Banksters defend high salaries at hearing this am.

[dixiegrrrrl]

"As Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission hearings opened on Wednesday, the message delivered by Wall Street executives to panel members might be summed up as this: "Gee, we're sorry that we maybe contributed to last year's financial meltdown. But what's all this about bankers making too much money?"

Why did Goldman take bad financial assets, package them together into bond-like securities, and sell them to investors – while at the same time "shorting" those securities, or making investment bets that they would fail?
Mr. Blankfein said the behavior was improper, but he hedged on fault, saying, "These are professional investors who wanted .... I felt good about it."
Mr. Angelides struck back that Goldman was really double-dealing.
"It seems like you were selling a car with faulty brakes and then buying an insurance policy on that car," said Angelides.

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2010/0113/Financial-Crisis-Inquiry-Commission-Top-bankers-contrite-sort-of

[Anakin Skywalker]

1. What a Bunch of Scumbags!

'Nuff said.