Goldman Sachs Executive Makes Huge Public Spectacle in High-Profile Resignation

Greg Smith, who worked at Goldman for 12 years, has this commentary in yesterday's New York Times, "Why I Am Leaving Goldman Sachs" (via Memeorandum).

And check this companion piece, "Public Exit From Goldman Raises Doubt Over a New Ethic."

I'm actually skeptical of this guy Greg Smith. It just sounds too pat. Securities firms aren't benevolent societies. "Greed is good" is more than a motto --- it's do or die. So, I'm betting the guy burned some bridges --- or just burned some people and decided to go out with a flourish, settling some scores in the process. Again, it's just too pat. Tyler Cowen concurs, "In any case, I am suspicious of his impulse to blame it all on a sudden shift in the moral propensities of the people he was working with." Right. And see Dan Drezner as well, "If you're going to be a whistle-blower, you need to acknowledge upfront your complicity in any malfeasance, be it legal or ethical. Smith's op-ed doesn't come close to doing this."