Archive: Opinions

The mere mention of the word conjures up stories from everyone’s past.  There are the long forgotten faucets that dripped into old wash tubs with the precision of a metronome.  Some remember hose nozzles that sprayed in a different direction every time they were used with a guarantee that whoever held it emerged well soaked. 

Other leaks are not as harmless or as amusing.  Fuel, sewage, and other less noticeable gaseous leaks such as chlorine and radon, are often the cause of serious accidents and in some cases death.  Homes, offices, schools and other structures contain numerous devices that warn us when these potential hazards have entered our environment. 

This week the media reported on several leaks that have caused damage well beyond what anyone could have predicted or imagined. It appears that officials at Goldman Sachs sent out a memo to a few senior investors calling a certain one billion dollar investment deal as “sh-ty.”  None the less, Goldman went through with the deal and then encouraged clients to invest in this “sh-ty” deal. 

Someone in the government leaked that memo in an attempt to link Goldman Sachs with what many had assumed for months: that Goldman engaged in behavior that  helped create the housing bubble by selling securities backed by risky sub-prime mortgage loans and then profited off that bubble's bursting by secretly betting against the market.

Some argue that this memo and other evidence show that Goldman repeatedly put its own interests and profits ahead of the interests of its clients.  Senator Carl Levin, the Chairman on the Senate Sub-Committee said. "Its misuse of exotic and complex financial structures helped spread toxic mortgages throughout the financial system. And when the system finally collapsed under the weight of those toxic mortgages, Goldman profited from the collapse.

Officials at Goldman have denied all allegations that they engaged in risky financial schemes that misled clients in a controversial mortgage derivative product that claims it was designed to fail.  Goldman has sent a memo to its clients refuting the allegations by the Security and Exchange Commission as well any link of the “leaked memo” with the economic recession. 

Offshore, in the deep blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico, we learned of another leak.  An explosion on an oil drilling platform resulted in the death of 11 workers.  In addition to the tragic loss of life, there are an estimated 150 thousand gallons of oil leaking into the Gulf every day.  That is equivalent to 5,000 barrels of oil per day. 

The oil slick, measuring 100 miles long by 45 miles wide will reach the Gulf coast some time this weekend.   Fishermen, shrimp boaters, and environmentalists along with the federal and state governments are bracing for this disaster with plans to contain as much of the slick offshore as possible.  Having begun to recovery from the ravages of Hurricane Katrina, it seems that the Gulf States will be tested again. 

Leaks of any sort pose serious risks.  If ignored, they create an environment which eventually becomes toxic in nature, our homes, offices or the financial world.  Most importantly, leaks remind us that we need regulation along with individuals who will monitor and enforce the regulation.  Whether it is the radon detectors in our homes or the financial regulators monitoring banks and investment firms on Wall Street, any leak in the system must be detected and dealt with in an appropriate manner.

If we fail to act or wait too long, the losses might be too great to overcome.   Our lives and the lives of our loved ones are at stake.  Before anyone takes up the chant, “drill baby drill,” we ought to reassess what harm any leak may have off the coast or in our own back yard. No individual or corporation should have the power to manipulate any sector of our lives for their own gain.  And that is to the point. 


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