On Second Thought

On second thought, let us fix the foundation before we pour more money down this rat hole.

The $700 billion all at once is a lot of money, but that does not mean it will be put to work all at one time. This we know from the testimony of Secretary Paulson. But something is bothering me about this deal, this infusion of fresh cash that I can not quite put my finger on, but I think I am getting close.

The need is there, there is no question that $700 billion will help mop up a lot of bad debt on the books of many commercial banks. My problem is not with the need, but with the system. When will reforms take place? Do you throw money into a system before the footer and foundation are redesigned? Or, before the reinforced concrete is poured? When does the foundation that supports the whole structure get redesigned and rebuilt?

The Federal Government and the lobbyists that run the politicians do not have a great track record when it comes to reform lately. Everyone knows where the money for reelection comes from on K Street, so what is the incentive to put in place the needed regulation, oversight and auditing that I and others have been talking about for some time. Oh, one more new word, and I love this one, transparency. In the hearings yesterday, the word transparency was used quite often by Secretary Paulson. You would have thought that that was a new word for Washington.

I wish these hearings before Congress were held in the evenings so people that work during the day could watch the hearings if they wanted. This stuff is not that difficult to understand and if more people listened and watched these hearings, perhaps more pressure would be brought to bear on the politicians and government officials. The few retired old people and journalists that watch this stuff is not enough to bring about the change that is needed. We need a mass conversion of political philosophy. From an emphasis on deregulation to the realization that greed & fraud and fraud & greed need to be stamped out of existence, and a new and improved political-economic philosophy needs to be ordained for the United States today . When the Congress and the administration can walk on the water in front of the Lincoln Memorial, then regulation will not be needed. But, until then, the Federal Government better get out the laws from the ‘30’s and ‘40’s and learn from their stupidity and greed of the recent past. The philosophy that regulation is not needed and that it costs too much is pure crap. The cost of ineffective regulation as the Republicans would have it is costing this country trillions of dollars!!! If the majority of people do not understand what brought about the present economic mess and do not vote out of office a political-economic philosphy based on greed and stupidity, then this nation is indeed on its way down. The final chapter of this once great country is being written.

Stay tuned.