Letters to the Editor
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The Pendulum Swings
President Bush' speech to the Economic Club of New York sounded too close to comedian Steve Bridges. Several years ago in a mock interview with Jay Leno on the Tonight Show, Steve Bridges' George Bush explained why gas prices were high. How sad that the so-called "leader of the free world" seem to have taken tips from a comedian.
It will be interesting to see if McCain will call himself a "Reagan Republican." Especially since the current financial crises is another nail in the coffin for "Reaganomics." Deregulate the financial sector but leave the taxpayers to be the insurance carriers. Self-regulation has failed and now the pendulum is swinging the other way.
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@AJCalhoun
My question was genuine, and it was prompted by my observation that americans seem to be constantly bombarded by misinformation created by people who stand to profit from deception. I also think that our education system doesn't do a very good job of preparing children to deal with deception.
My own education was pretty good. I had a decent mastery of the basic skills when I left my parents' home to live on my own, but I had to learn about deception for myself, mostly the hard way. I got burned pretty badly a few times.
I think younger people face even bigger challenges than I did. They don't seem to be any better prepared for deception than I was, but they have to deal with a lot more of it. I am not surprised that large numbers of them were suckered by well-financed and experienced con artists.
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@alkaline
Thank you. I think you're right, that there is often a corollary to instant gratification and that would be lack of a proper practical education. I hope the experience that millions have gained from this debacle will not prove permanently injurious to any of them, and I also hope the con artists will at the very least become better regulated, if not prosecuted (and I would love to see prosecutions, but am not holding my breath). Meanwhile, it probably wouldn't hurt to use this as an opportunity for some reflection on what makes people feel content with their lives, if not happy 24/7. The materialism that has undoubtedly been encouraged by Mad Ave cannot grow in a vacuum. That's my big concern. The money lost, wasted or stolen could have at least helped avoid a major crisis simply by staying put (people used to save money for things they might want), and it even might have been used, in some cases, to alieve human need and suffering right here in the US, if not the world at large. We just consume too much, too readily, and dispose just as quickly. Vultures are a part of nature. It is our responsibility not to fall asleep in the desert in broad daylight. That's where I've been going with my line of thought. I don't excuse the vultures -- but they do exist in nature. That alone is a simple enough lesson to be built into a minimal education.
It is somewhat personal for me, I suppose, as I have one (the eldest) offspring who is deep in debt and probably losing his house because of mindless self-indulgence, and another (11 years younger) who has been solvent all her adult life and who has chosen to be educated and to exercise due caution in her financial affairs. Guess which one is chronically isolated and blaming everyone else for his (very real) problems. Yep, Mister "The System sucks, money is evil, hey, I'm broke!"
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Bail Out - Moral Hazard
You conclude the risks of moral hazard should be ignored because the consequences associated with the collapse of these closely bound, dysfunctional, interdependent, extraordinarily fragile, house of cards financial institutions is too great. I might add that, left out the word reckless which seems to apply as well.
Does it not seem clear that the institutionally weak characteristics you list will result in ultimate failure anyway, particularly if you remove moral hazard considerations. I say, if free market notions are good for the little guy, they should be good for the big guy too. Let the closely bound, dysfunctional, interdependent, extraordinarily fragile, and reckless institutions fail, so we as a society can get to the task of building some that are less fragile and reckless. In the process maybe we can re-evaluate who we place in power to keep an eye on the hen house too.
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Corporate Welfare
"Give to the wealthy for they will create the economy" and so our God Bush gave and gave. Tax cuts in the trillions for 7% of the wealthiest Americans, research money for gas companies, bankruptcy legislation for credit card firms, a medicare drug plan for the pharma companies, triple digit growth for military related companies and a good old fashion unilateral war to keep this engine growing while the rich created new industries like sub-prime cheap loans that they sold back to the uninformed boobs as funds.
We now have a twice as big government, $10T in national debt, cheap money, high mortgage loans, and a deficit which will grow to $650B for fiscal year 2009-2010 with a trade imbalance of almost another trillion and what does our dancing president worry about?
Immunity for who and here America...$600 bucks for shopping. $600 bucks can't pay the gas bill for a working couple for two months.
And the fed runs to the rescue of the very banks who created the sub-prime mess to begin with and set a precedent as each one of us will pay for every investor who lost dollar one with the "Bear", Sterns that is.
This is the worst financial disaster in the history of America and it will take years to unravel and fix. Yet another plan gone up in smoke on this anniversary of the worst foreign policy mistake of any sitting president. Hey..let's out another CIA agent and worry more about Obama's pastor than impeaching a prewsident.
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Kevin C
I've been driving a 4 cylinder vehicle since 1983 ......drive only to work and have been arguing for a 35 mpg mandatory requirement for vehicles since 1990 ....... no matter how you look at it, you cannot defend the consumptive habits of the american people ....