Someone Bring a Rope, by Gråulf

Since I am in such a foul mood this evening, here is my list of people who should be hanging from lampposts. Not because they are mostly democrats, but because they turned the mortgage industry into a giant pyramid scheme.

Alan Greenspan, Chairman of US Federal Reserve 1987-2006. He allowed the housing bubbles to develop as a result o his low interest rates and lack of regulations in mortgage lending. He backed sub prime lending and urged homebuyer’s to swap fixed-rate mortgages for variable rate deals, which left borrowers unable to pay when interests rates rose.

Bill Clinton, former US president. In 1999 Clinton repealed the Glass-Steagall Act, which ensured a complete separation between commercial banks. The move prompted the era of the superbank and primed the sub-prime market for the eventual financial crash.

Senator Phil Gramm, former US senator from Texas. He fought long and hard for financial deregulation. His work, encouraged by Clinton’s administration, allowed the explosive growth of derivatives, including credit swaps.

Christopher Dodd, chairman, Senate banking committee (Democrat). He consistently resisted affords to tighten regulations on the mortgage finance firms Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Abby Cohen, Goldman Sachs chief US strategist. She failed to see previous share price crashes, and continued her upwards forecasts.

Kathleen Corbet, former CEO of Standard & Poor’s. Her credit-rating agency failed to warn of the risk posed by mortgage- backed securities.

Hank Greenberg, AIG Insurance Group. He had a vast business in credit default swaps and therefore a huge exposure to a residential mortgage crisis. He got an 85 billion bailout, and then spent half a million on a huge party to celebrate.

Dick Fuld, Lehman Brothers chief executive. He encouraged risk taking and Lehman was investing heavily in property at the top of the market.

Ralph Ciffi and Mathew Tannin. They were Bears Sterns bankers recently indicted for fraud over the collapse of two hedge funds, which was one of the triggers of the credit crunch.

Lewis Raniere, the “godfather” of mortgage finance, who pioneered mortgage-backed bonds in the 1980s.

Joseph Cassano, AIG Financial Products. He ran the AIG team that sold credit default swaps in London, and bankrupted the world’s biggest insurance company.

Chuck Prince, former Citi boss. He built Citi into the biggest bank in the world, When profits went into reverse in 2007 he insisted it was just a hiccup.

Angelo Moxilo, Countrywide Financial. He was responsible for selling risky loans to thousands who could not afford them.

Stan O’Neal, former boss of Merril Lynch. Shortly before he quit the bank admitted to 8 billions of exposure to bad debts.

Jimmy Cayne, former Bear Stearns boss. His bank collapsed after two of its hedge funds collapsed.

John Tiner, FSA chief executive 2003-07. He agreed that banks could make up their own minds about how much cash they needed to hoard to cover their tracks. Now he works for Clove Crowdery, buying up financial businesses laid low by the credit crunch.

Gråulf.