Comments on: While Bush Administration Begins To Grasp Failures Of Deregulation, McCain Wants More Of The Same http://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/2008/03/26/mccain-regulation/ Thu, 26 Nov 2009 16:42:01 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 hourly 1 By: georgia http://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/2008/03/26/mccain-regulation/comment-page-1/#comment-356 georgia Thu, 27 Mar 2008 15:23:09 +0000 http://thinkprogress.org/wonkroom/2008/03/26/mccain-regulation/#comment-356 What McCain espouses is blind devotion to Reagan's policies, but he's looking at the <em>what's</em>, not the <em>why's</em>. Reagan promoted tax cuts and deregulation to make investment more lucrative, to boost confidence in the markets and draw investment capital out of commodities. Paulson's goal is the same, and he realizes that a different course of action is required, but McCain is too dim to see that. He's a "stay the course" man, just like Bush. What McCain espouses is blind devotion to Reagan’s policies, but he’s looking at the what’s, not the why’s. Reagan promoted tax cuts and deregulation to make investment more lucrative, to boost confidence in the markets and draw investment capital out of commodities. Paulson’s goal is the same, and he realizes that a different course of action is required, but McCain is too dim to see that. He’s a “stay the course” man, just like Bush.

]]> By: JMOHR http://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/2008/03/26/mccain-regulation/comment-page-1/#comment-344 JMOHR Thu, 27 Mar 2008 14:23:45 +0000 http://thinkprogress.org/wonkroom/2008/03/26/mccain-regulation/#comment-344 No, we did not need to bail out Bear Stearns. We needed to nationalize Bear Stearns and quite publicly discharge the senior management that had been responsible for this mess. Only after this step, with new and capable management installed, should the business have been placed on the market for sale. We have seen a series of bailouts for large Wall Street firms. The common investor, the mortgage holder and taxpayer are all held hostage by an increasingly stacked economic and legal system which holds the ordinary person to exceedingly exact requirements with draconian punishments for any deviance. Those who sit atop the corpocracy whether in business or government) find the law to be but an inconvenient requirement which may be easily dismissed or ignored. The moral hazard created by such bailouts whether they be for failed economic strategies (S&L, subprime mortgages) or unitary executives (illegal wiretapping, politicization of DoJ) will simply destroy the fabric of our society. The ordinary person is now held hostage to a small and wealthy elite that controls the markets, the labor pool and the government. It must change. No, we did not need to bail out Bear Stearns. We needed to nationalize Bear Stearns and quite publicly discharge the senior management that had been responsible for this mess. Only after this step, with new and capable management installed, should the business have been placed on the market for sale.

We have seen a series of bailouts for large Wall Street firms. The common investor, the mortgage holder and taxpayer are all held hostage by an increasingly stacked economic and legal system which holds the ordinary person to exceedingly exact requirements with draconian punishments for any deviance. Those who sit atop the corpocracy whether in business or government) find the law to be but an inconvenient requirement which may be easily dismissed or ignored.

The moral hazard created by such bailouts whether they be for failed economic strategies (S&L, subprime mortgages) or unitary executives (illegal wiretapping, politicization of DoJ) will simply destroy the fabric of our society. The ordinary person is now held hostage to a small and wealthy elite that controls the markets, the labor pool and the government. It must change.

]]> By: fletc3her http://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/2008/03/26/mccain-regulation/comment-page-1/#comment-334 fletc3her Thu, 27 Mar 2008 03:53:56 +0000 http://thinkprogress.org/wonkroom/2008/03/26/mccain-regulation/#comment-334 The current housing and financial market problems are a great example of the kinds of problems that deregulation can bring. Rather than the markets operating with honesty, transparency, and legitimacy, they fall prey to big ticket con men like Kenneth Lay and Alan Schwartz. The financial markets exist because of regulation. Deregulating the markets is the same as dismantling them. Markets which have built up the trust of generations of Americans are crumbling before our eyes. The United States needed to bail out Bear Stearns. If they had not then none of us would feel safe, wondering if our investments would be the next to disappear like so many pieces of paper in a filing cabinet. I'm not sure how many more investment banks, hedge funds, and major corporations can disappear before we seriously lose faith in the crumbling markets and decide we'd be better off with money under our mattress, rapidly devaluing against all other world currencies. The current housing and financial market problems are a great example of the kinds of problems that deregulation can bring. Rather than the markets operating with honesty, transparency, and legitimacy, they fall prey to big ticket con men like Kenneth Lay and Alan Schwartz.

The financial markets exist because of regulation. Deregulating the markets is the same as dismantling them. Markets which have built up the trust of generations of Americans are crumbling before our eyes.

The United States needed to bail out Bear Stearns. If they had not then none of us would feel safe, wondering if our investments would be the next to disappear like so many pieces of paper in a filing cabinet.

I’m not sure how many more investment banks, hedge funds, and major corporations can disappear before we seriously lose faith in the crumbling markets and decide we’d be better off with money under our mattress, rapidly devaluing against all other world currencies.

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