February 25, 2009 7:40 PM

2 replies

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Stoli

@Sheogorath: At least she's honest. :)

February 25, 2009 6:33 PM

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RandaPanda

@Sheogorath: I agree. Damn feisty too. I love seeing older people like this. Makes me smile.

Of course, she does bring up some very good points too. People at BoA are morons, idiots, and other mean words that I can't think of at the moment.

But now that she has said this out to the public, I wonder if BoA is going to do anything to fix their problems...

meh, probably not.

February 25, 2009 6:19 PM

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gqcarrick

When someone who is a significant stockholder calls the people running the bank idiots, that is never good.

February 26, 2009 5:45 PM

6 replies

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chrisjames

@gqcarrick: That is marvelously good! Stockholders that speak up and take interest in company operations are excellent sources of outside genetic material for what is usually an inbred cesspool of thought.

I know that's not what you meant, but context or no, there certainly is good in stockholder complaints.

February 25, 2009 10:16 PM

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TechnoDestructo

@Pandrogas:

Exactly. It's all Delaware's fault.

February 25, 2009 6:47 PM

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HarcourtArmstrong

@gqcarrick: If she is such a significant shareholder, why don't she just vote them all out and hire new people?

February 25, 2009 8:11 PM

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Pandrogas

@HarcourtArmstrong: Signifigant stockholder doesn't mean she has enough to control the company. Voting for a new set of execs would take a large amount of wheeling and dealing with the other stockholders as well as finding people to actually replace the executives being fired.

Remember the circus act at Yahoo a few months back? Pretty much the same amount of crap with more drama and money involved.

February 25, 2009 7:53 PM

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tinyhands

@HarcourtArmstrong:
Too lazy. Forfeits her right to complain, in my book.

February 26, 2009 1:00 AM

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snowburnt

@tinyhands: Shareholder = right to complain. Too lazy = no one listens

February 25, 2009 6:36 PM

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ViperBorg

@gqcarrick: Much less a family member of the person who started said bank. And a Heiresses none the less.

February 25, 2009 6:20 PM

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JustThatGuy3

She's just angry because the stock price is down and it's cutting into her lavish lifestyle, for which she's never had to raise a finger.

February 25, 2009 9:58 PM

12 replies

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Tedicles

@JustThatGuy3:
I think that statement has a LOT of assumptions. We don't know how much money she inherited, how it was spent over time, how many others got inheritences, etc. Just because a reporter calls her the 'heiress' does not necessarily mean that she is wealthy at all.

It did state in the article (not that it means it is 100% true either) \"A.P. Giannini gave away millions, but died with an estate of only $500,000. He turned down a $1.7 million dollar bonus that the bank wanted to give him, saying they should use it to help their customers instead.\"

So at best, it was $500,000 divided among who-knows how many people, and then spent since 1949.

Just sayin'....

February 25, 2009 10:17 PM

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Trai_Dep

@Tedicles: While it may be too much to ask that someone reads the article, I draw the line at at least reading the first freaken paragraph. To wit:
\"Virginia Hammerness, the 75-year-old heiress to A.P. Giannini's family fortune and a significant stockholder in Bank of America, the bank her grandfather founded in San Francisco in 1904, has harsh words for the people in charge.\"

Jeeezus. I'm beginning to understand why there's still that 20% pocket of people who think George Bush did swell and use the words \"Republican\" and \"solution\" in the same sentence while keeping a straight face.

February 25, 2009 10:18 PM

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Trai_Dep

@Trai_Dep: No. Wait. The first sentence.
Yeesh!

February 25, 2009 8:01 PM

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el bryanto

@JustThatGuy3:
\"for which she's never had to raise a finger\"

Right, because rich people never ever work, they just party and slack off all their lives until they inherit the family fortune, allowing them to slack off some more, right?

I wonder if you actually had any idea how her lifestyle is before making that comment.. Not saying I do. Just saying.

February 25, 2009 6:52 PM

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WBrink

@JustThatGuy3: Once again, the \"I hate anybody with money\" crowd at the Consumerist hits the submit button.

