Seven Red

Although I suppose it doesn’t do much good, I do like how Goldman Sachs is beginning to take on the cultural value of an uber-villain. The galling bonuses, even after their practices essentially sunk the whole economy, are bad enough, and set the teeth of most people on edge. That Goldman alums have had their claws in just about everything at Treasury for the past 15 years is even more infuriating in the face of their massive fail. But the pure nerve of Goldman CEO Lloyd Blankfein’s statement that Goldman is “doing God’s work” is simply too much for most folks, I should think, as unemployment hits 10 plus percent, while GS has a monster year. Certainly, “85 Broad Street” doesn’t have the same ring to it as “Versailles,” or “the Bastille” (85 Broad Street Day?), but you can see the Goldman monolith taking on the same cultural value as the symbol of extravagance and decadence and oppression. God’s work! It’s almost as if he tried to find the most inappropriate thing to say, and then said it. The PR folks must have been face-palming well into the night on that one. In any case, here’s Calvin Trillin, writing in the Nation – and it’s just one of many parodic responses the Blankfein’s nonsense (a Lloyd’s Prayer circulated around Wall Street as well):

On every seventh day the Lord can rest.
He knows that Goldman Sachs will do its best
To work away at that for which He’d hanker:
A pot of dough for each investment banker.

As He looks down at us from high above,
The Lord’s not interested in peace and love
And such as that. The Lord has got this itch
To see the Goldman Sachs folks filthy rich.

He wishes they had more than what they’ve got–
Another house or two, another yacht.
His hopes for these to whom he gave the nod:
More money, as the saying goes, than God.

One of the great cultural victories of neoliberalism was to convince people that there was something virtuous and even socially valuable in the kind of high stakes finance capital operations run by Goldman and similar entities. It’s not surprising that these people would squander away their cultural capital with the same recklessness that they squandered away their economic capital. The more Goldman starts to appear culturally like the old octopus cartoons of the oil and railroad trusts, the more pressure will presumably be put on the government to reverse 30 years of free-for-all dereg. Though, to be fair, any pressure on Goldman still seems years away. The problem, of course, is not GS itself, and perhaps we shouldn’t deal in such symbolic villainy, but it’s a pretty good place to start, and besides, they seem all too willing to do it to themselves. Hubris ain’t attractive.

The big Series match-ups don’t seem to be living up to it, especially on the Howard v. A-Rod side. Howard has been a non-presence at bat (he’s done well in the field). His numbers are just dismal: 3 for 17, with 10 strike outs, only one run scored, and only one RBI. Compared to that, A-Rod’s first and second game slump seems almost productive. He’s at 2 for 14, with 7 strike outs, 2 runs scored, and 3 RBI’s. Of course, A-Rod’s two hits came precisely when they were most needed, with the dinger off the camera setting off the offensive rally in Game 3, and the clutch double tonight plating Damon for the ninth inning go-ahead run. With situation factored in, Howard loses the contest badly so far. The fact that A-Rod’s been hit three times and walked twice in Game 3 is only gravy, especially with Posada making them pay for the pass. Where is Ryan Howard? I’m sure Yankee fans don’t want this guy to wake up – though he still might, but Utley and Werth are really out there alone if Howard’s bat doesn’t start working. Just for a final number here: A-Rod’s 3 RBI’s are better than every individual Philly with the exception of Utley, who has 4. That’s a pretty shocking figure, given that Rodriguez had about as awful a first two games in this series as anyone, and looked to be back to previous post-season form. It would be interesting (in a modernist symbolism sorta way) if A-Rod’s turnaround in the Series was kicked off by dinging one off the teevee camera.