THE RESIGNATION

I am sure we have all heard about this very public and "toxic" resignation of the GS Executive Director.  Certainly it must have made their headquarters building tremble as if there was an earthquake.  But then again, the people making up the "culture" - especially their CEO and President - feel they must be immune to any fallout from this as they - I believe - feel that they are above the law and above any moral conviction.  They, after all, have been doing god's work.  Of course, their god, The green god of worldwide currency sets them apart from those of us in the "real" world recently joined by Greg Smith.

For years now, we here at GS as well as many others across our media and blogosphere have attempted to - and I believe have succeeded at - showing the world how immoral, unethical and unlawful they have been.  Yet to my surprise as well as to many others, they continue to operate in the same manner with the same lack of oversight by any of our governmental agencies who we have empowered to protect us from vultures such as this. 

Will this rock the ground around our government?  Perhaps but then again, perhaps not for I, once again believe, that it is GS along with some other high profile bankers and financiers that truly rule our country and the world.

Public Rebuke of Culture at Goldman Opens Debate

By SUSANNE CRAIG and LANDON THOMAS JR.
from NYT Dealbook

Until early Wednesday morning, Greg Smith was a largely anonymous 33-year-old midlevel executive at Goldman Sachs in London.

Now everyone at the firm — and on Wall Street — knows his name.

Mr. Smith resigned in an e-mail message to his bosses at 6:40 a.m. London time, laying out concerns that Goldman’s culture had gone haywire, putting its own interests ahead of its clients.

What the e-mail didn’t say was that about 15 minutes later, an Op-Ed article he had written detailing his criticisms was to be published in The New York Times. “It makes me ill how callously people still talk about ripping off clients,” he wrote in the Op-Ed article.

Read it all...click here

***

The Op-Ed Article as published by The New York Times.

Why I Am Leaving Goldman SachsBy GREG SMITH
Published: March 14, 2012
TODAY is my last day at Goldman Sachs. After almost 12 years at the firm — first as a summer intern while at Stanford, then in New York for 10 years, and now in London — I believe I have worked here long enough to understand the trajectory of its culture, its people and its identity. And I can honestly say that the environment now is as toxic and destructive as I have ever seen it.
To put the problem in the simplest terms, the interests of the client continue to be sidelined in the way the firm operates and thinks about making money. Goldman Sachs is one of the world’s largest and most important investment banks and it is too integral to global finance to continue to act this way. The firm has veered so far from the place I joined right out of college that I can no longer in good conscience say that I identify with what it stands for.

Read it all...click here

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Goldman's Response (one real and one joke) to Greg Smith's Op-Ed

Goldman Sachs Response to Greg Smith's Op-Ed (The real one)

As reported in BloombergBusinessweek
This letter does warrant publication here. (Editor, GS666.com)

(The following is an internal memo to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) employees from Chief Executive Officer Lloyd C. Blankfein  and Chief Operating Officer Gary D. Cohn. It is in response to the New York Times Op-Ed piece by ex-Goldman executive Greg Smith. A copy of the memo was obtained by Bloomberg News. Its contents were confirmed by David Wells, a company spokesman in New York.)

Our Response to Today’s New York Times Op-Ed

By now, many of you have read the submission in today’s New York Times by a former employee of the firm. Needless to say, we were disappointed to read the assertions made by this individual that do not reflect our values, our culture and how the vast majority of people at Goldman Sachs think about the firm and the work it does on behalf of our clients.

Read it all...click here

Editor's Note:  The following letter reprinted from The Borowitz Report is NOT an actual letter written by Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs.  It is an obvious spoof but we just want to set the record straight just in case some might interpret it otherwise.

Goldman Sachs has responded to Greg Smith's resignation letter published in the NY Times.  First, Blankfein and Cohn wrote this memo for their employees in order to assuage their put-upon feelings.  But then Goldman just had to set things straight with a follow-up letter to their clients as follows:

A Response from Goldman Sachs (Not Real...but humorous)

By The Borowitz Report

NEW YORK (The Borowitz Report) – The following letter to Goldman Sachs’ worldwide clients was issued today by Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein:

Dear Goldman Client:

By now, many of you have probably read the regrettable resignation letter published in today’s New York Times by former Goldman executive Greg Smith, explaining why he is leaving the firm after twelve years.

In the letter, in which he excoriates Goldman and his practices, Mr. Smith comes across as a man of conscience, ideals, and high moral standards.  And as you read his words, you no doubt asked yourself this troubling question: how could Goldman have hired such a person?

At Goldman, we pride ourselves on our ability to scour the world’s universities and business schools for the finest sociopaths money will buy.  Once in our internship program, these youths are subjected to rigorous evaluations to root out even the slightest evidence of a soul.  But, as the case of Mr. Smith shows, even the most time-tested system for detecting shreds of humanity can blow a gasket now and then.  For that, we can only offer you our deepest apology and the reassurance that one good apple won’t spoil the whole bunch.

As to those of you who were serviced by Mr. Smith, it’s understandable that you would be concerned about who will be taking his place going forward.  On that front, I have some exciting news: today, Goldman is pleased to announce that our new executive director and head of the United States equity derivatives business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa will be Mr. Joseph Kony.  For those unfamiliar with Mr. Kony’s resume, let me assure you that he has the character and moral standards you have come to expect from Goldman, and like the rest of us here at the bank, he has dedicated his life to doing the Lord’s work.

Sincerely,

Lloyd Blankfein

CEO, Goldman Sachs

Read the letter here  

Here's a "muppet" video for you here