Comments on: Wired’s manifesto for radical financial transparency http://futurismic.com/2009/02/26/wireds-manifesto-for-radical-financial-transparency/ Presenting the fact and fiction of tomorrow since 2001 Sat, 19 May 2012 23:03:43 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: Weird Harold http://futurismic.com/2009/02/26/wireds-manifesto-for-radical-financial-transparency/comment-page-1/#comment-21770 Weird Harold Sun, 22 Mar 2009 03:01:26 +0000 http://futurismic.com/?p=6282#comment-21770 Criminals will be criminals, guys cooking the books will cook the books regardless. If they are going to lie, they will lie. Madoff's books were entirely cooked. All the information in the world wouldn't change it. There is so much data out there already not getting checked by anyone, so more informaton isn't going to change much. Madoff would have been caught years ago if the proper agencies had the time and the desire to check what he was reporting to see if it was valid. More numbers and more detail isn't going to change it - having enough people to actually check the numbers and make sure it all makes sense is what is truly needed. Criminals will be criminals, guys cooking the books will cook the books regardless. If they are going to lie, they will lie. Madoff’s books were entirely cooked. All the information in the world wouldn’t change it.

There is so much data out there already not getting checked by anyone, so more informaton isn’t going to change much. Madoff would have been caught years ago if the proper agencies had the time and the desire to check what he was reporting to see if it was valid.

More numbers and more detail isn’t going to change it – having enough people to actually check the numbers and make sure it all makes sense is what is truly needed.

]]> By: Ian Sales http://futurismic.com/2009/02/26/wireds-manifesto-for-radical-financial-transparency/comment-page-1/#comment-19998 Ian Sales Fri, 27 Feb 2009 10:40:44 +0000 http://futurismic.com/?p=6282#comment-19998 Argh. No. Not tags. Tags are dumb. That'll never work. Besides, there are existing standards for reporting and if the system's failing then the problem doesn't lie in the format. Argh. No. Not tags. Tags are dumb. That’ll never work. Besides, there are existing standards for reporting and if the system’s failing then the problem doesn’t lie in the format.

]]> By: Tom James http://futurismic.com/2009/02/26/wireds-manifesto-for-radical-financial-transparency/comment-page-1/#comment-19942 Tom James Thu, 26 Feb 2009 15:00:25 +0000 http://futurismic.com/?p=6282#comment-19942 Like Henri Bergson or Karl Popper's conception of an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_society" rel="nofollow">open society</a> applied to the financial system: <blockquote>In open societies, government is responsive and tolerant, and political mechanisms are transparent and flexible. The state keeps no secrets from itself in the public sense; it is a non-authoritarian society in which all are trusted with the knowledge of all.</blockquote> Given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow - and it sounds like an excellent idea. Like Henri Bergson or Karl Popper’s conception of an open society applied to the financial system:

In open societies, government is responsive and tolerant, and political mechanisms are transparent and flexible. The state keeps no secrets from itself in the public sense; it is a non-authoritarian society in which all are trusted with the knowledge of all.

Given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow – and it sounds like an excellent idea.

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