this is an enormous situation and in my mind one of the most historically significant moments in our country’s history. we are at a fork in the road. we have painted ourselves into a corner where we must choose one of two difficult roads. on one hand we can choose fear and relent to the government who got us into the problem in the first place. on the other we can choose to hold fast to the ideas we cherish as americans and push through a very difficult economic time.
due to the way our financial systems are set up (this is by no means a modern idea, but the traditional ‘austrian’ capitalism re-iterated time in and time out and firmly entrenched when our founding fathers choose to utilize a national debt), we require debt and credit as a lubrication to keep the machine running.
by not ‘bailing out’ the banking system, we are throwing a wrench in the system. the banks will not loan to each other and consequently not to corporations which require capitol for further research and development. as financial institutions are hunkering down and doing their best to maintain solid balance sheets, they are less willing to make risky loans to other institutions, which works full circle to bite them in their collective asses. when the banks fail to loan, corporations limit expansion and operation; thus wall street’s woes hit main street’s wallets.
however, this is the nature of capitalism. this is why the system works. as described in ‘the wealth of nations’ capitalism works in cycles. when one industry or sector fails, those affected re-tool, re-skill then brought back into the fold in an industry which succeeds. clearly this has nothing to do with how we are handling the current debacle.
unfortunately, there is very little reward that does not come without risk. we’ve thrived and enjoyed the rewards for a very long time. now we are experiencing the risk.
this all said… by not bailing out the financial institutions we are upholding capitalistic ideas at the cost of severe and difficult repercussions. many folks will lose their jobs. many will lose their nest eggs. but just as disciplining a child is difficult at the moment, the long term benefits far out way the short term difficulties.
if we allow the government (the same knuckleheads who got us into this mess) to buy up and thus control nearly the entire financial sector, we will have moved away from our independence from governmental control. the government will now be the one’s determining which companies can or will expand, who should and should not buy property, etc.
this is frightening indeed! more over, combine these un-american ideas with the current conversation and accusations being tossed out by our supposed leaders. you have obama slamming mccain for owning multiple homes. obama is an overt and unapologetic socialist, so perhaps this is no surprise. but what is a surprise is that he is not alone! mitch mcconnell, a kentucky republican, is doing the same to his democratic rival!
catch your breath comrades! what does this sound like? both sides of the isle are bashing each other for following the american dream. is not the american dream to pull yourself up by your boot straps and succeed? i know it sounds pathetically materialistic, but alas, this is what we have collectively decided puts us in a realm surpassing all others. we dream of our children out pacing ourselves. we dream of hard work resulting in positive rewards. we dream of a freedom to pursue happiness of our own choosing.
but comrades, i can recall a group of people who believed individual success was sinful and un-patriotic. they were the reds of russian. when the reds defeated the white army, a new era was ushered in russia…communism. i’ve often discussed the ideas of communism and socialism and distinguished how one is the political and the other the economic arms of the same beast.
i’ve often asked myself how such a fiercely independent people as the cossacks could ever allow such a stark and dramatic revolution to occur. i am no longer as surprised. who 200, 100 or even 50 years ago would have ever believed we would stand on the precipice, staring at a viable comparison to stalinist-communism, styled social revolution?!
this is an unthinkably important moment in our history. this is the moment we decide the future direction of our country. this is the moment we as a nation stand and fight. we must call upon the industrious and indomitable spirit of americans to look into the face of fear and not blink. future generations will certainly judge us for how we act today!
Hither and Thither 