October 05, 2007

Oh, how I want to see much more of this. When PR goes bad - Countrywide employees get a memo from Angelo Mozilo


W.C. Varones has the scoop...

Oh, how I wish I was back in the US some times to pull anti-REIC stunts. Like putting up memos like these, or signs outside new condo developments that say "$500,000 for an apartment? Are you high?!" or sending ramen care-packs to Yun, or putting up a Foreclosed sign on the White House gates, or ....

Whoever did this one, you are my hero. Come on HP'ers - a little street theatre against the REIC (and a little levity) is called for don't ya think? Send me your best... But you can't top this one - this is BRILLIANT!

__________________
Memo
All Employees
From: Angelo Mozilo
Date: Oct 4, 2007
RE: Protect Our House

Recently we announced the Protect Our House campaign in order to improve our company's image. The success of this campaign depends on participation of all employees. Any employee refusing to wear the sporty blue "Protect Our House" wristband will therefore be subject to dismissal. Thank you for your understanding.

P.S. My naked orange body is rolling around in piles of hundreds of millions of dollars from the stock I've dumped. Enjoy your day.
_________________

HP'ers - if you want extra credit, copy and paste this, do up your own Memo from Angelo, and tape it up at your local Countrywide office (make sure it's not one of the closed down ones), and send me the picture

35 comments:

Anonymous said...

.



Yeah, a blue wristband.....


that oughta do it!





.

Anonymous said...

.


I'm surprised the wristband isn't orange!





.

Anonymous said...

Fantastic!

Anonymous said...

Murst! OT, who's more orange: Wayne Newton on Dancing With the Stars show or Oompazillo?

Anonymous said...

LOL. Only HP to get me in a better mood.

Anonymous said...

Did Enron & MCI-Worldcom really happen? Like even this decade?!?

Mozilo has no conscience. It's like some Wall St. investment bank advised him the whole way to do their bidding and "Angelo you'll be rich!"

Well, Angelo, your firm has just super-indebted a generation or two, the magnitude of which almost assuredly will bring an economic crash and huge devaluation of the currency (already underway...)

The patsies you and you incentivized posse of souless lending specialists, have just plain trashed the descendants of those who served so valiantly in the cause of freedom. [Way to thank a Vet for their service!]

Would the Vets who stormed up the beach on D-day done so knowing a wretch such as yourself could do so much harm in the name of enrichening himself to the detriment of their fellow countrymen?

You might as well just go over to Normandy and pi$$ on the graves of those who died fighting for America because you've shown no respect or awareness for the great harm you've done. NONE.

WEAR A F#CKING BRACELET TO DEFEND THE HONOR OF CFC?!? YOU'VE GOT TO BE F#CKING KIDDING!!!!!!!!!

I hope there's a posse of Normandy Vets waiting on the other side for you. Just waiting...

Econ_E said...

Too funny. Kind of like the "assignments" in Fight Club.

Anonymous said...

Operation Chaos in operation NICE

Anonymous said...

Stopping by the local countryslide office and posting a few memos!!

Anonymous said...

On October 4, 2007, Miami Valley Bank, Lakeview, Ohio was closed by the Ohio Department of Commerce, Division of Financial Institutions and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was named Receiver. No advance notice is given to the public when a financial institution is closed.

Anonymous said...

This was posted on the ex-employee blog,

goingdownfighting Says:
October 4th, 2007 at 4:38 pm

Being a former employee who witnessed many of the agregious business practices, favortism,discrimination, jaw droppinly bad management, harrassment, etc., I am interested in REALLY bringing this story to the public. I am in contact with a couple of national press people and have counsel, and would like to ask that anyone who has worked for this company and experienced any of the above issues (which I know you have as I’ve read this blog and can see that I am not alone in my assessment of this company which once was such a dynamo, but through unmitigated greed has most assuredly changed for the worse)to please email me at fsldiscrimination@yahoo.com. There are a couple of things I’m considering, one being a public gathering with the press in the LA area to coincide with what will I’m sure be a dismal 3rd quarter report on the 26th, and the other will be more legal focused. I know alot of us have given this company everything we had and we were used and abused and frankly, A: I think the public needs to know, and B: I don’t want these conditions to affect any other people. It’s simply not right and I intend to be the “Erin Brokovich” of this situation. If you were discriminated against while working for CW, please email me at the above address and we’ll take it from there. This site has been such a blessing in that it has helped me to understand that I am not alone. Let’s remember that as some of us have walked out the door, many remain to work for a company that has higher turnover than the coal mines….