February 25, 2009 7:11 PM

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Trai_Dep

@WBrink: It's even better than that: their panties are bunched because - dog nab it - monied people are supposed to be grasping, selfish people uncaring of the greater world they live in.
It must deeply trouble them when they encounter well-off people that, y'know, have a soul.

February 25, 2009 6:29 PM

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ArcanaJ

@JustThatGuy3: Lavish? She lives in freakin' San Jose, how lavish could it possible be?

February 26, 2009 5:01 AM

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Penny

@ArcanaJ: Heh, seriously? Do you know how expensive SJ is?

February 25, 2009 8:56 PM

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itsgene

@ArcanaJ: As someone who also lives in freakin' San Jose, let me tell you -- what might be lavish in Indiana is barely enough to put a roof over your head in San Jose.

February 25, 2009 9:27 PM

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Evil_Otto

@itsgene: Yeah, but then you have to live in Indiana. *shudder*

February 25, 2009 6:27 PM

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TheMonkII

@JustThatGuy3:

I suppose that's probably the most cinical way of looking at it. I personally think she's, as she said, disgusted with the way the bank, that her father founded, is being run into the ground and she's more than likely helpless to \"lift a finger\". If she was concerned with the stock price I highly doubt she would make such a harsh, public statement.

But hey, I guess I'm just lucky enough to be able to see the obvious.

February 25, 2009 7:02 PM

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emis

@JustThatGuy3:

Agreed...

I wonder what she had to say about the bank when it's shares were >$50/share within the past 24 months?

Diversity yo bonds /wu-tang financial

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February 25, 2009 6:39 PM

@TheMonkII: lucky enough to see the obvious? more like ignorant enough to buy her line of BS. if she was really disgusted she'd have taken her money out of BofA. too lazy is a lame excuse if she really feels strongly about this

February 25, 2009 8:12 PM

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TheMonkII

@craptastico: That's right, because i'm certain that her BoA stock is doing wonders for her portfolio. Please don't ignore the simple fact that I was not in anyway defending this woman. Nor am I ignorant enough to claim I know anyting about what she's had to do in her life. My statement was that painting her statements as biased and unfounded simply because she has a close relation to the company is ludacris.

Then again, I suppose if she came out and defended the company, you would find a way to ignore that point as well.

February 25, 2009 7:09 PM

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Trai_Dep

@craptastico: The cognitive dissonance you feel when you see an upper-middle class person taking an ethical stand rather than voting their short-term pocketbook must cause you untold discomfort. Shame, that.

February 25, 2009 8:13 PM

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TheMonkII

@Trai_Dep: Well said :)

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February 25, 2009 7:57 PM

@Trai_Dep: you're pretty off base here. if she took an ethical stand she'd have moved her money. if she really cared she'd have taken action, as a significant shareholder, to change the way the company does business. instead she sat quietly while everything fell apart, and now complains of the results. when you're in the position to affect an outcome, and choose not to do so, then you have no right to complain

February 25, 2009 7:31 PM

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DaoKaioshin

@Trai_Dep: I don't know how ethical a stand can be that does not motivate you to action. Particularly considering her reasons for not pulling out her money have nothing to do with financial savvy. She wears her laziness like a crown.

And obviously, if she has so much money that lifting a finger to prevent losing some, an admission of laziness combined with the sort of self-satisfied posture she's taking really grates against the lesson of 'work hard, save hard, and earn your way out of this recession' that everyone of lesser means must learn.

February 25, 2009 9:17 PM

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Anonymous

@DaoKaioshin: really grates against the lesson of 'work hard, save hard, and earn your way out of this recession' that everyone of lesser means must learn.It's a shame that that's actually a formula for prolonging the depression.There are two ways out of a situation like this: open the government taps, or turn the rich upside down and shake the change out of their pockets (or preferably both). When the common people cut back on their spending and try to save their way out of debt, all that happens is the economy shuts down more. Thrift is great for individuals but devastating when practiced by everyone.

