we have laws to enforce a fair playing field

you think if we didn't have laws and didn't enforce them things would be more fair and free?

you really believe that?

there are countries in this world, canada, the nordic countries, that actually do a good job at minimizing corruption. the usa has legalized corruption: buying congresscritters via funding elections, revolving door employment with regulators, etc. THAT is the problem

the absurdity, the insane stupidity, is thinking less regulations and less government will lead to more fairness. because magic. all that less government and less regulations mean is the oligarchs currently raping you with corrupt regulations will now happily rape you more directly with less people to corrupt in government. if you don't realize this you are a complete moron on this topic, on the iintellectual order of creationists and antivaxxers: " less government leads to more fairness in the market because magic"

thank you, well said

and apologies if i sounded like i was ranting at you. i was using your your comment as a launching point for me to rant at other fools, free market fundamentalists, not hurl abuse at you

Regulatory capture is a form of corruption. What you want is regulation without corruption.

With no regulations, worse abuses than regulation capture occurs: domination by oligarchy who abuse consumers and smaller players. With no recourse. Because there's no regulations. And there's no magic free market fairy who fixes things another way.

It's important to note this because there persists this economically ignorant nonsense that regulations cause problems. No, corruption causes problems. Regulations are the only way you get any fairness.

We need to fight *corruption* not *government* on the issue of regulation. I do not love government, but when it comes to markets, government regulation is the only thing that keeps the playing field fair so the magic of capitalism (efficiency via competition) can work.vMeanwhile, an unregulated marketplace left to itself becomes abusive.

There unfortunately persists this quasireligious faith based economic illiteracy in the USA, on the same intellectual level as creationism and antivaxxers, that unregulated marketplaces are magically free and fair because magic.

1. unregulated marketplaces: hell

2. corrupt government (regulatory capture, rent seeking parasites, oligarchy): hell

3. truly fair government regulation: the only way capitalism can work. without a fair playing field with referees, there is no fair game of capitalism. players cheat

Will it all have been for nothing?

Yes.

censorship?

the heroin crack meth of money in politics is not defeated by voting for the fourth party candidate wackjob

the laws need to be changed like this:

http://www.wolf-pac.com/

using money to defeat money. corruption jujitsu

you're correct, they want an alternative stream

but it's not altruistic, they just want to set up their own competing ~1% ~2% steal

thank you. well explained

the banks can't cut out the ccs, the ccs will punish them

so the best power play is OS/ phone manufacturer and the phone companies cutting out the banks AND the ccs

i get it

but you know the ccs are working furiously with dirty tricks right now like purchased legislation to protect their revenue streams, i mean EHEM, "protect the consumer"

american banks are finally waking the fuck up from all of the easy expensive hacks and finally giving americans european style smart chip cards:

http://www.cnbc.com/id/1014121...

the chips in smart cards are the same thing as phone SIM cards:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S...

so why can't banks team up with verizon/ att/ sprint/ etc (and do an end run around google/ apple/ samsung/ etc. plus mastercard/ visa/ etc.) and just give us phone = bankcard thataways?

what am i missing?

do i get my $30 million bonus now?

the only reason we don't have phone = bankcard technology is this power game pissing contest between all of the players here, correct?

someone please explain to me what i am missing

there are plenty of douchebags in this world with a self-declared and delusional, entitled sense of impunity

1. Cohen probably doesn't have that much, and it will probably cost more to do what you suggest than anything you can recover

3. by acting with such impunity, you can get in trouble with the law. never mind blackmail by shady thugs. once you gain the attention of certain low like characters, and you demonstrate to them a brutality and mendacity they recognize in themselves, they get their hooks into you, and they don't let go

better to stay clean

best answer yet

well said, i agree with everything, except

no, it's a character issue, not a knowledge issue

it's called humility

the dumbest moron in the world, who has an open mind and is willing to learn, is a better person than the scientific genius who is smugly certain in his knowledge and sneers off all challenges

ignorance isn't really the problem in this world

we're all ignorant, about something

the problem is *prideful* ignorance

the idea that "i know all i need to know and don't need to consider new evidence" is perhaps the greatest evil at work in the world

Cohen's a con man, he knows how to hide assets

you and i have a house a job and a bank account. in our names. simple and plain

this guy has accounts in friend's names, accounts in countries with opaque banking practices, houses owned by trusts or shell corporations or family members, etc

to liquidate your assets or my assets would be easy, any forensic accountant could do it in 15 minutes. because we're financially transparent, honest and straightforward people. but some douchebag who tries very hard to squirrel away their assets can make it a full time job just tracking it all down

Also the thought comes to mind: At what point in time has the law failed you enough that, ethically speaking, you're well in your rights to just go bash the other guy's head in to at least get some satisfaction?

well, from the article:

After losing the case, Cohen fled across the border to Tijuana to avoid paying the settlement. Kremen responded by posting “wanted” signs all over the Mexican town with Cohen’s photo and information. McCarthy said Cohen claimed this resulted in bounty hunters showing up at his door and instigating a firefight with the Mexican police.

this sounds very close to "oops, poor guy got shot dead by accident"

so either Kremen has thought about the possibility of doing the guy in, or, at the very least, Kremen doesn't mind how his actions might endanger Cohen (i'm not saying he should)

lowlifes in seedy areas with sketchy financial assets and the need to avoid the law often wind up dead and robbed. hard to tell the difference between that happening and being accidental, or arranged

which is why it is good to be you and me with our boring plain finances. when your finances are squirrely, squirrely things can happen to you. but if someone messes with you and i, we can complain and get justice. the question of who is in the right and who is in the wrong isn't very grey

black and white absolutes don't exist in this world. but when it comes to your finances, it's best to be as close to black and white as possible. or you can get fucked with

the best target for con men and thieves, is other con men and thieves

because there's no honor in that world. pure dog eat dog