Anonymous said...

Come on - everyone take one Countrywide location later tonight and get this done!

Anonymous said...

You first Keith, lead the way. You can do it right where YOU live. Let us know how it turns out. Post your pictures and videos of what YOU did right here on this blog.

blogger said...

Uh, I live in England sport. Kinda far away from my latest Countrywide office

But next bank failure here and I'll pull some hijinx. Take it to the bank.

Anonymous said...

The Candy Tangerine Man:

# Synopsis: “They say he’s candy sweet. A family man by day, and Los Angeles coolest pimp by night, his wife and two children know nothing about his double life. Everyone wants to cut the baron out; Police, rival pimps and the mob, but he’s got an answer for every question, a block for every attack. Until someone tries to break in on his private life, that is when the candy man turns from sweet to sour.”

# The film opens with pageantry pimp “Baron” (John Daniels) driving his customised two tone red and yellow Rolls Royce around down town - night time L.A. His “ladies” have been coming up short lately and he wants to know why. Turns out that two L.A.P.D. cops - Dempsey and Gordon (who have been after Baron for some time now) have resorted to rousting his girls every chance they get. Indeed in the next scene they have set Baron up with a copper in drag to entrap him with procurement of prostitutes. Of course the Baron is wise to their ploy and ends up grabbing the copper by the short and curlies.

Anonymous said...

Keith,

Put out a call for a photo of the frickin' wristband! Preferably worn by one of their manacled serfs.

There's nothing yet on Google images. This JPEG will be a keepsake of this sleazy era.

Anonymous said...

CFC Wristbands becoming a hot commodity:

WANTED: Countrywide "Protect Our House" Wristband
Reply to: sale-438990765@craigslist.org
Date: 2007-10-03, 10:04AM PDT


Any employees who want sell their new Countrywide "Protect Our House" Wristband wristband please email me with your price. If you know anyone who works for Countrywide please pass this message on, I want one of these wristbands!!!


Paige Turner said...

RE: Countrywide Loyalty Bracelet:

OH SH!T !!!

Now I'm totally confused!

Yesterday's memo from The Big Orange says, that the "Protect Our House" wristband will be "SPORTY BLUE..

But another article says, "...employees who take a loyalty oath get rewarded with GREEN rubber "Protect Our House" bracelets."

So which is it? BLUE or GREEN?

I want to be color-coordinated and I don't want any of my fashion accessories to clash with my outfits. My bracelet, belt, purse, earrings and shoes must match!

Please, can anyone supply a picture of the actual Countrywide Loyalty Bracelet so that I can get dressed?

V.L.

Anonymous said...

JAIL EM

Anonymous said...

I am not their bitch therefor I will not wear this ridiculous wristband.Then can fire my ass for all I care.I have too much dirt on the company so they keep me around.I also have big tities so the guys like me around for the morning heart on.I am putting in applications to scores and hooters this week.My assets are worth top dollar away from these bean counters.

W.C. Varones said...

So which is it? BLUE or GREEN?

Hey, Mozilo can't tell the difference between a suntan and being bright orange. How can you expect him to know blue from green?

Anonymous said...

someone create a word doc (*.doc) file with the letter head so we can just print and post it. There are a few I can do this weekend...

~BD

Anonymous said...

Country Wide's lending practices were indeed fraudulant as can be seen by the ever increasing number of subprime loans they approved as the housing bubble grew.

I really feel for the employees, their 401K's will be devalued, and they'll loose their jobs - with not much on the horizon for well paying positions.

SoCalCars.com said...

I can hear it now. It must have sounded like this:

http://tinyurl.com/2gfvt4

Anonymous said...