February 25, 2009 8:27 PM

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Trai_Dep

@DaoKaioshin: You've clearly haven't met any legacy families. They hold on to their stock (if their trusts even allow them to divest it) for far stronger reasons than mannon.
It's just tacky for them to point this out, so she says \"laziness\".

February 25, 2009 7:52 PM

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WBrink

@DaoKaioshin: You assume that she's telling the truth. Is she really that lazy? Do you think she even handles her own finances and investments?

Anyway, you kind of ignore the point that commenters at Consumerist are typically anti-establishment, anti-corporation, and anti-wealth. If I wanted to, I could go through the archives and find multiple stories where the editors would plead with people to find the real message of a piece. You should check out the Bugaboo Stroller and NY Philharmonic piece for some real gems from the masses.

February 25, 2009 8:08 PM

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DaoKaioshin

@WBrink: She may have controlled it in the past, but at 75 I hope she does not have to. Which makes her admission more likely --- all she had to do was have someone else do it for her.

And I'm not sure what your second paragraph is getting at. I don't know where I ignore the point, if I come across it at all.

February 25, 2009 7:32 PM

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DaoKaioshin

@DaoKaioshin:

**if she has so much money that it's not worth lifting a finger to prevent losing some

February 25, 2009 6:45 PM

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nakedscience

@craptastico: Or perhaps you're just jealous she has more money than you?

February 25, 2009 6:38 PM

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Corporate_guy

@TheMonkII: It's nice to be disgusted with the bank that allowed her to never have to work a day in her life. If she really wanted to make a statement she would have pulled all her money out of BoA stock and took the losses.

February 25, 2009 6:20 PM

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downwithmonstercable

At least she knows Merrill Lynch was a bad idea. John Thain sucks at life and needs a physical beatdown to put his ego in check.

February 25, 2009 6:59 PM

1 replies

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Parapraxis

@downwithmonstercable: agreed. He needs a good Duck Fuld'ing...

February 25, 2009 6:20 PM

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Vanilla5

I LIKE this woman. I think they should put all the heads of BoA in a room and make her answer to them.

And then I'd pay somebody I trusted (although I'm sure that's difficult for her) to move my money to another bank as a final show of how I felt.

February 25, 2009 6:21 PM

1 replies

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Vanilla5

@Vanilla5: make them answer to her.

Sentence construction fail.

February 25, 2009 6:28 PM

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boxjockey68

I like her...

February 25, 2009 6:29 PM

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SkokieGuy

OMG, It's Sophia from the Golden Girls.

Yes, she was always the feisty one.

February 26, 2009 1:34 PM

3 replies

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Shawnladd

@SkokieGuy: Ha, I clicked on this article just because I thought she looked like one of the Golden Girls. They should make a show about this woman. I'd watch!

February 25, 2009 10:26 PM

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Verucalise (Est.February2008)

@SkokieGuy: Shady Pines, Ma... Shady Pines.

February 25, 2009 7:09 PM

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MissPeacock

@SkokieGuy: I haven't seen you around here lately. Glad you're back!

February 25, 2009 6:30 PM

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ArcanaJ

Since I didn't see a link above, the actual video is here: [cbs5.com]

February 25, 2009 6:35 PM

1 replies

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ArcanaJ

Ok, NOW I see the link. *hedsmax*

February 25, 2009 6:30 PM

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QrazyQat

She's just angry because the stock price is down and it's cutting into her lavish lifestyle, for which she's never had to raise a finger.

BofA was originally started as a bank for the \"little guy\", countering the practice then of requiring large deposits to start a bank account. The founder's heirs have long been annoyed at how the management after him twisted the bank into the exact opposite of what it was founded as.

February 25, 2009 6:32 PM

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WBrink

I wonder how educated she is on the current financial system (especially how much it has changed in the last 30 years) and how qualified she is to call others \"idiots.\" She could be right, but I don't think she's right for the correct reasons.

