Sound of Silence

Hello Paulson, my old friend,
I’ve come to talk with you again,
Because my asset values keep falling,
and my counterparties keep calling,
Then this vision of a savior came to me
The Treasury!
will TARP help me refinance?

I’ve wrestled with this meek request
$25 billion would be best.
It would sure shore up my balance sheet,
and boost my reputation on the Street
And our bonuses would be paid from a different stash
Not with this cash
will TARP help me refinance?

If you don’t heed what I implore
Ten banks will crumble, maybe more.
People pulling their deposits out,
While you’re mulling how to work this out,
And investment banks evaporate into the air
Does no one care?
Let TARP help me refinance!

Fools, said I, you thought I’d lend?
Those billions are for me to spend!
I’ll buy someone so I can replace,
the leaking size of my deposit base.
But my words, like Lehman’s stock price, fell
And echoed
In the halls of Congress.

And the people bowed and prayed
To the stockholder they made.
Give the government the power it needs
to right the wrongs of capitalism’s greed.
and we’ll pay for the recap of losers

redistributing taxpayers' hide
since credit died.
Should TARP help me refinance?