That's frickin awesome!

Anonymous said...

This press statement was just released after-market close today. THis is how Mozilo plans to "protect this house". By unloading more of his shares.

Countrywide's Mozilo Selling More Stock shares.


By TSC Staff
10/5/2007 6:02 PM EDT

Countrywide Chairman and CEO Angelo Mozilo will unload an unspecified number of his struggling company's shares next week as part of a pre-arranged trading plan.

The plan, entered into last October, provides for Mozilo to sell a pre-determined amount of stock on a monthly basis. The stock sales didn't take place in August and September because Countrywide's stock was below a designated floor price.

Countrywide, the nation's largest lender, has been slammed as a spike in defaults of subprime mortgages left investors scared of buying its loans on the secondary market. Its stock has been cut by more than half since reaching a 52-week high of $45.26 in late January.

Shares plunged to a low of $15 in August, but have since rebounded somewhat and closed Friday at $20.25.

For his part, Mozilo has been criticized for selling hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of stock over the past three years, when his company was thriving.

The trading plan, known as a 10b5-1 plan, allows for a company executive to set up automatic stock sales regardless of company events, so as to eliminate any appearance of insider trading.

"The upcoming sales are driven by rules within the 10b5-1 Plan that were established long ago, and should in no way be viewed as any indication of my future outlook for Countrywide," Mozilo said in a statement. "As one of Countrywide's largest individual shareholders, my interests are firmly aligned with those of our other investors. I recognize that the Company's stock is currently under pressure. However, the terms of the 10b5-1 Plan that I established in October 2006 require that these sales be executed."

Anonymous said...

I work for Countrywide, and I am just getting SOOO F@$@#!ing sick of this PR bullshyyyt!! It is literally having the opposite effect that you intended on your employees...funny how total corruption Enron-style will F$#cK up the morale, isnt it??

Angel--You did nothing but drive this company into the ground, I am due to be laid off any day now, and he wants me to take a "Loyalty Oath"?? What a JOKE!!

Also--You paid HOW MUCH for these Burson Marsteller F#$@#ing Idiots?? Talk about adding insult to F$%#$ing injury!! Take your blue-green wrist band and shove it where the sun don't shine CountrySLIME!!

I am truly SICK to my stomach to have been used by this company!!!

Lola Lures said...

What happens next? The major damage is probably already done, and the present situation will likely settle out over the coming year. Lenders will stop pulling products off the shelf, and the rates on products that have moved so significantly higher now should trend lower down the road as delinquency rates stabilize.

Look for more at www.contactherrick.com

Anonymous said...

** Check this out! **

Countrywide says "Sell homes at a loss, or find roommates," in news story:

Business Week - Sept 2007 (partial story):

For Valentina Decarlo, who lives down the block, the situation is even worse. A longtime Las Vegas resident, the 39-year-old has spent almost 20 years working as a cocktail waitress, currently at Wynn Casino where tips supplement her $32,000-a-year paycheck. She took a gamble of her own last July when she put down $77,000 on a four-bedroom house.

After DeCarlo got stomach cancer last October, though, she missed work and started relying on credit cards to stay afloat. She's struggling to keep up with her $2,140 monthly payment. While she paid $367,500 in July, 2006, DeCarlo thinks similar properties are now going for less than $300,000. That means her home may not be worth more than her outstanding mortgage, so she can't easily refinance. Her lender, COUNTRYWIDE, suggested selling the home at a loss or finding roommates, she says. "I'm going to lose everything that I've worked so hard for," says DeCarlo. "Our primary objective is to keep people in their homes," says Jumana Bauwens, a Countrywide spokeswoman, who adds the lender has completed more than 35,000 workouts on troubled mortgages in 2007.

***************************

Does Countrywide know that adding room mates in new neighborhoods brings down the value of the homes?

What great advice!

Paul E. Math said...

It's really pretty sick.

By now we've become pretty accustomed to the whole 'wrist-band for charity' shtick, right? Wasn't it Lance Armstrong who started this as a cancer fund-raiser?

Didn't Lance Armstrong like survive cancer and then win the tour de france like 5 times in a row?

