A Very Public Resignation

“As most of us have done nothing wrong, guilt is not a motivation to surrender our earnings. We have worked 12 long months under these contracts and now deserve to be paid as promised. None of us should be cheated of our payments any more than a plumber should be cheated after he has fixed the pipes but a careless electrician causes a fire that burns down the house."

- AIG ex-employee Jake DeSantis, an executive vice president of the American International Group’s financial products unit, in his resignation letter to Edward M. Liddy, the chief executive of A.I.G.

I hear what this man is saying and I like his analogy. But I still defer to Rachel Maddow's comments below. Who wrote these contracts a year ago? Did they not have any inclination that the company was under a lot of stress and maybe huge bonus' wouldn't go over so well at the end of the year? I find it hard to believe that they had no projections, and thus, I don't feel as sorry for this guy as maybe I should. Maybe he was swindled -- but then again, he was working with AIG for 11 years. He didn't know this could happen?

Rachel Maddow Explains the Big Fail

"[AIG's] not even saying they deserve [the bonus']-- they're saying 'oh we promised it to them.' Which means that sometime in early 2008 that company signed contracts with its employees that said, 'Even if you cause our company to fail and bring down the world financial system, you still get a bonus.' I mean, who writes these contracts?"

Fucking AIG.

Josh Ozersky: Burgers in the Boardroom

Image via my favorite blog: A Hamburger Today

It's sad that I love watching a video like this -- and am really jealous that I can't be in Josh Ozersky's place. But seriously -- there's an art to the Hamburger! Respect the fat-to-lean ratio, people!!

"I understand that you want to make finance entertaining, but it's not a game."

One of the most awkward/awesome 20 minutes of television.

The Kind of Sesame Street I want to Watch

Ever wonder what a Sesame Street out take looks like? Well, lucky for you, this one involves my favorite, Ricky Gervias, speaking to Elmo about the Holocaust, necrophilia, and child abuse. Amazing!

This Is What I Do for a Living

The most recent email to hit my inbox had the subject line:

"EXCLUSIVE: Coolio Busted for Crack"

I mean, I don't know what to say about that.

Sanjay Gupta Withdraws for "Personal Reasons"

"[Sanjay] Gupta, a neurosurgeon, said in an interview with CNN's Larry King that he withdrew [from consideration to be the next surgeon general] so that he could spend more time with his family, continue to practice medicine and work as a journalist. Administration officials cited the same reasons."

Sooooo basically there's either some kind of sex-scandal here involving multiple prostitutes, a raging coke addiction or a hidden murder. I'm pretty sure that's what they mean when they say, "Spend more time with his family."

I watch too much 24.

"None of you understand. I'm not locked up in here with you. You're locked up in here with me."

"We're all puppets, Laurie. I'm just a puppet who can see the strings." - Dr. Manhattan

Go see Watchmen -- right now.