This morning I read and hear that Paulson and Bernanke say we’d better do everything they say, or else we might have a … drumroll here … recession!
So I’m like, What! A recession! You’ve been scaring me all week, and that’s all you’ve got?!?!?
I’d be relieved, but I’m too peeved at having gotten so worked up. I mean, Robert Samuelson, who never exaggerates anything, wrote last week that "Wall Street as we know it is kaput." The Wall Street Journal had this headline on its front page: "Worst Crisis Since ’30s, With No End Yet in Sight." Yesterday, the lead editorial in the Journal was headlined, "The End of Wall Street."
You people had me convinced that if the gummint didn’t take over, if I and the guy down the street didn’t pony up $700 billion, our heads were all going to explode or something.
And now you say, "recession," like that’s supposed to scare me? Don’t we have recessions all the freaking time? Didn’t we have one like last week or something?
I mean, this is like some crack-high, gang-banging raving lunatic robber waving a MAC-10 at me for an hour, and then, once I’m thoroughly convinced that I’d better hand over all my money, he says, "… and if you don’t give me your wallet right now, I’ll say rude things to you!"
Run along, son, you bother me…
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Brad, I had the same reaction. If the worst thing that happens is a recession we’re probably better off just to ride it out without doing anything. Perhaps Paulson and Burnanke mis-spoke and meant depression, or as they called these things in the 1890s a Panic.
This “crisis” is the fault of BOTH Wall Street and the government. The government pressured lending institutions to lend to many people who were simply bad financial risks – period. Also, once Wall Street saw that the door to the vaults were wide open, they helped themselves. BOTH parties are to blame but the buck stops with the government who is SUPPOSED to oversee these institutions. Once again, we see a government created problem that they now tell us that they are going to “fix” – with YOUR tax money – of course!
Brad works in an industry which has been in constant recession for the last 10 years, and is close to becoming history.
“bud” works for the government, and expects a paycheck, vacation and retirement regardless of the economy and how it hurts the taxpayers.
Existing home sales are down 2.2%. The DOW is down about 30 points on the day. Oil prices are about the same as yesterday. Seems like a big panic over only moderately bad news. And McCain is going to take full advantage of it by canceling the debate.
Lee, don’t you expect a paycheck regardless of the economy? Doesn’t everyone? Are you suggesting that because Brad and I work in industries that you don’t approve of we should simply forego our paychecks to help out the economy. That is cold.
was that you, Lee, whining about how tough it was to be self-employed last week on NPR?
“…don’t you expect a paycheck regardless of the economy? Doesn’t everyone?”
No, most adults do not expect anything of the sort. We would like government to shrink faster in a recession, in order to help the recovery of the productive sectors.
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And I rarely find anything of interest to listen to on NPR, and have never heard any lines open to comment. But whining is the NPR tone.
The New York Times had an excellent article yesterday on how Sweden handled a similar crisis in the early 90s. There was bipartisan consensus in Parliament and a bail-out with many strings attached to safeguard the taxpayers was enacted. That’s what we need here–certainly not the blank check that was initially proposed by the Bush Administration–easily one of the worst in American history–right up there with Buchanan, Johnson (I), and Harding!
You know, Brad, it is possible that Paulson and Bernanke said “recession” rather than use alarmist language that might create a panic, such as “a depression that will make 1929 look as harmless as Joe Biden’s toupee, or hair transplant, or whatever the heck it is.”
Anyone who thinks America should emulate the examples of Sweden or France needs a remedial course in American Civics.