Barbarians of Wealth

How the actions of a few in Europe destroyed the prosperity ofthe many (and how it's happening again now in America)After the fall of the Roman Empire, vicious barbaric tribesincluding the Hunds lead by Atilla, the Mongols, Charlemagne andthe Vikings invaded Europe, plundering property and destroyinghomes. But, they didn't just steal and destroy property in thevillages; they also stole and destroyed any prosperity thevillagers had previously enjoyed. What's worse is the barbarians ofthe Dark Ages did all of this not out of any deeply held religiousor political belief, but, rather, for the oldest reason in the book- their own personal financial gain. Some things neverchange.Barbarians of Wealth examines how the greedy,self-serving decisions of a select group of politicians andfinancial institutions negatively impacts the economy and,ultimately, destroys America's prosperity and the American way oflife. Compelling and engaging, the book* Details how Goldman Sachs peddled mortgage backed securities upand down Wall Street while secretly betting against theirdemise* Discusses how Sanford Weill, founder of Citigroup spent $100million lobbying for the repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act thatprevented the merger of commercial and investment banks and got hisway.* Examines Christopher Dodd, head of the U.S. Senate BankingCommittee, has enriched himself while driving down the prosperityof his constituents* Offers up examples of other modern barbarians, including theFederal Reserve, Alan Greenspan, Hank Paulson, and TimothyGeithner.* Highlights greed driven tactics of Wall Street corporationsincluding JP Morgan, Merrill Lynch, and Salomon Brothers.Barbarians of Wealth is a timely must read forhard-working Americans concerned with their prosperity, as well asfor those fascinated with the inner workings of Washington and WallStreet.

Foreword ixAcknowledgments xiiiIntroduction 1Part One: Great Barbarians of History 7Chapter 1 Attila the Hun: The Scourge of God 9Chapter 2 Charlemagne: The Clandestine Barbarian 21Chapter 3 The Vikings: Savage Pirates, Savvy Traders 33Chapter 4 Genghis Khan: Mighty Warrior 43Part Two: Banks: The Barbarians of Money 55Chapter 5 The Brotherhood of Power 57Chapter 6 Race to the Bottom Line 77Chapter 7 Say Goodbye to Gold 97Chapter 8 The Gatekeepers 117Chapter 9 Money for Nothing 139Chapter 10 The Barbarians' Powerful Ally 161Part Three: The Barbarians of Wall Street 179Chapter 11 The Scourge of Wall Street 181Chapter 12 Epic Tool of Destruction 203Chapter 13 The Brotherhood of Banks 221Chapter 14 Wall Street Bloodlines 241Part Four: Political Barbarians 265Chapter 15 The Monied-Class Rulers and Demigods 267Chapter 16 Barbarians in the Lobby 281Chapter 17 Global Barbarians 297Part Five: Protection Strategies 311Chapter 18 Diversification: The Key to Wealth Protection 313Chapter 19 Precious Metals: Inflation Protection Strategies 323Chapter 20 Barbarians of Wealth, Castles of Currency 339Chapter 21 Arm Yourself with Ultra-Resource-Rich Countries 355Notes 373About the Authors 413Index 415