A recent AP Story, picked up by a number of outlets, details that lots of those giant banks that taxpayers are now bailing out have sought government permission to bring in thousands of foreign workers, even while they were laying off lots of American workers.

Why would they do this – because it is cheaper. If you can’t offshore the whole company, then bring in cheaper offshore labor and dump the US workers. These are some of the same giant banks that are pinging us with sudden jumps in credit card interest and incredible fees. Am I shocked and surprised that giant banks are behaving this way? No. Despite tons of public relations efforts from stadium naming rights to landscaping the public roads to anything else that will show banks as good citizens and neighbors, we are still talking about the business of usury. Banking is about one thing – MONEY. Whether you are talking about money changers from centuries past, or Potter’s Bank in “It’s a Wonderful Life” or Shylock from the “Merchant of Venice”, they are all fixated on money – or their pound of flesh in lieu of the money.

It is sad and disappointing that the very banks that came rattling their tin cups to the Treasury to save them from their own rampant greed were also going to great lengths to save money by bringing in foreign workers to fill jobs in U.S. offices while they were dumping U.S. workers. This is a the worst type of abuse of the whole H1-B visa program. This is way below bringing in scabs during a strike to keep the plant or mine running.

It is sad, but unfortunately not terribly surprising. It is the nature of the beast, no matter how much glitter or community relations they try to dress it up with.