Angelo Mozilo, the co-founder and former CEO of notorious subprime lending machine Countrywide, was was one of the first top industry figures to be publicly blamed for the financial crisis, and he remains among the very few individuals to be actually punished for his role.
Mozilo decided to teach undergraduates what he knows about finance last year. The former trustee of Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington, said he spent about two weeks in Italy at Gonzaga-in-Florence, housed in the Mozilo Center overlooking a 16th-century Medici garden.
“I taught them the basics of finance based on my own experiences,” he said. “I really enjoyed being among them. It was very refreshing for me.”
Eyeesh. In the fall semester at Hell State University, Berkeley law professor John Yoo will instruct freshmen in the the rule of law and its many workarounds. Material will include Unitary Executive Theory and the appropriate use of testicle clamps. Students can bring their own off the books underage prisoner or the school will provide one for an extra fee.
***Update***
Links fixed.
Scamp Dog
The link needs fixing–it looks like you have the Daily Dish URL tangles up with a Balloon Juice URL.
Alex S.
Is it an economics course, or a psychology course?
Ugh
child size testicle clamps, you mean.
Ugh
And you do understand that one of John Yoo’s roles at UC Berkeley once upon a time was to teach Constitutional Law to 1Ls, including yours truly. Which is to say, it’s not really hypothetical.
MattF
This is what makes me crazy– the torturers themselves were evil enough, but they had a crowd of motivators, enablers, and excusers. No one is looking to hire Cheney or Rumsfeld, but the fans-of-torture crowd goes on to prestigious jobs, offered by friends-of-fans-of-torture. Hell will be getting crowded.
Cervantes
In that “16th-century Medici garden” are some carnivorous plants.
(Just FYI, that’s all.)
Mr. Longform
It’s good to know that economy-ruining law breakers are held to the same standard of punishment as unarmed jaywalkers in this country. I hope Michael Brown enjoyed his stay in Italy after he “decided to teach undergraduates what he knows.”
Someguy
Hey, don’t knock Mozilo. A lot of members of Congress wouldn’t have sweet ass mansions if it weren’t for the Friends of Angelo loan program.
Derelict
Maybe I missed it, but in what way was Mozilo punished? Was his punishment the gigantic paychecks he received while running Countrywide? Or was it the tremendous bonus checks? Or maybe it was the ginormous windfall when Countrywide got sold?
Unless, of course, “punished” now means “being hailed as a titan of industry, a financial genius to be sought out, and having more money than any human could possibly spend in several lifetimes.”
GregB
The thing that creeps me out about Mozillo is his circus peanut complexion.
When he’s not plundering and looting money from the rubes he must be sitting in front of a tanning light.
GregB
Circus peanut!
NotMax
re: Mozilo – Not conversant with the content of the course, but on its face don’t see how it much differs from bringing in recovered addicts to help students learn about addiction.
Comrade Dread
In a just world, many many bankers would be rotting in jail now sitting next to members of the previous administration.
In a slightly less just world, their wealth would have been confiscated to pay off their victims, they would be out of jobs, nearly un-hireable, and pelted with rotten fruit whenever they poked their heads out of their lairs.
In our world, there is no shame, no punishment, and thus they teach seminars and college classes and appear as ‘wise old men’ on the Sunday talk shows.
God damn it.
debbie
@NotMax:
More like Trump teaching ethics.
Roger Moore
@Comrade Dread:
FTFY.
Jamey
@debbie: Or David Brooks teaching humility…
jonas
@Derelict: He had to cough up a couple million in fines, which I like to imagine went down like Mr. Burns paying his pollution fine in the “Monorail Episode” of the Simpsons, with him strapped to a gurney and in a facemask a la Hannibal Lecter. It doesn’t seem to have inconvenienced him much, in any case. Why he isn’t sharing a cell with Bernie Madoff is a bigger question.
Waynski
@NotMax:
Recovering addicts have admitted their sins and asked for forgiveness. As far as I know, Mozilla hasn’t done that and even if he did, I still wouldn’t forgive him. The amount of suffering this man caused, including mine, is unfathomable. Joe Biden should give an ISIS like speech about ALL THOSE BASTARDS.
mai naem
I think Condi still teaches at Stanford. Just imagine the courses Condi teaches : “American Foreign Policy Screw Ups 101”, “Advanced American Foreign Policy Screw Ups 201” and “George W.Clampett and Black Gold Policy 2001-2008”
Cervantes
@mai naem: To be fair: she might be giving piano lessons.
Comrade Luke
As a Gonzaga alum, I’m thoroughly disgusted and will no longer donate to the university. Ugh.