Alchemists of Greed

J. Robert Oppenheimer

I thought of Robert Oppenheimer when I saw the Quants on this video reflecting on the consequences of their work in developing programs that expanded the trading of Mortgage CDO’S on Wall Street. Their sadness reminded me on how Robert Oppenheimer responded to a question he was asked in the 1965 documentary The Decision to Drop the Bomb, produced by Fred Freed, NBC White Paper. Robert Oppenheimer was the scientific director of the Manhattan Project which developed the Atomic Bomb in WWII.

When asked a question on his feelings about the atomic bombings, while visiting Japan in 1960 his response was the following ;  “We knew the world would not be the same. Few people laughed, few people cried, most people were silent. I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad-Gita. Vishnu is trying to persuade the Prince that he should do his duty and to impress him takes on his multi-armed form and says, “Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.” I suppose we all thought that, one way or another.”

The Quants and Robert Oppenheimer I believe shared a similar sadness when they honestly examined their brilliant work.

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