I saw the word “bankster” recently and I did a search on it. I came across this 2009 BBC article, Banker + gangster = bankster

Words pop in and out of our language as social conditions change. The American gangster, which is still with us, has been around as a noun and a reality since 1896 according to my Shorter Oxford, but it seems to have dropped another Americanism from the 1930s and I think now is the time to revive it.

The word is bankster, derived by a marriage of banker and gangster.

Why is this word again popular? There is even a BankstersUSA site!

“Is Your Senator a Bankster?”

Forget about liberal or conservative, in this 2010 Huffington Post article, Dylan Ratigan classifies certain US senators as “banksters” because they voted against a bill to break up major Wall Street banks.

Money talks, and the banking industry does have lobbyists. Ratigan may be suggesting that certain politicians have been receptive to the lobbying efforts of the industry.

Bailing Out Private Banks with Public Money

Governments collect money, mostly as taxes, from the public. Should these same governments use tax money to bailout private banks? Should the tax-paying public have a say?

Iceland Rejects Bankster Shakedown, Prison Planet, April 2011

Unlike Americans, the people of Iceland were allowed to vote on bailing out the banksters. They voted overwhelmingly against the proposal on Saturday despite the intimidation tactics of the globalist loan sharking operation, the International Monetary Fund.

Did the US bailout help the public? In March 2011, a Congress Watchdog said it “helped avert” a depression. It also said:

The Congressional Oversight Panel said the controversial $700 billion dollar bailout, launched in 2008, provided “critical” support for financial markets at a key time and will cost $25 billion — a fraction of the original estimate.

Some believe America is in a depression right now!

“Inside Job”

While writing this post, I happened to see the above documentary, which I picked up at the Pinecrest Library. It had been recommended to me by a person knowledgeable about international banking practices. Here is a plot summary from IMBd:

‘Inside Job’ provides a comprehensive analysis of the global financial crisis of 2008, which at a cost over $20 trillion, caused millions of people to lose their jobs and homes in the worst recession since the Great Depression, and nearly resulted in a global financial collapse. Through exhaustive research and extensive interviews with key financial insiders, politicians, journalists, and academics, the film traces the rise of a rogue industry which has corrupted politics, regulation, and academia. It was made on location in the United States, Iceland, England, France, Singapore, and China.

This documentary displays a great body of evidence that brings the term “bankster” to mind! The film mentions that both Moody’s and Fitch gave high ratings to Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc up to when it declared bankruptcy! How did these big rating companies miss the problems?

Caribbean Banksters?

I am not talking about a bank manager who tells you to take out a slightly larger loan so that he can get his cut, gets fired and then goes on to bigger things. I am talking about the big “money men” in the Caribbean. Are they “lobbying” the local governments? Is the Caribbean following the American example of giving public taxpayers money to private companies?

Think of the insurance giant, CLICO, its parent CL Financial and CL’s subsidiaries. Did these private companies donate money to the politicians? Payback? The details of the bailout may never be known, as it is hard to get this information.

One journalist, Afra Raymond, is pushing hard to get the facts.  He has had some limited success, like obtaining this letter from Leroy Parris, CEO of CL Financial, but he has a long way to go.

Was the public bailout of private companies in the Caribbean good for the public? Could some people lose their pensions or have benefits reduced due to the risky activities of the major financial houses? Can the large financial figures in the region be regarded as banksters? Afra has a whole section devoted to CLICO. There may be enough information there for you to draw your own conclusions!