SEC has fewer employees than the Smithsonian

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Robert Bryce <rbryce () swbell net>
Date: September 27, 2008 12:45:53 PM EDT
To: Dave Farber <dave () farber net>
Subject: SEC has fewer employees than the Smithsonian

Hi Dave,
There are many factors at work in the current financial crisis. But  
the most painful fact about the mess is that Congress and the White  
House refused to heed the lessons that were taught by the Enron  
collapse: the need for more financial regulators and more oversight of  
the derivatives market.
Today's Wall Street Journal has  front page story about a report from  
the Inspector General which found that the SEC has "failed to carry  
out its mission in its oversight of Bear Stearns."
That's hardly surprising. Today, the SEC has fewer employees than the  
Smithsonian Institution.
Further, and even more amazing: the proposed 2009 budget for the SEC  
calls for a reduction -- yes, a reduction -- in the number of  
enforcement personnel on its staff.
Here's another metric: the US now spends more than five times as much  
on corn subsidies as it does on the SEC.
Given the lack of funding for the single most important financial  
regulator in the US, why are we surprised that the financial engineers  
have -- once again -- robbed us blind?
I wrote about these issues for USNews.com that was published this  
week. Here's a link:
http://www.usnews.com/articles/opinion/2008/09/24/from-enron-to-the-financial-crisis-with-alan-greenspan-in-between.html
best
rb


Robert Bryce
Austin, TX 78704
512-445-5097
robertbryce.com





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