Country Financial survey, November 18, 2015.
The Barometer only wonders, in this day and age, does that mean we are misrepresenting on the high end? Or is the low end on the debt scale still a more favorable financial position? In this post-Dodd-Frank era, one never knows.
The Barometer has news for the nearly 1/3 dessert impostors. We can tell the difference. Unless you mess up the look of the pie crust, we know which are which. The messy crusts are the ones someone made. And, it needs to be said, the messy ones taste better too. Same thing with sugar cookies. The messy ones are the homemade ones, and they taste better than the perfect store-bought ones. Happy Thanksgiving, and keep your eye on your silverware when the dessert impostors are around. Count your spoons after they leave. Even the silver-plated ones.
Hall of Famer quarterback Steve Young on Tom Brady and the Deflategate scandal.
Hall of Famer Warren Moon added, “I guarantee you he had some knowledge. Those guys (handling the footballs) are not going to do it if it’s something he doesn’t like. Whatever they’re told, they get it done. But I don’t think it’s that big of an advantage.”
Phil Simms, “My God, he won the Super Bowl, and all he deals with the whole offseason is, ‘Hey, Tom, what about the footballs?’ And on top of that, people are whispering behind his back. What a terrible injustice!” Mr. Simms added, “Where do you draw the line?”
Well, how about we draw it this way: If you break the rules we have ourselves a line? And if it doesn’t make any difference, why have the rule? Lobby to get it changed. Football types surely do stick together! Especially when it comes to a lack of ethical reasoning.
Rohit Bansal, a former Goldman Sachs employee, entered a guilty plea to obtaining confidential (think secret) from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and then using that info to further his career. Goldman fired Mr. Bansal, 30, after discovering the leak, and has altered its hiring practices for former government employees.
Billy Ray Valentine and Louis Winthorpe III (aka Dan Aykroyd) arranged to get the crops report in advance of marketing trading for the orange futures (aka OJ) market. They actually swiped the advance crop report from an operative hired by the corrupt Duke brothers. Intrigue, federal crimes, and other issues aside, Billy Ray and Louis retired with the Butler to sandy white beaches after bankrupting the Dukes. Goldman is alive and well and Mr. Bansal will be going elsewhere and will know on March 9, when his sentencing takes place.
Dr. Robert N. Taub in an e-mail to a colleague as Dr. Taub was experiencing frustration in his quest for funding from Sheldon Silver, the former speaker of the New York State Assembly. Dr. Taub testified yesterday in the Silver corruption trial. Dr. Taub referred mesothelioma cancer patients to Mr. Silver’s law firm (yes, asbestos cases, which have trained three generations of lawyers now). The law firm refused to give Dr. Taub’s cancer center money, but Mr. Silver saw to it that Dr. Taub’s center got a $500,000 state research grant.
When that money ran out, the law firm still got Taub referrals, Continue reading
While the SEC and Department of Labor and numerous professional groups and businesses struggle to determine who is a fiduciary and/or when they must be a fiduciary, a Personal Capital Survey (USA Today, August 11, 2015, p. 1B) found the following: 56% responded that a fiduciary rule is “an obligation not to rip off people.” Well said.
Brandi Weaver-Gates was charged with theft for allegedly setting up an online fundraising scheme to raise money for her cancer treatment. The alleged scheme was elaborate. Ms. Weaver-Gates shaved her head and had her family sit in a hospital waiting area while she was undergoing treatment. But, when police investigated she could not name physicians and no hospital had a record of her having been treated. She raised $14,000, but lost her title.
Dr. Kent Brantly, a missionary physician who contracted Ebola while serving in Liberia, and survived through the administration of an experimental drug. Dr. Brantly expects that he will serve again as a missionary doctor, fully understanding the risks in all aspects of his life.
