John McGuinness: Irish Banks are Theives

John McGuinness Money Quote as Irish member of the Irish Parliament blames Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Michael D’Arcy for allowing banks to avoid responsibility for losing money for depositors. John McGuinness said:
 

 

“These banks in this country have robbed individuals and families of everything that they have, including their dignity and their lives. They are the thieves in this question and you Minister, after today, are driving the getaway car” — John McGuinness

In this quote, John McGuinness is sharply criticizing banks and the government’s handling of the financial crisis in Ireland. He suggests banks essentially stole from ordinary people by precipitating economic ruin through reckless practices that stripped individuals and families of their livelihoods, savings, homes and sense of security.

By accusing banks of being “the thieves in this question”, McGuinness portrays them as the real wrongdoers who robbed the public through their actions. He further implicates the Minister (likely of Finance) as an accomplice or enabler by not properly holding banks accountable, saying the Minister is now “driving the getaway car” to help banks evade responsibility for the hardship caused.

The overall interpretation is that McGuinness views banks as predatory institutions that preyed on citizens and destroyed lives, while seeing the government as failing to curb such abuse and protect people’s financial well-being by not punishing the banks responsible for precipitating the crisis. His strong language conveys deep frustration with both banks and the perceived lack of political will to remedy the situation and recover losses on behalf of affected families and communities.

Elayne Boosler: Banks Robbed Homes

Elayne Boosler Money Quote saying investment banks robbed homes of investors and got arrested, but were let go if they returned tiny portion of what they looted. Elayne Boosler said:
 

 

“Basically, many banks (including the investment firm of Charles Schwab) essentially robbed the entire contents of our homes: dishes, furniture, electronics, family photos, your grandmother’s apron, everything. When caught by the police (the SEC), the thieves were asked to return only a toaster” — Elayne Boosler

Elayne Boosler seems to be criticizing financial institutions like Charles Schwab for major misconduct and a lack of serious consequences. Her metaphor portrays the companies as having essentially stolen all of customers’ personal possessions and valuables through their actions.

While the SEC (the “police”) caught them, Boosler argues the punishment of only returning a “toaster” is trivial and does not make up for the harm caused or properly deter future wrongdoing.

Her remarks imply that fines alone do not remedy extensive customer losses and suggest stronger penalties are needed to match the scale and impact of the infractions. Overall, she appears to believe financial regulators failed to adequately punish major rule-breaking by large firms.

Michael Capuano: Bank Executive Apology

Michael Capuano Money Quote at congressional hearings in 2010, bank executives from top banks apologize for defrauding public, ask forgiveness, given fines instead of jail time. Michael Capuano said:
 

 

“You come to us today telling us “We’re sorry. We won’t do it again. Trust us”. Well I have some people in my constituency that actually robbed some of your banks, and they say the same thing” — Michael Capuano

In this quote, Michael Capuano is criticizing bankers who are apologizing for their role in the 2008 financial crisis but asking for trust. Capuano suggests some people he represents who robbed banks used the same excuse of being sorry and promising not to repeat their actions.

His point seems to be that just saying “sorry” and “trust us” is not enough after such a massive crisis caused in large part by the actions of bankers. Capuano appears to be implying the bankers are not truly remorseful and have not taken real accountability if the best they can offer is an empty apology.

The quote conveys skepticism towards the bankers’ apologies and suggests their pleas to rebuild trust through mere words ring hollow given the severity of the crisis they helped precipitate.

Academy Award Winning Documentary Film includes the Quote above from Massachusetts Rep. Mike Capuano (D) at the 1:55 minute mark. It’s fun to replay it repeatedly by clicking that time in the progress bar over and over again. Think of letting bank robbers skip their prison terms because they promise not to do it again. That is a clear comparison between the wealthy and everyone else. He also said to bank executives: “You created CDO’s, you created credit default swaps – that never existed a few years ago. Who was the brilliant person who came and said, ‘Let’s do credit default swaps’ – find him, fire him”