And now mozillo is going to try to misappropriate armstrong's PR tactics to his own personal benefit.

Orangelo, you are even sicker than I thought possible. ...and that's really saying something.

Anonymous said...

God, this company is CORRUPT!!
Pre-Arranged trading plan MY A$$$!

Grow some nuts Angelo Mozillo and show the world how much you truly believe in your company by INVESTING back some of the money you stole. Do it for us, your employees, who are loyal to this company!!

Anonymous said...

Forget the last campaign...the Employee's were just to smart to be buying THAT load of crapppp--

The NEW, and more HONEST version??

"SAVE MY A$$$" or "SAVE MY MANSIONS ASTONs, and ITALIAN SUITS, while I fire all of you"!!

Godddd....Was there ever a person more worthy of the cell block next to Bernie Evers?? WHOOOO LAWWWD--Angelo, we can't wait to see you in that Orange jump suit..won't be a moment too soon.

Anonymous said...

To put things in perspective, Angelo is cashing out more in a month *even now* than most employees in his firm make in a year - not to mention all the nice *executive perks* (hookers, free sports/concert tickets, dinners, etc...)

~~~

Anonymous said...
God, this company is CORRUPT!!
Pre-Arranged trading plan MY A$$$!

Grow some nuts Angelo Mozillo and show the world how much you truly believe in your company by INVESTING back some of the money you stole. Do it for us, your employees, who are loyal to this company!!

Anonymous said...

orange julious-less said:"Does Countrywide know that adding room mates in new neighborhoods brings down the value of the homes?

What great advice!"

Exactly. All new single family homes and Condo's have CC&R's that state only a percentage of homes/condo's be allowed as rentals...what happens when everyone in trouble trys to get roomates at the same time?

Actually, that is happening here in ALameda in an older establised condo complex where we live...just got a flyer from the HOA stating the complex maxium for rentals is 32%..but wait, they raised the limit now to 38% and have accepted the last unit.

What's a poor HOA to do??

Anonymous said...

I too am a former employee of recent times, and I can honestly say they are the worst company I have ever worked for, and I have been in places that pull some stupid stunts. I was canned recently after busting my butt for 2.5 years, missing vacations with my family to exceed expectations, only to have these money hungry bastards decide to enforce the standards of production put in place during the BOOM of the market which is absurd in today's market!!

They put puppets in place at the branch level who just respond to the tug here and there. They are mindless bodies who can't think on their own (most of them). They will look you in the face, smile, and then BAM! screw you.

I have personally been involved in a sexual harassment situation, have seen and heard REPEATED racial and sexual harassments take place in front of the "Manager", I mean puppet, and nothing ever happens. The first level of SO CALLED employee protection should be a report to HR. Guess what? HR is in it for protection of management ONLY and I can prove this with several reports & emails. What happens? The person complaining winds up on a termination report...Hey, how would you feel if they blasted you across 5+ states in an accidental email that you too were on the "Hit List"? They did it to me and 384+ other employees, but did they say oooppppsss? No, HELL NO. They tried to delete the email from the system within an hour or so as if it never happened. Talk about a breach in the so called privacy policy they police so heavily! Well, being in the Cover Your Ass mode, I forwarded it to a safe haven. If there are any other Former, or soon to be Former employees on the list, I suggest you too contact the labor commission and hit Orangelo Mozillo where it hurts, in his STOCK OPTIONS.

This is an Enron thing all over again. The Big man cashing out the night before reports hit for 2nd quarter earnings, or lack of are announced that would have cost him MILLIONS. Martha Mozillo, why don't you live by the BS motto you have plastered all over every office that clearly states "Do The Right Thing" and stop cheating those who made you your millions! This company is an embarassment to the foundations of what this country was built on. May you suffer the same demise you are putting down to all of the families out there! The people you are cheating out of their homes with your "Pay Option" loans, or your "Payment Advantage" loan. Stop letting people who put in a hard days work think they are worth something, really. All of yours, Sambols, and Gissingers crap emails need to stop! Tell the truth for once Orangelo!