What is consistent in each film is the extent to which the nation's political brokers did the bidding of the nation's financial community without any regard to the constituents who sent them to state capitals and the nation's capital.  A reasonable person would think that after watching this economy almost go the way of the Great Depression, the nation's political leaders would be willing to tell Wall Street's lobbyists to go to hell. Instead, what we get are a bunch of sycophants willing to watch mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, neighbors and church members continue to be manhandled by the nation's financial community, all in pursuit of the almighty buck.  Which brings us to this week's travesty.  Thank you, U.S. Senate Republicans. Your actions this week showed your callous disregard for Americans from all stripes and colors, folks who have seen $2 trillion in retirement accounts wiped out in the past 15 months.  This week, the GOP used the filibuster to prevent the U.S. Senate from taking a vote on President Obama's nomination of Richard Cordray, the former attorney general of Ohio, to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.  By forcing the Senate to meet the 60-vote threshold, the GOP effectively prevented Cordray from taking control of the office. By not having a full-time director, the bureau, already approved by Congress and signed into law by Obama, can only do a limited number of things.  Right now, the bureau can oversee bank regulations, but can't examine payday lenders and the mortgage servicers. These were ground zero for all of the shenanigans that destroyed the housing market, sending our economy into a tailspin.  Senate Republicans, except for Scott Brown of Massachusetts (who is facing a primary challenge next year from Elizabeth Warren, the architect of the bureau), incredibly have said they desire to protect consumers, but want a few changes to allegedly strengthen the bureau.  -- Get rid of a director and appoint a board.
Sometimes it's right to just turn off the television out of fear of seeing something that will drive your blood pressure to unacceptable levels.No, I'm not talking about the trashy "Basketball...