That’s Bloc Party, a British indie rock block pictured above. And If it can be broken then it can be fixed is the opening line from Pioneers, one of the tracks on Silent Alarm, their 2005 debut album.
The album was crafted by chief lyricist Kele Okereke to examine the feelings and hopes of young adults about pertinent issues of the day. So now let’s fast forward four years, and one of today’s issues that needs fixing is Wall Street.
Just a few months ago I wrote about that issue in my post, The Times They Are A-Changin’ For Wall Street And Big Law. Marc Tracy, my editor at my other blog home, Slate’s Small Business blog, also covered the issue in his post, The Great Rearranging Hits Wall Street.
So what’s the fix? And it can be fixed says our fellow blogger, Bill Singer, a securities lawyer whose blog, Broke and Broker I’ve written about before. Bill also writes a column, Intelligent Investing, for Forbes in which he recently wrote, Becoming Part Of The Solution, his eight-point program to reform Wall Street and its regulatory community.
Here’s a summary of Bill’s suggestions:
- Professionalize Financial Services Providers
- Implement a uniform regulatory disclosure system on all customer statements
- Establish a centralized national auditor
- Abolish Self-Regulatory Organizations
- End Mandatory Customer and Industry Arbitration
- Create a Fund for Full Payment to Defrauded Investors
- Implement Bounty Program for Whistleblowers and Tipsters
- Create a Systemic Risk Monitor (SRM)
You can follow the details in Bill’s future columns.
In the meantime, here’s the complete first stanza from Pioneers:
If it can be broke then it can be fixed, if it can be fused then it can be split
It’s all under control
If it can be lost then it can be won, if it can be touched then it can be turned
All you need is time
And the political will!