Not only are regulators across Europe looking for ways to get back at Goldman for its role in selling off toxic mortgages as AAA bonds (of course, the ratings agencies had to play along as well) because the German, French, and British banks that took the hit are now scrambling for enough funds to stay solvent in the face of debt crises in Spain, Greece, and Portugal.

Of course, mortgages aren’t the only part of the market that were manipulated in order to exaggerate sharp rises and falls in value – it has long been suspected that JP Morgan, Goldman, et al have been engaged in the aggressive ‘market-making’ speculation that has brought commodities, and especially precious metals, on a roller coaster over the last few years.  If this report is true, someone at the DoJ is getting ready to go after JPM for fraud in the silver markets.  When and if that happens, expect some immediate price instability – and possibly even investigations into the physical gold that is supposedly backing up all of the paper certificates sold in the last decade.

Keep an eye out for new lawsuits and complaints going public over the next few weeks.  Its going to be an interesting time…

Granted, Goldman Sachs wasn’t left holding subprime paper when TSHTF.  They led the way in to that mess but quickly dropped the hot potato on to sucker banks and puppet corporations.  When the dust cleared and only Goldman looked good, the government tripped over itself to hand them cash directly and through AIG.  I’m sure this has nothing to do with the string of Goldman Executives to find themselves at the Treasury Department…