Banks Set for Record Pay

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Source: The Wall Street Journal

Major U.S. banks and securities firms are on pace to pay their people about $145 billion for 2009, a record sum that indicates how compensation is climbing despite fury over Wall Street's pay culture.

An analysis by The Wall Street Journal shows that executives, traders, investment bankers, money managers and others at 38 top financial companies can expect to earn nearly 18% more than they did in 2008—and slightly more than in the record year of 2007. The conclusions are based on an examination of securities filings for the first nine months of 2009 and revenue estimates through year-end.

Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704281204575003351773983136.html

[The_Casual_Observer]

1. The only possible sources of that money are federal bailout and

the bogus dow jones "rally".

[Jefferson23]

2. Sickening and should be considered a crime.

[DJ13]

3. Quick, wag the finger and threaten them with some kind of tax that will never happen

.... that should distract the angry populace long enough to last until the bonuses get deposited.

[Hugin]

14. This situation may rise to the need for the dreaded, "Sternly Worded Letter." (SWL)

:eyes:

[SomeGuyInEagan]

15. and an, "I've got my eye on you, mister!" warning (n/t)

[Hugabear]

4. If only there were a way to seize all of it

These fatcat bankers should not be getting one single penny in bonus money. NOT ONE PENNY. They have some nerve to be congratulating themselves, patting themselves on the back, smoking their expensive cigars and sipping their expensive champagne, while enjoying OUR taxpayer dollars. What have they done with all that money? They sure as hell haven't turned around and loosened credit very much for small businesses, like we were told they would do.

FUCK THEM, take it ALL back. Pass a retroactive law and seize every penny. Issue an executive order. I don't care. They do not deserve any of it. They're lucky that they aren't rotting in prison for fraud.

[47of74]

5. Yes, take it back

And give it to the people of Haiti.

[Zhade]

6. It's almost like someone just gave them a whole bunch of our money after they fucked up the economy.

Oh, wait...

[Zoeisright]

7. Windfall. Profit. Tax.

NOW.

[winyanstaz]

8. Give us our damned money back!

[dencol]

9. The Fed should stop propping the markets up.

That's where the real cost is. Let them fail.

[TheWatcher]

10. Sooner Or Later they are going to need that money for Security more than anything else.

to protect themselves from the pissed off hordes of working class people they have stolen from, and whose lives they have helped destroy.

They are too arrogant to live in fear, but if they have a scintilla of intelligence, they should sleep with one eye open for the rest of their useless lives.

Keep Pushing Banksters. Keep getting more greedy, more arrogant, more blatant.

Live it up.

Eventually, your time will come.

And when it does, your end will be unspeakable.

And even then, you will have deserved far worse.

[stuart68]

11. The clowns in congress/admin

are the real problem.

Banks got risky and should have paid the price, but we made sure they never felt any pain. Then we get all cranked up when the behavior continues ?

Congress and the admin f'd this up when they gave them the money the first time. Now we plan to tax banks to fix it ? Who do you think will end up paying those taxes ? The bosses ? Out of their bonus ? Obama is sooooo naive if he believes this.

We need them to have bonuses so they can turn enough of it back to cover the next election cycle.

This is the same as a 5 year old who throws a tantrum in the grocery store because they didn't get candy. Who is at fault, the 5 year old or the parent ?

Too big to fail, secrets at the fed, bonuses bigger than profits - they are really watching our back...

[pattmarty]

12. This and the "healthcare reform" are the main reason that the Dems....

............are in trouble in the Mass Senate race. If they just would have done something for the working/middle class they now would be in the drivers seat for this November's election. Large majorities in BOTH Houses, the White House and what the fuck have they done for us lately??? A year in office and really what IMPORTANT thing other than the stimulus (assuming that it was worth passing) has he done? This is why they MAY lose in Mass and WILL lose seats in November.

[FreakinDJ]

13. We need a TAX for that