Wall Street has a short memory when it comes to pay. That's what came to mind when I saw a report saying that many big leveraged buyouts (LBOs) are in trouble -- four of the 10 biggest companies bought in leveraged buyouts have stopped paying back the money they borrowed. Nevertheless, Wall Street will pay itself record bonuses in 2009.

Unless my memory is failing me, it was only 14 months ago that Wall Street nearly went bankrupt. Without trillions of dollars in taxpayer money, it's highly unlikely that it would be in a position to pay itself $140 billion in bonuses this year.

Even since Standard & Poors warned Britain about its credit rating last May, I've been wondering when one of the credit rating agencies would take aim at the U.S. and its gaping federal budget deficit. Moody's (MCO) did just that on Reuters Television Thursday, when it said if the U.S. doesn't reduce its deficit spending to manageable levels in the next three to four years, its top AAA rating could be lost.

A judge's refusal to dismiss a case against an investment bank and a few ratings agencies for their role in the structured investment vehicle collapse of 2007 raises the possibility that those defendants might actually be required to pay for wrapping toxic waste in golden paper. (SIVs are money market-like financial instruments.)

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank and King County in Washington state sued Morgan Stanley (MS), Moody's (MCO), and Standard & Poor's, a subsidiary of McGraw-Hill (MHP). According to Bloomberg, "The case concerns notes issued by SIV, Cheyne Finance Plc, that collapsed in 2007. It received the 'highest credit ratings ever given to capital notes,' according to the ruling. SIVs issued short-term debt to fund purchases of higher-yielding long-term notes and failed when credit dried up amid the financial crisis."