Dealbook weighs in with an interesting essay on the most enduring metaphor of the financial crisis: The reference to Goldman Sachs by Matt Taibbi as a "great vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity, relentlessly jamming its blood funnel into anything that smells like money."

The Occupy Wall Street movement has paraded a big replica of such a squid in front the bank's headquarters as part of its big theatrical protest, prompting the essay. There have been attempts to find other metaphors, but few have stuck like this one. The article notes that the phrase has been used by Congressmen, private equity titans, T-shirt phrase-makers and posters.  The head of PR at Goldman Sachs apparently keeps a rubber squid on his office shelf. The author himself wonders if his gravestone will be adorned with a vampire squid.

So why the allure? Most likely it was a right time, right place phenomenon. Is it all that much better than a "hyena feeding on a trapped but living antelope"? Perhaps not. But it came about at the perfect moment.

For more:
- here's the article

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