As a kid, I remember that while growing up in Trinidad, there was a very popular song on the radio, which simply -but deeply- dealt with “economics” in a populist way. I always found it intriguing, and maybe that was because I grew up on the left side of the political spectrum. Anyway, part of it went like this: “there’s nothing surer, the rich gets rich and the poor gets poorer; in the meantime, in the springtime: we got to have fun.” And maybe we poor and middle-class working-folk do need to have fun; if only as a way to avoid facing up to the reality that greedy rich people daily screw us over and over; as they arrogantly exploit how this capitalist economic system works in their selfish interest and benefit. Often times they illegally drill the screws in to booth. But it isn’t funny anymore; it really isn’t. And maybe it is again time in US history, for ordinary folks to stand up and say: enough.
And before some of you go mouthing off about me going out on some tangent, let me inform you that people of all races, colors, creeds, religions, ethnicities, nationalities and the like, are getting screwed by a mere handful (relatively speaking) of greedy folks. Some economists say only about twelve percent of the people in this country owns and/or controls about ninety percent of the wealth of the country. We need to confront the greedy ones with instruments of government; and today, there is an opportunity to do just that, in the good ole US of Amnesia. Vote down the George W. Bush bailout plan.
As President Bush, his Treasury Secretary, Federal Reserve Chairman, and other minions, try to impress upon us all, the need for a trillion dollar plus bailout, we the people need to slow down. Have we forgotten that in 1989 this president’s father (George snr.) dropped almost 300 billion of our tax dollars, when he bailed out the Savings and Loans crooks of that day? And as they try to spook us into hasty action, let’s not forget that this country has already survived a depression; so what’s with a lil recession or two? Been there, done that. Sure some jobs will disappear. Sure some banks will fail. Sure we may have to set up a few more soup kitchens; but you know what: we are resilient people and we will survive. Sure some people will see the worth of some of their investments drop, but they knew the risks going in. Let the country’s economic system make a natural correction; no big thing: this happens all the time. The economic institutions that are sound will survive; others will have to adjust.
When things were good and the profits were flying high, did speculators share with the government? When the Milkens and Geckos of the corporate world did their ruthless thing, didn’t their ilk request little or no government intervention in the economy? When advocates for the poor and needy ask for socialized medicine, didn’t rich Republicans and their supporters decry socialism as bad? So it is okay to call for less government intervention when it is about profiteering, but when the losses come they want socialistic government bailouts, solutions and remedies. I say no way Jose. Not today. Not anymore.
It is immoral for the government to give out corporate welfare to ruthless thieves, voracious speculators, rapacious con men, and irresponsible money managers. It is worse when the eventual amount in question, will represent more than the total amount that we have spent in welfare benefits to the poor and needy over the last fifty years. It is immoral for us to punish the poor and needy, but reward the rich, powerful and greedy. If we have to spend a trillion dollars right now, then let’s do it with a public works program, directly dealing with shoring up and/or revamping, our crumbling infrastructure. Let’s fix our schools, libraries, parks, roads, bridges and the like. Let’s make a college education affordable to all; not just the rich and well off. Let’s have universal health care along with a nationwide free college tuition program. Why do people have to go into deep debt to pay for their higher education or higher quality health care?
If the feds have to print up dollars that would only spiral another round of double digit inflation, or borrow money from foreign governments, or borrow money from international financial institutions, or float bonds, or sell treasury bills, or sell off assets and such, whilst mortgaging the future of our kids and grand kids; then let’s do that only if there is a tangible public good that benefits the silent majority. We can’t do this for a small few who are blackmailing us into action meant only to maintain their status and power, whilst recouping on their bankrolls blown by heavy speculation and gambling.
The same people that gave us the Iraq War, wiretapping, lies, stonewalling, and multiple governmental abuses, now want us to trust that their reading of this so-called financial crisis is accurate. Excuse me if I say I don’t want to buy this bridge. Let those companies that are heavily leveraged sort their way out, as any business entity will do on any given day of the week, once it finds itself in dire straits.
Stay tuned-in folks.