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Full Faith & Credit
A novel About financial collapse. A spellbinding tale of fame and fortune set against a backdrop of panic and crisis.
295 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 25, 2024
FULL FAITH & CREDIT : A NOVEL ABOUT FINANCIAL COLLAPSE was published in 1999, yet so much of it seems to be unraveling today, though at a slower pace.
This is the (fictional?) story of what happens when the US, government and citizens, spends more than it should, with no thought of tomorrow, and has to face the day of reckoning. Among all the people who play the market and are losing everything, there is one man who amasses a fortune, sometimes by strategy, and sometimes by luck. What happens to him and society makes for interesting reading, but should also serve as a warning. I won't want to give too much away, but I will mention some quotes for you. How much is true today?
"Look at this menu. Lunches are more expensive, but it never shows up in the inflation index."
"And that idiot in the White House is telling everybody he's responsible for any prosperity we have."
A financial expert is on a talk show. He is asked if thirty to forty times earnings on the S & P stocks might be too rich. He says, "We have no inflation. Technology is driving this market. Productivity is rising. There is still plenty of money still uncommitted and everyone in the world wants to invest here." He recommends people keep investing even though it is a bear market. Off camera he says, "Well, we've told the dumb bastards what to do. Let's see if they follow orders."
"He told me the big brokerage firms and the banks are in cahoots with the government. They've been buying the Dow stocks right along. Government's financing it."
"And what about the dollar? If it goes down any more Hyundais will be fifty grand."
"I read a newsletter the other day, a guy says we've been destroying capital, not building it. He says by consuming goods instead of building plants we're just eating seed corn. We've been spending and consuming, not saving."
"I've been reading a lot about gold lately. It's very unpopular, especially with the big banks and brokers. Economists think it's useless and most governments are washing their hands of it. (Not so any more.) But little people around the world buy it and hoard it. In our country a few rich people own it, but by and large it's smaller-to-medium sized investors who buy some of it to hedge."
In the story gold was at $252 an ounce. When it got up to $2000 in the story that was incredible! At present it is well over that and everyone ignores it.
"I told all of you three years ago that selling these bonds was going to hamstring this company with too much debt. Every damn dime of it was used to buy back the company's stock and make earnings per share look better. . . . You did it to make your stock options juicier."
"Sure, but they're suspicious of everyone. The way I figure it, as soon as a person gets successful, it attracts the attention of the government." What that means is that they don't expect you to beat the market any more than if you try to beat the odds in Vegas, unless of course, you can do like Martha Stuart and use insider information.
I learned a few things about how the financial world works, but of course it is a work of fiction. Still, investing today sounds like the whole thing is a crap shoot and the house always wins.
This is the (fictional?) story of what happens when the US, government and citizens, spends more than it should, with no thought of tomorrow, and has to face the day of reckoning. Among all the people who play the market and are losing everything, there is one man who amasses a fortune, sometimes by strategy, and sometimes by luck. What happens to him and society makes for interesting reading, but should also serve as a warning. I won't want to give too much away, but I will mention some quotes for you. How much is true today?
"Look at this menu. Lunches are more expensive, but it never shows up in the inflation index."
"And that idiot in the White House is telling everybody he's responsible for any prosperity we have."
A financial expert is on a talk show. He is asked if thirty to forty times earnings on the S & P stocks might be too rich. He says, "We have no inflation. Technology is driving this market. Productivity is rising. There is still plenty of money still uncommitted and everyone in the world wants to invest here." He recommends people keep investing even though it is a bear market. Off camera he says, "Well, we've told the dumb bastards what to do. Let's see if they follow orders."
"He told me the big brokerage firms and the banks are in cahoots with the government. They've been buying the Dow stocks right along. Government's financing it."
"And what about the dollar? If it goes down any more Hyundais will be fifty grand."
"I read a newsletter the other day, a guy says we've been destroying capital, not building it. He says by consuming goods instead of building plants we're just eating seed corn. We've been spending and consuming, not saving."
"I've been reading a lot about gold lately. It's very unpopular, especially with the big banks and brokers. Economists think it's useless and most governments are washing their hands of it. (Not so any more.) But little people around the world buy it and hoard it. In our country a few rich people own it, but by and large it's smaller-to-medium sized investors who buy some of it to hedge."
In the story gold was at $252 an ounce. When it got up to $2000 in the story that was incredible! At present it is well over that and everyone ignores it.
"I told all of you three years ago that selling these bonds was going to hamstring this company with too much debt. Every damn dime of it was used to buy back the company's stock and make earnings per share look better. . . . You did it to make your stock options juicier."
"Sure, but they're suspicious of everyone. The way I figure it, as soon as a person gets successful, it attracts the attention of the government." What that means is that they don't expect you to beat the market any more than if you try to beat the odds in Vegas, unless of course, you can do like Martha Stuart and use insider information.
I learned a few things about how the financial world works, but of course it is a work of fiction. Still, investing today sounds like the whole thing is a crap shoot and the house always wins.
April 3, 2011
I found this novel facinating particularly because it was written in 1999 before the details of the financial crisis were experienced by the country in general. Not only did it peg many of the events but the anticipation of peoples reaction was amazing. And, it's not over yet.
February 5, 2016
This guy wrote in 1999 what happened in reality in 2008. Simply brilliant!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews