You Shall Know the Truth

by Jim Wallis 12-21-2009

“You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.” Those are the words of Jesus, and they couldn’t be more relevant that they are today on Wall Street. Some very large financial giants triggered a massive economic crisis that has caused suffering for millions of people, and we still don’t know exactly what happened. It’s time to learn the truth behind the irresponsible, risky and selfish behaviors that plunged our nation and so many families into this painful mess. Today, I joined one effort to do that; and I invite you to join with me. Here’s the story.

One of the giants whose practices led to the 2008 financial crisis was AIG – the American Insurance Group. When it was on the verge of collapse, the federal government intervened with a bailout that ultimately totaled $180 billion. Now, as several major banks are re-paying bailout funds in order to get free from strict government regulation, AIG is beginning to discuss a similar action.

Yesterday, three of the leading corporate investigators – Eliot Spitzer, former attorney general and governor of New York; Frank Partnoy, professor of law at the University of San Diego; and William Black, professor of economics and law at the University of Missouri-Kansas City – wrote in the New York Times

A.I.G. was at the center of the web of bad business judgments, opaque financial derivatives, failed economics and questionable political relationships that set off the economic cataclysm of the past two years.

They urge that before any deals are made to end government, read taxpayer, control of the company, we should demand answers to questions such as: Who knew what, and when? Who benefited, and by exactly how much?

And, they conclude that

The three of us, as experienced investigators and prosecutors of financial fraud, cannot answer these questions now. But we know where the answers are. They are in the trove of e-mail messages still backed up on A.I.G. servers, as well as in the key internal accounting documents and financial models generated by A.I.G. during the past decade. Before releasing its regulatory clutches, the government should insist that the company immediately make these materials public.

Since AIG is now 80% owned by U. S. taxpayers, it is more than appropriate that we know the truth here. A citizens group has created a website urging people to sign An Open Letter to the Trustees and US Congress, asking that all of these documents be released to investigators. I’ve signed it, and urge you to do so. With the economy still struggling to recover from the crisis AIG helped to create, with tens of millions of people unemployed and home foreclosures growing, we deserve to know how and by whose decisions this happened in order to hold them accountable. This is what democracy requires; this is what morality requires, this is what religion requires—to tell the truth.

Categories: Economics

Tags: America, american insurance group, attorney general, business, Democracy, derivatives, Economic, economic crisis, Economics, economy, federal government, financial crisis, Foreclosures, government, Jesus, morality, regulation, taxpayers, Wall Street

Mortgage Comparison

nice blog, and your opinions are agreed to all of persons and I too.
your blog's title is very quote. and i like it.

thebootedone

amazing to speak of truth then get all this whos to blame. greed is to blame. which starts with you and me and goes all the way up. including our president and congress and senate and republicans and democrates. truth seems to be relative to your understanding of it anymnore. what about morals, THE REAL PROBLEM today not wall street. Jesus came to help us through the spirit in us to be like christ. thats what we should teach. MORALS. I think sojo should think of this if they wish to include God in there political thinking. Why they think they can make our politica religious and moral is beyond me, just makes them look silly and just another group to argue with, which I do sadly becasue I honestly disagree with them most of the time, I am conservative and my political and religious views are just different. So I am the bad wrong guy. SEE the problem. Jesus wasnt sent here for this. Its a PERSONAL relationship, someday we will be shown the real truth.

Guest

Again, as I stated in my post, the blog post is silent about the people who wanted and purchased houses they could not afford. It is also silent about government policies that encouraged irresponsible lending. It is dishonest to only focus on one part of the problem. I seem to remember that the Bible also says things about greed, coveting, envy, paying your debts, etc. All of this applies to the people who wanted homes they could not afford. This financial crisis was caused by many groups including the government and the people who purchased homes they could not afford. Your failure to respond to that point speaks volumes about your "faith."

duhsciple

Read the prophets. They were vicious in attacking unjust "profits." So yes this is about God's Politics.

Guest

I thought this blog was about "God's Politics." This blog entry has very little to do with God and Christianity and seems to be more about left-wing politics and blaming Wall Street for problems created by politicians, Wall Street and the general public. It was clever the way you put a quote from Jesus at the beginning to disguise the fact that you are just promoting your left-wing views.

