected all Americans. That is why their actions cannot be tolerated.

Wall Street effects Main Street, just like the cliché says. When they do, and negatively so, they could at least have the decency to admit it.

$285 million is chump change for a financial giant like Citigroup, even in a down economy. Rakoff is right to block this settlement, just like the SEC is right to confront Citigroup for their actions.

Jed Rakoff also ruled against a settlement between Bank of America and the SEC in 2009 for similar reasons.

Citigroup is expected to go to trial in July 2012 if a settlement is not reached.

Sexual Abuse Scandal Rocks Penn State

Sandusky’s Actions Have Destroyed an Entire Community

The Pennsylvania State University (PSU) football program used to be a clean-cut oasis in the money scramble that now is college sports. But with the sexual abuse allegations against former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky, PSU may just be the worst of all.

While other schools were under investigation for recruiting scandals, where players were bought expensive cars and paid for no-show jobs, PSU reputation was untarnished. While other schools had to publicly fire hotheaded coaches, PSU retained traditional head coach Joe Paterno for 46 years.

The Paterno era was like no other in college sports. “Joe Pa” as PSU fans affectionately know him, is the most winning college football coach in history. His program was dedicated to excellence on and off the field. His philosophy was to prepare young men for life beyond football. He was effectively a surrogate grandfather for most Pennsylvanians. Now abuses by members of his program will forever tarnish Joe Pa’s legacy.

Paterno was forced to step down from his coaching position amidst the sexual abuse scandal involving former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky. Sandusky has been charged with 40 counts of sexual assault. He used his position at a children’s charity, Second Mile, to prey on vulnerable boys. His actions are inexcusable and demand punishment.

But with Paterno it is not so easy. It is impossible to know, as of yet, what Paterno knew and when he knew it. As the criminal investigation of Sandusky unfolds, these truths will be revealed.

There are media reports, for instance, that a graduate assistant witnessed one of the assaults on campus. That grad assistant, Mike McQueary, would go on to become a Penn State coach himself. Reportedly, Paterno told his superiors about the assault and nothing was done about it. There are many shaky details of that sort floating around and it is impossible to know what happened until the truth is brought out in the court of law.

Judgment of Paterno should be reserved for the final verdict in the Sandusky case. Only with all the details can an assessment of Joe Pa’s failure be made.

Death of a Dictator

Gaddafi is Gone but was his Killing Deserved?

Muammar Gaddafi is dead, that much is certain. He was beaten and shot in the head and then put on public display for all to see. But was it right?

There are all sorts of stories circulating around the dictator’s demise. There are reported videos of the dictator being sodomized and his body being paraded through the streets.

The defiling of a dictator is nothing new. During World War II, Benito Mussolini, the leader of the Italian Fascist movement, was executed and then spat on and hung by a meat hook from a gas station by a mob of citizens.

Gaddafi deserved to die, but the means of his death only give a temporary bit of justice to those he wronged. He never stood trial what he did to Libyan people during the civil war. He never answered for his violent actions against peaceful demonstrators.

When Saddam Hussein was executed, I am sure there were Kurdish victims of chemical weapons in Northern Iraq wishing Saddam had stood trial for crimes against humanity. Just as now there are probably many Libyans wishing they had official justice against Gaddafi. They will get none.

Gaddafi is dead, victim of a culture he created where dissidents were executed and on broadcast television. His death was broadcast to the entire world via the internet.

The dictator is gone and the clamors for blood have subsided, but there was no lasting justice here. Gaddafi lies in an unmarked grave, just as history will forever be unmarked by crimes he may have committed against his people.

Duckgate Continues

Lynn University Misfires on Muscovy Ducks

A Lynn University decision to remove 27 invasive Muscovy ducks from campus has come under fire from students, who claim the school was irresponsible in its actions.

The university hired what was thought to be a reputable contractor to remove the invasive species from campus. When students bemoaned the loss of the beloved ducks, the school followed up with the contractor. The ducks were not released elsewhere as the school had originally thought. Instead, the contractor destroyed the ducks.

This incident shows a lack of judgment from a university that claims to be environmentally minded. Invasive species are a detriment to the environment, but the Muscovy ducks had effectively become a part of campus. They were seen everyday by students in Lynn’s many lakes. To take a piece of campus away like that, without any notice, is foolish. Just notify the students next time.

Instead, a student uproar has started on Facebook in response to a Lynn University page that makes a brief apology for the destruction of the ducks.

Lynn University’s President, Kevin Ross, criticized students for not coming to him with concerns on the matter and instead posting on Facebook. However, it was the school itself that started the Facebook debate. An official apology, that should have been the immediate answer, did not follow for a few days. It is incorrect to chastise students for using Facebook as a platform when the university had done the same thing.

But President Ross did make amends for the destruction of the ducks when he spoke at Founder’s Day, Lynn’s official anniversary. Ross announced that Lynn would become a native bird sanctuary. While the 27 Muscovy ducks obviously cannot be brought back, the announcement of the sanctuary shows Lynn truly is committed to sustaining the environment.