Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Bankers (& Their Lawyers) Bankrupting the Bankrupt

A completely unscientific poll of occupied barstools shows that Americans are feeling abandoned, helpless and broke. All because of the economy, and the failure of government in their opinion to properly address the issue. Unemployment still hovering over 9%? A $14 trillion deficit, meaning even more from American taxpayers to pay if off? All while the very entities that single-handedly caused the problems in the first place attempt to recoup their “losses” through licentious litigation and added account fees.

For the St. Louis metro area alone, Bank of America and Citibank have filed an unprecedented amount of lawsuits targeting account holders. Citibank – represented in ALL cases by Berman & Rabin, a self-proclaimed leader specializing in creditor’ rights headquartered in Kansas City – is the worst offender, with 2,283 cases filed in St. Louis City/County over the last two years. That is a 325% per year increase from the 2,421 lawsuits filed over the previous nine years starting in 2000; respectively, 1,142/year over a two year period vs. 268/year over a nine year period. No other financial institution that received taxpayer money even comes close to those amounts. Bank of America’s total has actually decreased in totality, from 4,564 lawsuits between 2000-’08 (507/year) to 1,272 lawsuits between 2009-’10 (636/year) – a modest 25% per year increase. Separately, each of these financial giants received approximately $45 billion in federal bailout funds – a combined $90 billion.


The number of lawsuits is telling, and for one reason: Americans are sick and tired of egregious account terms, strong-arm tactics and wholly rampant corporate greed, and collectively as individuals stopped paying their accounts in protest.

In the midst of all this, the banks obviously have not understood the anger:


U.S. Bank May End Free Checking

If you are able, I strongly urge leaving the credit grid as soon as possible and stop giving your hard-earned money to these assholes. When they are finally allowed to collapse under the weight of their own arrogant hubris – as they should have earlier – only then might they learn a lesson. The lesson that Americans are tired of feeling abandoned, helpless and broke, particularly at the hands of Wall Street.

©2011 Steve Sagarra

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