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Commentary

By Liz Quirin

'Subprime' Characters on Their Way Out?

Business is booming — someplace, but probably not at Merrill Lynch today. People are smiling, confident and happy — but probably not E. Stanley O’Neal, who by the time this newspaper goes to press will probably be the former chief of the above-mentioned Merrill Lynch. Why should the “Catholic press” care about Merrill Lynch or Mr. O’Neal other than in a limited way as any investor might want information or assurance that our retirement is protected?

We all need to care very deeply about what is happening at this and other banks and investment firms because they are playing with not only our futures but those of so many others. More than trickle-down economics, the tidal wave that crashed on our collective shore with the subprime mortgage debacle has an undertow that threatens all of us — economically and morally.

Greed on a number of levels was powering this machine, rolling like a juggernaut over so many people who, in some cases, should have known that if it looks too good to be true, it generally is. If you really can’t afford that $500,000 house, why did the lender make it possible on paper? Stepping up the ladder, the lenders were raking in profits as they closed on loan after loan in the subprime market. Moving into the institutional stratosphere, banks were buying and selling those loans and showing more and more profits.

As with so many people who live above, or at least outside, the law, Mr. O’Neal and others in positions of authority without, as he probably saw it, the need to be accountable, became exposed. Whether we recognize it or ignore it, we’re all vulnerable. The power we need to exercise is to protect rather than exploit the fragile among us, to share in generosity, not acquire and hoard so that we can acquire more. Staying balanced and following our moral compass isn’t always easy or preferable, but in the long run — and we should be taking the long view here — it produces far more dividends than any stock on the market.

As for Mr. O’Neal, I can’t help but wonder what kind of a severance package we’ll be hearing about. I have a feeling the words “fair” and “just” will not accompany the discussions.

These kinds of scandals occur and reoccur because we turn our own moral compasses to the “off” position when it appears we can personally gain from some situation, even in a small way. Somehow, we feel entitled to special or better treatment than someone else. It’s definitely time to take a hard look in the mirror and realize “business as usual” must mean business in a morally just manner treating everyone with the same dignity and importance.