Under our proposal, the federal government would put up to $700 billion taxpayer dollars on the line to purchase troubled assets that are clogging the financial system. -- George Bush (September 24th)
Government intervention is not a cure-all. The crisis was not a failure of the free market system. And the answer is not to try to reinvent that system. History has shown that the greater threat to economic prosperity is not too little government involvement in the market but too much. It would a terrible mistake to allow a few months of crisis to undermine 60 years of success. -- George Bush (November 13)
Does anyone else find this amazing? What a very fascinating dichotomy this is. First, B43 gives away 700 Gigaclams to the wizards of wall street, and then puts the clamps down on a mere 4% of that to aid the automakers. So, which is it George, Intervention Good? or Intervention Bad? I'm in no mood to let you have it both ways.
It may be that Bush wants to punish Michigan (and gets a lot of automaking-state senators to back him up). And it's true that regardless of what George does today, Barry will extend the lifeline to Motown. But really. If 700 bills is needed to fix the economy how can you carve out 25 bill and keep it from one of the bigger victims of intervention to begin with?
I'm no fan of intervention, of course, but it's a problem the government created through the Fannie Mae malfeasance, and it's therefore a problem the government should clean up on its way out the door.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Sunday, November 09, 2008
Prepping for Socialism
Democracy and socialism have nothing in common but one word, equality. But notice the difference: while democracy seeks equality in liberty, socialism seeks equality in restraint and servitude. -- Alexis de Tocqueville
To take from one, because it is thought his own industry and that of his fathers has acquired too much, in order to spare to others, who, or whose fathers, have not exercised equal industry and skill, is to violate arbitrarily the first principle of association, the guarantee to everyone the free exercise of his industry and the fruits acquired by it. -- Thomas Jefferson, letter to Joseph Milligan, April 6, 1816
The Constitution only gives people the right to pursue happiness. You have to catch it yourself. -- Benjamin Franklin
Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery. -- Winston Churchill
But the Supreme Court never ventured into the issues of redistribution of wealth, uh, and sort of more basic issues of political and economic justice in the society. -- Barack Obama
A friend recently sent me on a nostalgic tour of things John Galt. In a separate exchange, another friend challenged my opposition to Obama. The latter exchange ended predictably. After three email swaps on the issues of economics, liberty, and personal responsibility, I was summarily dismissed as a racist. Three rounds is about all it takes, because the arguments themselves are irrefutable. I gave him a pass, since as a Canadian, he does not have the proper grounding of what it is to be an American. He is not alone. Many Americans do not nhave the proper grounding in American History as well. The former discussion, on the other hand, still has me thinking.
Since we are unbelievably near a serious fall into socialism, a John Galt scenario is frighteningly close today. Clearly anyone with money and brains is not going to risk investing in this country. By pulling out the capital they are essentially going the way of John Galt. I can see industrialists the world over joining the strike, and this speech will be what everybody hears.
The unfortunate thing is that both of my friends and their families will be equally hurt by this. The ones who know better, and the ones who should but don't. The misery will be shared (if not the blame).
I understand the movie Atlas Shrugged will be out next year. Not a moment too soon, by my reckoning.
To take from one, because it is thought his own industry and that of his fathers has acquired too much, in order to spare to others, who, or whose fathers, have not exercised equal industry and skill, is to violate arbitrarily the first principle of association, the guarantee to everyone the free exercise of his industry and the fruits acquired by it. -- Thomas Jefferson, letter to Joseph Milligan, April 6, 1816
The Constitution only gives people the right to pursue happiness. You have to catch it yourself. -- Benjamin Franklin
Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery. -- Winston Churchill
But the Supreme Court never ventured into the issues of redistribution of wealth, uh, and sort of more basic issues of political and economic justice in the society. -- Barack Obama
A friend recently sent me on a nostalgic tour of things John Galt. In a separate exchange, another friend challenged my opposition to Obama. The latter exchange ended predictably. After three email swaps on the issues of economics, liberty, and personal responsibility, I was summarily dismissed as a racist. Three rounds is about all it takes, because the arguments themselves are irrefutable. I gave him a pass, since as a Canadian, he does not have the proper grounding of what it is to be an American. He is not alone. Many Americans do not nhave the proper grounding in American History as well. The former discussion, on the other hand, still has me thinking.
Since we are unbelievably near a serious fall into socialism, a John Galt scenario is frighteningly close today. Clearly anyone with money and brains is not going to risk investing in this country. By pulling out the capital they are essentially going the way of John Galt. I can see industrialists the world over joining the strike, and this speech will be what everybody hears.
The unfortunate thing is that both of my friends and their families will be equally hurt by this. The ones who know better, and the ones who should but don't. The misery will be shared (if not the blame).
I understand the movie Atlas Shrugged will be out next year. Not a moment too soon, by my reckoning.
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
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