Quote of the Day

"It makes me ill how callously people talk about ripping clients off."

-- Former Goldman Sachs Executive Director Greg Smith

I say former because Smith is quitting Goldman Sachs as of today -- and his letter of resignation is an op-ed piece in today's New York Times. It's scathing. It's illuminating. And while it likely won't change a thing when it comes to the firm's culture of relentless, insatiable greed, it's still a very big public kick in the nuts to Wall Street.

Make no mistake: This is a PR catastrophe for Goldman.

Adding: As you'd expect, Taibbi's take on Smith's exit -- which he calls "brave," "eloquent" and "devastating" -- is very good.

Quote of the Day

"As America girds itself for another round of lunatic political infighting over which barely-respirating social program or urgently necessary federal agency must have their budgets permanently sacrificed to the cause of billionaires being able to keep their third boats in the water, it's important to point out just how scarce money isn't in certain corners of the public-spending universe. In the coming months, when you watch Republican congressional stooges play out the desperate comedy of solving America's deficit problems by making fewer photocopies of proposed bills, or by taking an ax to budgetary shrubberies like NPR or the SEC, remember Christy Mack and her fancy new carriage house. There is no belt-tightening on the other side of the tracks. Just a free lunch that never ends."

-- Matt Taibbi, in a new Rolling Stone piece called "The Real Housewives of Wall Street"