I think it is interesting how people are so quick to blame "big business" and "Wall Street" but very few blame the large number of greedy people who purchased houses they could not afford. They didn't care what type of mortage they were signing and they didn't care about the risks. They just wanted that big fancy house. The banks didn't create this mess alone. It takes two to execute a mortgage, a lender and a borrower.

DHFabian

$180 billion for the rich, and the people grumble a little. Imagine the reaction if it were announced that $180 billion would go into establishing real (non-punitive) welfare for our poor! We do have our priorities...

ford49

If you think you can make physicians, hospitals and insurance companies accept that paradigm, lot's of luck...

carlcopas

"Modern economists, most of whom aren't Christians, consider it a miracle."

Please cite 5 who do so, with sufficient bibliographical info.

carlcopas

Because pcnot4me couldn't think of any other way to be snotty to Jim Wallis.

ford49

No doubt they have accomplished much economically. What you don't see is
the human cost...China has some billionaires but the average salary about
$400 per month in the cities and much less in rural areas...worker
exploitation is still rampant in industrial sectors of China...a forty
minute drive form Shanghai and you will see open sewers...and I challenge
you to drink water from a tap in a 4 star hotel in Shanghai or Beijing;
signs in several languages will tell you not to...China's rise has had human
costs we in this country cannot comprehend...I love China and would have
moved there had I been younger but don't let pictures of Shanghai, Beijing,
and Hong Kong deceive you...the miracle is far from ubiquitous. Have a
great blessed Christmas.

fundamentalist

Modern economists, most of whom aren't Christians, consider it a miracle. Nothing like is has ever happened in the history of mankind. You guys remind of when Jesus complained about the Pharisees saying we have played the flute but you won't dance and we have mourned but you won't cry. China has pulled off an economic miracle and raised most of its population from mass starvation to one of the wealthiest nations in the developed world in an extraordinarily short time. But all you can say it it ain't perfect.

christing

I don't think we can blame unemployment and home foreclosures on AIG. But I will say that three groups are to blame for the foreclosures. Lenders - for giving loans to people who could not be expected to pay them back. Borrowers - for trying to get something for nothing. And the government for not only allowing, but encouraging this kind of lending.

I also blame local, state and federal governments for acting as if unsustainable (oh how I hate that word) economic growth would continue for at least the next century. Nearly everyone has been spending like there is no tomorrow, not the least of which has been government overspending on all levels. (Made worse by the fact that they continue to simply print more money to give away)

christing

YES! That should be the paradigm. My auto insurance doesn't cover road safety checks or new tires. (even though driving with a poorly mainted car with bad tires may make me more prone to get into an accident)

xfree9

:-)

kansasmennonite

With all your vast knowledge of Austrian economics maybe you should!

SamHamilton

Exactly. Do you like that situation?

BlueDeacon

I believe that God can change attitudes, but neither I nor the state can. The poor, by definition, cannot make it on their own; they will always require charity. We cannot eliminate poverty; even Jesus admitted that.

Please don't take the LORD's words out of context. When He said that "the poor you will always have with you," He meant that in the context that "you can help them anytime you want, but you will not always have Me." I thus have no doubt that God can cause the state to change attitudes; the civil-rights movement is a good example.

What I find really interesting about people who claim to love the poor and are working to eliminate poverty is that they have nothing but contempt for the Chinese miracle.

It's because of the "Chinese miracle" that people suffer economically in this country -- remember, much of the world's manufacturing takes place there today, and since there are no practical environmental standards and the cost of living is far lower, companies can and do pay those folks much, much less. And it doesn't even touch much of the rest of the country.

xfree9

Then maybe the paradigm for health services shouldn't be insurance. maybe it should be lower costs so that more people can afford to pay out-of-pocket, and insurance should be reserved for high-risk things. There's a reason why we don't use an insurance for normal expenses in life.

xfree9

You are correct, which is why he wrote the comment about "cycles" above. The point is, if an economy goes through ups and downs, a constant is absent if we want stable growth.

Seriously, do some research on the Federal Reserve, and you'll find more than enough blame to rest on it for the economic injustices in the past 100 years. At least partial blame, but plenty of horrid things.

xfree9

I never thought of that explanation before. That's a good succinct way of saying what I said just below.