Re: Bailout reality check

Rita wrote:
On Thu, 02 Oct 2008 14:16:10 -0400, Alan Lichtenstein <arl@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:


Rita wrote:

On Thu, 02 Oct 2008 08:56:36 -0400, Alan Lichtenstein <arl@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:



Rita wrote:


On Wed, 01 Oct 2008 17:49:54 -0400, Alan Lichtenstein <arl@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:




Rita wrote:

( previous post snipped-follow thread )




Jean, I'm no genius. I just look at charts and data and come away with questions and some explanations. My reason for the crisis, IMHO, is directly related to the percentages of our GDP which each sector generates. When you have a sector that should be accounting for no more than 10% generating a bit less than half, that's unhealthy. when the sectors that produce real goods and services that contribute towards wealth diminish in their impact on GDP, then perhaps we ought to address that.

We are going to need the financial sector, because they contribute and are necessary for the economy. And people are always going to make money from that sector, and there's nothing wrong with that. But when it becomes an excessive part of our economy, then something's wrong. I didn't post this to Jeff, for time limitations, but if the ideologue bothered to look at data from universities and colleges, he would see that over the past decade, there has been an excessive number of degrees granted, both on the graduate and undergraduate levels in business, finance and economics. all of these graduates went straight to Wall Street and like firms, for very good reason. That's where the money was, and the GDP statistics bear it out. We have suffered a decline in graduate and undergraduate degrees in the hard sciences, because there was no corresponding financial remuneration, with all the negative for our future that entails.


That is a very good point and it is true. I was a bit taken aback to
learn the even the Clintons' daughter, Chelsea, worked for a hedge
fund. Not that I'm picking on her, but careers in finance of some sort seem to be the first choice of many bright college grads.

Rita, why should she be any different from anyone else? She went where the money is, or was. And the money was there because that sector essentially was permitted to grow to influence in our GDP beyond its real importance.


I am not blaming Chelsea for her decision. Or any of the other bright
young things. When I lived in New York City there was quite a chachet
to say you worked for a Wall Street investment bank.

Those institutions recruited many of the brightest and best from our
top colleges and put them through the wringer as interns. If they
showed the stamina to work up to 20 hours a day, perhaps nap on a cot
and have research prepared for their bosses to view the next day
they were taken on permanently.

I did temp work on Wall Street from time to time and heard how it
worked from those employed there.

So there was no lack of brains in these institutions. Which makes it
all the more sad the way it has worked out for them.

As I read about the melt down I think back to the interns I typed
stuff up for at Lehman Brothers. The principals got to go home, the
interns stayed into the wee hours of the mornings.

One of my interests has always been the sociology of work and Wall
Street provided an interesting environmen for study of that.

These young people were hoping if they worked hard enough they, too,
could become a Master of the Universe. It was dangled before them
and caused them to compete ferociously among themselves.

In doing temp work off and on around NY City I got into many different
types of working enviroments. The craziest were the ad agencies.
The investment banks the most grueling.

I worked for Manufacturers Hanover Bank for two years and even got
promoted to Asst. VP - a title that is handed out like jelly beans:)
I worked for a real estate investment advisory group that never got
off the ground and basically sat around all day and tried to look
market busy as there was nothing to do. I worked for a couple of
young guys whose job it was to find real estate investments for the
group's clients. I wrote a few brochures to market the group's
services.

The only client they had was a wealthy Chinese woman and
they put her into an office complex in Houston at the heighth of the
real estate boom there. The market was oversold and the complex never
was even half rented out and moreover the construction work was found
to be unbelievably shoddy. The bank gave the client her $6 mlllion
back. My two immediate bosses were fired.

One of them, a polo playing rich kid, called me one day. He had taken
some tests with a type of psychologist who would tell him what work he
was best suited for. Would I come with him to hear the psychologist's
concusions and explain them to him. Basically what the psychologist
had to say is that this guy should never have a job that required a
lot of initiative or selling anything. I tried to translate that into
something palatable for him to hear as I did like him.

Easiest money I ever made in that job, but also the most boring job
I ever held.

snip

Rita, you never cease to amaze me. I was fascinated by both your experience and your insight. Have you ever considered a career in armchair psychology? < G >


I like sociology and anthropology far better than psychology.
I did conenctrate on the anthropology of work when I got my M.A.
in that subject.

I have worked a blue collar job as well as jobs for corporations.
The observations of work environments has always fascinated me.
Doing temp work around New York City was fun for providing
numerous opportunities for this.


I realize. I was only being facetious, Rita. I did, however, appreciate your sharing some of what you have done with us. I was unaware of any of that. You certainly have had interesting experiences.


Yup, I've been a bit of a gadabout once my responsibilities to raising children were completed. I did work full time, however,
from the time the youngest of 8 kids was three months old. First
as a printer and then as manager of a corporate communications
department. Went back to grad school and while there ran a CETA
program for displaced homemakers.

Then to NYC and hopped around doing temp work as I talked about
and the job with the bank.

Again into grad school. A year teaching at a State University of
New York.

Then retired from paid work pretty much and concentrated on a
variety of volunteer experiences.

Now I've retired to computer junky and patronizer of the library
a block from my home.

But, Alan, sometimes if I bother to review, I, too am surprised at
all the stuff I've done.

But when the kids were small I had to endure 9 years living in
Oskaloosa, Iowa, so I feel I richly deserved to finally have some
interesting experiences:)

I agree.

Life was fair to me in the end.

Feeling good about one's self is perhaps the greatest reward in life one can have. Good for you.

.

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