Well, as Sheriff Andy Taylor used to say, “Don’t that beat all?” The attorneys general for the states of Pennsylvania and Texas were indicted this week. Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane was indicted for leaking grand-jury (think confidential) information to political operatives in order to embarrass state prosecutors with whom she had bad blood. She then, allegedly, engaged in behaviors, including lying, to cover up the leaks. She is charged with obstruction, perjury, false swearing, conspiracy . . . . Meanwhile, deep in the heart of Texas, Ken Paxton, Texas Attorney General was indicted for securities fraud. The issues of potential securities fraud had trickled out during his campaign and now they are headlines in Texas.
Both deny the charges. Lanny Davis, of Clinton defense fame, issued a statement indicating that his client, Ms. Kane, has done nothing wrong. Ms. Kane has indicated Continue reading
Prosecutor Alexander Solomon in federal corruption case against former New York State Senator John L. Sampson. Mr. Solomon indicated that former Senator Sampson parked in no-parking spaces throughout his criminal trial by using his Senate placard on his car. The Barometer can see how, especially in New York, an elected official attending his own trial could be considered to be on “official business.”
The former senator was convicted of obstruction of justice. There had been a previous charge of embezzlement of $440,000 (Mr. Sampson was serving as a court-appointed referee on foreclosure properties and was supposed to return the funds to the court, but kept them instead), which the defense acknowledged, Continue reading
Former Representative Michael Grimm, who entered a guilty plea on tax evasion charges and was sentenced to 8 months in prison. Mr. Grimm is right, in a way. His lawyers found 200 cases in the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York (the geographic area for Mr. Grimm’s prosecutors) involving the same charges as Mr. Grimm, and all those defendants received probation. The lawyers found 22 cases Continue reading
A question posed to the New York Times Ethicist column. The woman wondered because she wanted to have an affair with a married man. Societal norms are our civilizing force. No, you are not legally bound, but it would be nice if we respected the marriage vows of others. The follow-up question was, but, what if his wife agrees to it? The Barometer cannot even begin to explain.
Not being a sports fan, the Barometer thought the federal government had passed another wage tax — FICA, FUTA, and now, FIFA. However, turns out the organization responsible for futbol, football, soccer, that game with the black-and-white ball they bounce with their heads, has a little trouble with corruption. And the U.S. raided a luxury Swiss hotel in the early AM (Swiss time) a few days ago to round up the accused scoundrels.
Sepp Blatter, the head of FIFA, has been under pressure to resign. Nay, nay, says he for, “I know many people hold me ultimately responsible … (but) I cannot monitor everyone all the time. If people want to do wrong, they will also try to hide it.” Actually, Cato, that’s exactly what you are supposed to do. If something happens at your organization that has U.S. FBI agents hauling your executive out of their hotel beds whilst you are trying to hold your annual meeting, then it is your fault. Either you are complicit or you were asleep at the wheel. Either one does not bode well for further effective leadership.
Big-time sponsors, Coke, Nike, and Adidas, are monitoring the situation. One call from these companies and change will be forthcoming. There are criminal standards for proof of wrongdoing (and those will unfold), and then there is the sloppy and damaging effect of corruption. The former requires time and absolute proof. The latter requires swift action. Everyone seems to be kicking the ball down the road for now.
How do you know when your country has reached the point of no return on corruption? Spain may have made it. The Popular Party made a pledge, drew a “red line,” as the leader of the Valencia Province phrased it, to refuse to allow any indicted official on the ballot. That’s telling them!
Valiant efforts aside, the pledge did not come to pass. The party could not find enough politicians who were not indicted. As a result, 50 indicted officials appeared on the Valencia ballot in Sunday’s election. Valencia is known as a corruption hot-spot, but a total of 467 mayors in Spain are under indictment, mostly for mishandling public money or kickbacks for awarding government contracts.
The party leaders said that although it did indeed end up with indicted candidates on the ballot, they had reviewed the candidates on a case-by-case basis. The screening standard used for being indicted but still allowed on the ballot was one of “shameful behavior.” That standard remains undefined, Continue reading
