TOUGH TIMES ECONOMICALLY

Yesterday, it took me 1/2 the day to make a decision on something I thought about doing. With all the bank and financial collapses, I finally made the decision that I may be a tiny pebble in the ocean; yet, even one small pebble creates a ripple.

What caught my attention yesterday was the announcement by Citicorp that it was suing Wells Fargo and Wachovia to acquire Wachovia. That actually incensed me to consider and finally send an email comment.

Citicorp, of course, has the right in the US to sue anyone. Yet, given the current economic condition and one reason, among many, is greed, Citicorp to me seems predatory, greedy, and just using muscle. They are suing for 60 million dollars. Even 1/2 of that amount donated to Habitat or another very worthy organization would be so attractive. I might even have switched banks.

I was grateful to hear today that the lawsuit is on hold. That is something I'm currently paying attention to.

Today, October 8, 2008 I paid attention, and this is what I noticed: NEW YORK (Fortune) -- Meredith Whitney, the über-bearish bank-stock analyst at Oppenheimer & Co., continues to tell clients to steer clear of the financial sector. But Whitney makes one exception: She tells Fortune that she likes the preferred shares of the "strong" U.S. banks - JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo.

Citicorp is not listed. Don't misunderstand me, I'm not happy about that. The list is getting smaller. Citicorp used to be No. 1, as a former JP Morgan Chase employee, they were wanna bees with regard to size. Actually, JP Morgan Chase was swallowed up by Bank One about 3 years ago, and kept the JP Morgan Chase name. So that, actually, is a horse of a different color.

My hope is not for Citicorp to get dashed, it is for all "power mongers" to recheck their values and ethics and begin to play the business game like the "good" kids playing in a sand box who have watchful parents near by. There are rules of etiquette that appear to have been forgotten. In particular the golden rule. See list in John C. Maxwell's book, "Ethics 101," on page 17.

"Christianity: 'Whenever you want men to do to you, do also to them.' Matthew 7:12

Judaism: 'What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow man. This is the entire law; all the rest is commentary.' Talmud, Shabbat 31a, quote in "The University of the Golden rule in World Religion," www.teaching-values.com, 23 September 2002

Islam: 'No one of you is a believer until he loves for his neighbor what he loves for himself.' The Traditions of Mohammed, quoted at www.thegoldenrule.net, 23 September 2002."

These are examples.