or Powell's or me• • •
"Mike and Jon, Jon and Mike—I've known them both for years, and, clearly, one of them is very funny. As for the other: truly one of the great hangers-on of our time."—Steve Bodow, head writer, The Daily Show
•
"Who can really judge what's funny? If humor is a subjective medium, then can there be something that is really and truly hilarious? Me. This book."—Daniel Handler, author, Adverbs, and personal representative of Lemony Snicket
•
"The good news: I thought Our Kampf was consistently hilarious. The bad news: I’m the guy who wrote Monkeybone."—Sam Hamm, screenwriter, Batman, Batman Returns, and Homecoming
October 17, 2010
Inside Job
Go see Inside Job. It's not a perfect movie; for instance, a better title for it would be "7,000 Jabbering White People." The director, Charles Ferguson, is an elite technocrat, and 98% of it is an elite, technocratic view of what happened. But it's still well worth watching—even someone like Ferguson is so shocked that he clearly ends up wanting to see Wall Street crushed. And certainly everyone else will want to jump up on the screen and gouge out the eyes of all the investment bankers with their thumbs.
The best parts are when Ferguson humiliates several corrupt Ivy League economists. I was particularly happy to see him deal with Harvard's Martin Feldstein, for exactly the reasons mentioned here last year. Of course, this is most satisfying only to a certain type of person (*raises hand*) but embarrassing them is the only satisfaction we're going to get, so we might as well enjoy it. I just wish I'd been interviewed for the movie, so I could have said: "A lot of top economists are basically mob lawyers...except better paid."
If you need more persuading, check out the two thumbs up from Dean Baker and Balkanization.
—Jonathan Schwarz
Posted at October 17, 2010 12:03 PMembarrassing them is the only satisfaction we're going to get, so we might as well enjoy it.
Ain't that the truth.
Posted by: Cloud at October 17, 2010 12:19 PMNOW the welfare bankers are stealing houses and property over BACK TAXES. Check out Huffpo.
Posted by: Mike Meyer at October 18, 2010 11:02 AMWhilst gazing at my navel a while ago I had a vision. And in this vision welfare bankers, with OUR TARP money, were buying into these municipalities and maybe even states budgets, as loans for shortfalls, and play the 'OLE TAX AND FEES GAME on a large scale. Then I had a "nature call" and it was over.
Posted by: Mike Meyer at October 18, 2010 12:41 PMI like Baker's review; it makes the documentary sound better than Jon's comments. It's not Ferguson's fault that Wall Street is all white technocrats--what was Ferguson supposed to do about that?
Have I mentioned that Dean Baker is God?
Posted by: N E at October 18, 2010 10:13 PMhi!This was a really magnificentsuper subject!
I come from milan, I was fortunate to seek your Topics in google
Also I get much in your subject really thanks very much i will come later
