Declarations

AIG-Gravated Protesters

“We’ve had people call (executive) homes to threaten and intimidate, protesters outside homes and offices… (and) we’ve had several valued executives resign over the past few weeks. All of this hurts our efforts to unwind the business and repay the taxpayer as soon as we can.”

—Stephen Blake, head of human resources at the Wilton, Conn.-based financial products unit of AIG, commenting on the backlash ignited by revelations the company would pay $165 million in bonuses to executives in the unit.

Raked Over The Coals

“No words are sufficient at conveying the anger, frustration and disappointment that the officers and members of the West End Fire Company feel regarding these allegations. Should Mr. Tracey be found guilty of these charges in a court of law, he will have betrayed not only the trust of the company but also the sacred trust of the community that he served.”

—Robert Pacana, assistant fire chief in the arson-plagued town of Coatesville, Pa., where a town firefighter, Robert Tracey Jr., is a main suspect in at least some of the several dozen arsons that have struck the community in the last six months.

Air Crash Probed

“It’s sounding more and more like a human-factors accident.”

—William Waldock, an air safety investigator, commenting on the cause of plane crash in upstate New York last month that killed 49 people.

Financial Product Safety

“This meltdown would not have occurred if this commission had been in place.”

—Rep. William Delahunt, (D.-Mass.), who along with Rep. Brad Miller, (D.-N.C.), introduced legislation that would create a Financial Product Safety Commission to crack down on unsafe lending practices. The agency’s mission would include examining the safety of financial products before they hit the market, conduct studies and educate consumers. Miller said the idea could be folded into a package of financial regulation reforms that would include creating a systemic risk regulator.

Guilty Plea

“He wanted to bring closure to this matter today for everybody involved, including the victims, the victims’ families and his family as well. He has a great deal of remorse over all of the facts and circumstances here, despite the way he’s been painted.”

—Ray Hassett, lawyer for David Wilcox, a Connecticut trucking company owner who pleaded guilty last month for his role in the crash of an out-of-control dump truck in July 2005 that killed 3 people and injured 11 others at a busy intersection.