February 25, 2009 11:05 PM

4 replies

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I_am_Awesome

@WBrink:
She's probably about as qualified as all of the know-nothing Americans who think they know how to run a multi-billion dollar bank. This sums it up pretty well:

I have limited financial knowledge, but I don't think it is a stretch for most anyone to realize that the madmen are running the asylum at this point.

February 25, 2009 7:46 PM

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Pink Puppet

@WBrink: I have limited financial knowledge, but I don't think it is a stretch for most anyone to realize that the madmen are running the asylum at this point.

February 25, 2009 7:14 PM

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ZukeZuke

@WBrink: I think even uneducated idiots realize the folks running B of A are idiots for buying Merrill.

Doesn't take a rocket scientist, or a financial guru to know this...

February 25, 2009 6:57 PM

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Elcheecho

@WBrink: you must be psychic cause the only reason she gives is purchasing Merrill Lynch and the bonus scandal and that sounds like a great reason to me to call them idiots.

also, seeing as how her stock lost over 80% in about year, I think she's entitled to call the management whatever she likes.

February 25, 2009 6:33 PM

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emona

Feisty indeed!

I'd be pissed too if MY company (for all intents and purposes) was being run into the ground and there was nothing I could do.

February 25, 2009 6:35 PM

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Rufdawg

She's just bitter than her grandfather's bank was bought out by a North Carolina bank.

February 25, 2009 6:37 PM

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Tim Wade

Same idiots running the company, that saw their stock shoot up and gave themselves lavish bonuses until the house of cards fell down and left the taxpayers to foot the bill. Who's the idiot now?

February 25, 2009 6:37 PM

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moore850

Among other things, Bank of America was born in a crisis and helped forge personal credit lines in this country. She has every right to be livid with the fact that its managers are idiots compared to her grandfather. Who among us would have launched personal credit lines in the wake of a major disaster? (the 1906 SF Fires/earthquake)

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February 25, 2009 6:38 PM

boo hoo. she's mad that the fortune she inherited for doing nothing other than having lucky bloodlines is worth less than it used to. now she's even too lazy to even move her money and i'm supposed to feel bad for her? i'm surprised so many posters are on her side. how come she didn't complain until it hit her financially?

February 25, 2009 7:14 PM

4 replies

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Trai_Dep

@craptastico: You realize, of course, if they bring back the Estate Tax, Cap Gains and income taxes back to pre-80s levels, then those with \"lucky bloodlines\" will have less a role in such things?
So... You're in favor of such a move?

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February 25, 2009 7:54 PM

@Trai_Dep: i don't see how you jumped to any conclusions about my thoughts on estate tax, cap gains, or income tax. i'm extremely conservative when it comes to government spending and taxes, but that has nothing to do with this.

she is a significant shareholder, which means she had the power to affect change. she did not. she did not even feel strongly enough to take her own money out of the bank. she was in a position to act, but instead she chose not to, and now complains of the results.

February 25, 2009 8:34 PM

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Trai_Dep

@craptastico: Then you need to resolve the two inimical impulses you're expressing.
On one hand, you're venting hostility over the fact that she's an heiress with a historical legacy (who's not a grasping vulgariste keeping her mouth shut while cashing her dividend checks).
On the other, you're against the anti-monarchist tax measures we've had for most of the history of our nation that dilute the impact that these economic royalists might have.
Choose one.

February 25, 2009 7:07 PM

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Mirshaan

@craptastico:

WTF are you talking about? Nobody wants you to feel bad for her. She's saying the bank is run by idiots, which, is seems, it is. It's not meant to be a pity party for her. Read the article before banging out some half-cooked response.

February 25, 2009 6:59 PM

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nataku8_e30

@craptastico: What are you talking about? She's upset that the bank has been mismanaged, which is a pretty difficult point to argue against. She seemed almost flippant about the amount of money she's lost. Also, she doesn't exactly look like she's living it up, she wasn't even wearing a monocle!

February 25, 2009 6:45 PM

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custommadescare

Where was this outcry 10 years ago when B of A's customer service/attitude started going down the crapper??

