Category Archives: Corruption & Finance

Corruption concentrates wealth in the hands of a few at the expense of the 99% below, and this trend has accelerated the past decades. Corrupt leaders and industries are less likely to ration food and oil as it declines, accelerating collapse. I predict that the higher the level of corruption (see corruption perceptions index at transparency.org) will make collapse faster and harsher than in less corrupt nations.  I hope future historians look at this as a factor in how nations fell during the energy crisis. Though I expect that smaller towns everywhere will do better than large cities, and where local governments are uncorrupted

CFPB Sues For-Profit College Chain ITT For Predatory Lending

Posted on April 12, 2014 by

Feb 26 2014 CFPB Sues For-Profit College Chain ITT For Predatory Lending ITT Pushed Consumers into High-Cost Student Loans Likely to Fail WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) filed a lawsuit against ITT Educational Services, Inc., … Continue reading →

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Consumers Report Being Hounded About Debts Not Owed

Posted on April 12, 2014 by

Mar 20 2014 Consumers Report Being Hounded About Debts Not Owed Top Debt Collection Complaints Also Include Aggressive Communication Tactics and Threatening Illegal Actions WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) today issued a report on the more … Continue reading →

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$2 Billion to Homeowners for servicing wrongs

Posted on April 12, 2014 by

Dec 19 2013 CFPB, State Authorities Order Ocwen to Provide $2 Billion in Relief to Homeowners for Servicing Wrongs Largest Nonbank Servicer Will Also Refund $125 Million to Foreclosure Victims and Adhere to Significant New Homeowner Protections WASHINGTON, D.C. — … Continue reading →

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Payday Loans

Posted on April 12, 2014 by

Mar 25 2014 CFPB Finds Four Out Of Five Payday Loans Are Rolled Over Or Renewed Research Shows the Majority of Payday Loans Are Made to Borrowers Caught in a Revolving Door of Debt WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the Consumer … Continue reading →

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Credit Card Fraud

Posted on April 12, 2014 by

Banks fined $1.66 Billion for illegal credit card practices that ripped off over 10 million customers Bank of America will refund up to 2.9 million customers $727 million plus pay $45 million in fines for illegal credit card practices such … Continue reading →

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The Fall of AIG

Posted on April 5, 2014 by

2 articles below: March 18, 2009  The Real AIG Scandal by Eliot Spitzer slate.com It’s not the bonuses. It’s that AIG’s counterparties are getting paid back in full. Everybody is rushing to condemn AIG’s bonuses, but this simple scandal is … Continue reading →

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Not-So-Safe-Deposit Boxes: States Seize Citizens’ Property to Balance Their Budgets

Posted on April 4, 2014 by

Not-So-Safe-Deposit Boxes: States Seize Citizens’ Property to Balance Their Budgets May 12, 2008. Elisabeth Leamy. abcnews The 50 U.S. states are holding more than $32 billion worth of unclaimed property that they’re supposed to safeguard for their citizens. But a … Continue reading →

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Credit Card Debt

Posted on April 4, 2014 by

May 1, 2008 U.S. Credit Card Debt Soars to Unprecedented Heights http://en.epochtimes.com/news/8-4-28/69849.html Studies indicate that credit card defaults and related write-offs increased drastically since 2006. Today, lenders write off 33 percent more in credit card debt than they did two … Continue reading →

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Credit Default Swaps & CDO’s

Posted on April 4, 2014 by

Why Wall St. Needed Credit Default Swaps http://seekingalpha.com/article/73060-why-wall-st-needed-credit-default-swaps Take a CDO with a 50 basis point spread over US Treasures. Banks will buy credit default swaps costing them 20 basis points, but by doing so, even they seem to make … Continue reading →

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Bonuses and salaries way too high at Banks, Wall Street, Corporations

Posted on March 28, 2014 by

The “Paid-What-You’re-Worth” Myth March 13, 2014. Robert Reich. New York Times and robertreich.org It’s often assumed that people are paid what they’re worth. According to this logic, minimum wage workers aren’t worth more than the $7.25 an hour they now … Continue reading →

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