In this dire financial crises, the meltdown of our financial markets and all the other catastrophic descriptions of the current situation, is there nothing profoundly simple and sensible that can be done to calm the chaos and burgeoning sense of panic that is coming on us like Hurricane Jake? The president has called the presidential candidates back to Washington to participate in the crises discussions.
Although it's tough to get our minds around it, the question seems to be whether to turn over $700,000,000,000 (that is seven hundred billion dollars) of our taxpayers' money to an individual, or a group of individuals, and possibly a second group of individuals with "oversight," all of whom presided over the country's economy as we moved into this disaster zone in the first place. In a joint statement, the candidates, McCain and Obama, said that the bailout plan was "flawed" but the effort to protect the American economy must not fail.
If there is any comfort in that, I am a nectarine!
So what can be done to give the American people whose money is up for grabs and grabbers some comfort? Something profoundly simple and and sensible. To paraphrase Johnny, the immortal bellhop in radio commercials of an earlier age, "Call for Warren Buffet!."
Warren Buffett, granted by financial experts everywhere to be the number one investor in the world, a noble man among the world's wealthiest, having already donated his many billions to good causes following his demise -- and a man who has already invested five billion dollars to save Goldman Sachs.
It's a good bet that if Goldman Sachs makes it through, Mr. Buffett's involvement with them will prove to have been a good investment as well as a bailout. Why not call in Mr. Buffett as the people's representative? I would have more faith in him to protect my piece of that seven hundred billion than anyone else on the scene -- and to see to it that I was accounted to responsibly -- and even made a buck if things turned out well and a buck was to be made. If this idea isn't too simple and sensible, I say: Call for Warren Buffett.
We need some good old fashioned regulation by people who believe that government regulation makes eminent sense.
Want a white knight?
Paging Paul Volcker.
Know how to farm?
Could be quite a useful skill if there's a collapse of our economy.
We need an independent tribunal with complete authority to order anyone and everyone to pay into a special fund all the money they have personally received from this 8-year con (including everyone in the Congress and all the insiders on wall street). Criminal charges should be brought, including claims for fraudulent transfers of assets, and all assets should be seized. We need public trials and people need to go to At-ti-ca. We'd send somebody there for stealing $500 from a liquor store, and we need an entire wing at At-ti-ca renamed the Bush/wallstreet/congress wing, where it should be populated by the denizens of those worlds. I want the money returned to the public -- every penny. Anything else is unacceptable.
You are probably right on that.
Michael Bloomberg.... there is a guy I think would try to help us plain folks. Looking back, I bet he wishes he'd stayed in the race! He is very talented, sure knows how to run a govt efficiently and is well-spoken.
I thought John McCain was looking after the Americam people. Gosh, didn't you see how viral he was at that meeting on Thursday?
Solution
Stiff China and Europe on all our bad debt, and tell them to come and get it. The US has a long history of forgiving debt, and has long been the most charitable. Use 700 Billion to open People's Bank USA, place Warren Buffet in charge, he chooses his own team to run the operation, wise investments are made and we all move forward, peacibly and together. I put my money on Warren and anyman he deem's worthy
Put simply.... All profits are not equal and this has not been sufficiently attended to.
For instance, There is ZERO SUM Profit: If we each have $5 and we wager that on the flip of a coin. The result! One ends up with $10.... (a $5 profit) and the other has NOTHING.
And there is PRODUCTIVE Profit: One person has $5... She takes it, buys some clay and tools, makes a clay pot and sells it to someone for $10. The result! One ends up with $10 (a five dollar profit) and the other has a CLAY POT!
It is from the second type of profit that successful civilizations are built.
What has happened on a world scale, and encouraged by either stupid or corrupt financial and political systems, is a failure to recognize the difference and to construct incentives to favor Productive Profit! This is an oversimplification and there is legitimate functionality for zero sum transactions in financial markets but that's for a longer discussion.
I THINK Warren Buffet understands that... but I'd sure need to make sure... to his credit he's always looked at FUNDAMENTALS and HE DID WARN about the dangers of the unregulated, and soon to be found fraudulent DERIVATIVES MARKET.
My SO is a manufacturing engineer and has been doing a similar rant (not to say yours is a rant) for years. So nice to see it put so succinctly.
I don't want him anywhere NEAR the "people's business".
Misplaced loyalties, there.
Benevolent Vulture.
I would not normally trust any single person, but having just taken it in the _ _ _ from the Democrats and the Republicans that caused this mess to the tune of $700bn, I would gladly allow him to sort out this mess!
I suspect Goldman had little exposure to the derivatives that Warren Buffett has warned about since 2002. He can definitely see into the future. He pegged oil perfectly in 2001 too.