February 25, 2009 6:51 PM

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TerribleDecade

Considering the ORIGINAL's bank's roots in San Fran, she should be rightfully pissed at BoA.

February 25, 2009 7:16 PM

2 replies

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humphrmi

@TerribleDecade: The ORIGINAL Bank of America nearly went broke between buying out Security Pacific, Continental Illinois and funding D.E. Shaw (a hedge fund that went bust in the late 1980's). The remaining, nearly defunct entity was purchased by NationsBank in South Carolina (where BofA is still headquartered today) and NationsBank assumed the name Bank of America.

There's almost no connection between the pre-1998 BofA and the current one. Except for the hapless stockholders who still hold BofA stock.

February 25, 2009 9:07 PM

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ncboxer

@humphrmi: Not that there is much difference, but NationsBank is from North Carolina, where it is still headquartered today. It used to be called NCNB (North Carolina National Bank).

February 25, 2009 9:48 PM

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humphrmi

@ncboxer: Right you are.

February 25, 2009 7:05 PM

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King Biggs

well i would gladly assist her in starting a new bank called THE BANK OF THE PEOPLE and we could use her fortune to fund and start this bank. This would apply the same concepts as the original BOFA and perhaps help to gain peoples trust in a bank again. Hell, I might give myself a big fat bonus too.

February 25, 2009 7:06 PM

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oneandone

No other articles under the 'fiesty banking heiresses' tag? What a shame....

February 26, 2009 5:32 PM

1 replies

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rhinestonedarling

@oneandone: As God is my witness, I will be the subject of the next one. I just need to go back in time and... I guess the rest will sort itself out.

February 25, 2009 7:15 PM

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clickable

I can't judge whether she's feisty or foolish without knowing whether she has any power to make any changes. If she does, then why isn't she doing anything? If she has no power, then I don't see what relevance her opinions have other than as colorful commentary.

Also, something about her comment about \"being too lazy\" to move to another bank sounds disingenuous to me, unless she actually oversees her accounts herself, which she might. Otherwise, though, she could instruct her money managers to move her funds to another bank with very little work required on her part.

February 25, 2009 11:13 PM

1 replies

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ARPRINCE

@clickable: Agree! In the end, she's within the same IDIOT class as all the imbeciles running that bank. Would you leave your money to an idiot? She's all talk and no action.

February 25, 2009 7:22 PM

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Joe Lachiana

She's mad cause if a chicken was in charge it'd be doing just as well for $100s of millions less than the clown convention currently running things.

February 25, 2009 7:25 PM

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Joe Lachiana

\"Also, something about her comment about \"being too lazy\" to move to another bank sounds disingenuous to me, unless she actually oversees her accounts herself, which she might. Otherwise, though, she could instruct her money managers to move her funds to another bank with very little work required on her part.\"

Are you kidding? That's MY problem but it'd be MOVING to BoA not from it cause ALL banks suck! Once you set up everything for direct debit it's just a big pain in the ass to move everything to a new account without issue. These days ANY REASON for the banks to gouge you fees is a reason to just leave everything alone. Mostlikey the bank you are moving to will suck just as hard.

They all suck.

February 25, 2009 7:37 PM

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FuryOfFirestorm

Cranky, smack-talking grannies FTW! (RIP, Estelle Getty!)

February 25, 2009 7:48 PM

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LogicalOne

If she really wanted to do something, she could use her significant ownership position to vote the current management out.

February 25, 2009 7:49 PM

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PLATTWORX

While I may agree with Virginia Hammerness's opinion of Bank of America, I don't think someone who doesn't seem to have experience in banking of financial services has standing to go on TV and decide if the bank is being run properly or not.

I take her to be someone who just had a bunch of stock left to her and felt like being on TV, not someone who has actually run a bank and can speak from a position of knowledge. Thank you, Granny Hammerness, for your comments.

February 25, 2009 7:52 PM

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Jenkinsbball

She can move the money to my account, I'll even help her.

