{"product_id":"looting-of-america-how-wall-streets-game-of-fantasy-finance-destroyed-our-jobs-pensions-and-prosperity-and-what-we-can-do-about-it","title":"Looting of America: How Wall Street's Game of Fantasy Finance Destroyed Our Jobs, Pensions, and Prosperity--And What We Can Do about It","description":"\u003cbody\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eTitle: \u003c\/b\u003eLooting of America: How Wall Street's Game of Fantasy Finance Destroyed Our Jobs, Pensions, and Prosperity--And What We Can Do about It\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eArtist or Composer: \u003c\/b\u003eLes Leopold\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eUPC: \u003c\/b\u003e9781603582056\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLabel: \u003c\/b\u003eChelsea Green Publishing\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReleased: \u003c\/b\u003e2009\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat: \u003c\/b\u003ePaperback\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage: \u003c\/b\u003eEnglish\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eNumber of Pages: \u003c\/b\u003e240\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition Note: \u003c\/b\u003eDisc, case and artwork in excellent condition with little sign of use. We ship in recyclable American-made mailers. 100% money-back guarantee on all orders.\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher Description: \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003eHow could the best and brightest (and most highly paid) in finance crash the global economy and then get us to bail them out as well? What caused this mess in the first place? Housing? Greed? Dumb politicians? What can Main Street do about it? \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn The Looting of America, Leopold debunks the prevailing media myths that blame low-income home buyers who got in over their heads, people who ran up too much credit-card debt, and government interference with free markets. Instead, readers will discover how Wall Street undermined itself and the rest of the economy by playing and losing at a highly lucrative and dangerous game of fantasy finance. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHe also asks some tough questions: \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e Why did Americans let the gap between workers' wages and executive compensation grow so large?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e Why did we fail to realize that the excess money in those executives' pockets was fueling casino-style investment schemes?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e Why did we buy the notion that too-good-to-be-true financial products that no one could even understand would somehow form the backbone of America's new, postindustrial economy?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e How do we make sure we never give our wages away to gamblers again?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e And what can we do to get our money back? \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn this page-turning narrative (no background in finance required) Leopold tells the story of how we fell victim to Wall Street's exotic financial products. Readers learn how even school districts were taken in by \"innovative\" products like collateralized debt obligations, better known as CDOs, and how they sucked trillions of dollars from the global economy when they failed. They'll also learn what average Americans can do to ensure that fantasy finance never rules our economy again. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs the country teeters on the brink of what could be the next Great Depression, we should be especially wary of the so-called financial experts who got us here, and then conveniently got themselves out. So far, it appears they've won the battle, but The Looting of America refuses to let them write the history--or plan its aftermath.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/body\u003e","brand":"Chelsea Green Publishing","offers":[{"title":"Looting of America: How Wall Street's Game of Fantasy Finance Destroyed Our Jobs, Pensions, and Prosperity--And What We Can Do about It | Les Leopold | Paperback | 9781603582056 | Used: Like New | Back Stacks H 1748985","offer_id":48856336760984,"sku":"1748985","price":8.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0492\/1609\/4360\/files\/71fLP9-levL.jpg?v=1775582010","url":"https:\/\/roundaboutbookstore.com\/products\/looting-of-america-how-wall-streets-game-of-fantasy-finance-destroyed-our-jobs-pensions-and-prosperity-and-what-we-can-do-about-it","provider":"Roundabout Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}