February 25, 2009 8:44 PM

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nakedscience

She's fiesty.

February 25, 2009 8:55 PM

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Anonymous

The only thing Bank of America keeps in line with it's heritage is it's name. It ceased being her grandfather's bank when NationsBank gobbled it up, and David Coulter was shown the door. There's nothing new under the sun here, she's upset because now she's seen what that decision ultimately cost to her family name. Probably financially too, judging from her last comments.

Nine
http://locnetwork.com

February 25, 2009 9:09 PM

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kwsventures

Sounds like her \"lucky inheritance club\" membership isn't worth as much as it used to be. Yeah, it was fun for her first 75 years. But isn't funny anymore. One thing someone should have mentioned to her is a simple fact: Nothing is forever. Stuff changes. Poor management can drive any company into the dirt. Therefore, one needs to invest accordingly. Diversify so if one company goes into the tank, it won't change your lifestyle.

February 25, 2009 9:37 PM

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vastrightwing

Everything she said! Bravo! Merrill Lynch, YES! But BofA and Merrill Lynch are meant for each other. God, how ironic!

February 25, 2009 9:50 PM

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Melanie Barrett

When you are 75 you have the right to say what you want. She has earned it. And she has a point. The decision makers at BoA are like the dog that dropped the bone to grab the reflection of the bone in the pond. Is that the kind of warped management you want safeguarding your hard earned cash?

February 25, 2009 11:12 PM

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admiral_stabbin

I think they'd be on to something if they just renamed the shop: \"Monster Bank of America\".

February 26, 2009 12:09 AM

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savdavid

She is not for nationalization but doesn't like the way the bank is run. Well, old girl, which will it be?

February 26, 2009 1:59 AM

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silver-bolt

Oh damn. The main picture of her makes her look like Khan. :O RIP Montalban

February 26, 2009 7:29 PM

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sorval

My bank card number from my B of A bank card was lifted, and their fraud people claim their computers can only see back only two months! I can tell they are lying. They won't even TALK about anything more than two months old, or write down ANYTHING about anything two months old. If you have any identity problems with B of A, prepare to be screwed. They don't care about their customers at all, and the guarantees on my platinum card amounted to absolutely nothing. I'm only protected by some extremely meager Federal laws, and that's it. Never thought it'd happen to me either, and I don't have any idea how it could have happened.

February 26, 2009 7:30 PM

1 replies

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sorval

@sorval:
So you can add \"crooks\" to the idiots accusation.

February 26, 2009 11:31 PM

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christopherscott

You know what? I don't like it when people use the term 'idiot' for BofA. In fact, I don't want to hear any person running any bank called an idiot. Heck, I don't even want to hear the word idiot being used in the financial sector at all, that includes subprime ledors and Wall Street as well.

The correct term is criminal.

Manipulating a financial institution to gain billions of dollars in bonuses with the explicit knowledge that your actions will destroy said institution, sabotage the economy, and spread terror through the country.. no wait, that's treason.

These people sabotaged our country's economy for billions. They are economic terrorists, and should be executed by firing squad.

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Felix the Cat

March 11, 2009 12:57 PM

To bad there are so many idiots working at this bank, here is my little problem FYI:
[bankofamericageorgiasucks.blogspot.com]

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Anonymous

March 29, 2009 2:12 PM

Attackers are missing the point. She's entitled to her opinion whether making or loosing money, a stockholder or not. Of course, her position gives her a platform to speak, but so does a picket line for the less priviledged. People make their voices heard.

She's absolutely right in her opinion, because Bank of America appears arrogantly aristocratic in the present financial crisis. A business founded by helping common folks is on the verge of facing massive withdrawls by disgusted patrons when the institution really can't afford a major financial blow. (I will be closing my accounts on Monday; I'm not too entangled and lazy.) Such actions are likely to be accompanied by a flood of Let-Them-Eat-Cake protest lines all across America along with stalking and harassment of benefactors from the bonuses. That's idiotic public relations.