Bailout Billions of Dollars Is This Lunacy?

Seven Hundred Billion Dollars...

$700 Beee-L-ee-yon ...

$700,000,000,000

That's a lot of zeros.

That's twenty percent (20% !!) of United States GDP; according to Wizard-Kapedia.

... and that's a lot of Guacamole.

One Hundred and Seventy-Five BILLION jars, to be fairly accurate; tax not included.


How did we get here?

To get some perspective, let's turn our time machine backwards and have a look at Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson... let's say six months ago.

Back to March of this year (2008).


-- Spooky flashing lights, odd sound effects and a woozie nauseous feeling occurs --


Okay, Here we go... In an article posted to Gather.com on March 16, 2008, by member Chris W. -- ("Pollyanna Paulson spreads a lil' sunshine!") -- Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is paraphrased as saying:

"The U.S. economy is going through a "tough patch," Paulson said Sunday, insisting that the proper steps were being made to turn things around.

"Paulson says the No. 1 priority in the economic arena is to minimize instability."

Refering to the expanding sub prime meltdown, Paulson said: "We had a number of years where there was unsustainable appreciation in home prices -- California, Florida, Arizona, Nevada -- and we're seeing a correction right now. I'm not going to speculate about what-ifs,"

Thank you March 16, 2008

Thank You Chris W., wherever you are.


So, we were in trouble back then; Paulson had a plan, but didn't want to speculate on "what-ifs."

So how did that work out?

Not so well it seems.

To give Secretary Paulson his due, he certainly faced a mighty task.

Remember the $170 Billion economic stimulus package we had last spring? The one where the 43rd administration sent each taxpayer about $600 each. Yeah, It was supposed to jump start our economy and get it back on track.

And it did!!

..for about six months; make that five.


Of course that was all predictable. A one time shot of $600 per taxpayer does not balance increasing unemployment, declining job markets, rising prices, glutted labor pools, overseas outsourcing, and the loss of economic capital to foreign investing.

A one time shot of $600 per taxpayer could only soften the blows and delay the blooming economic trauma of all these things that have been going on in increasing fashions for, oh, the past seven years.

The $170 Billion economic stimulus package worked as well as it did because it took advantage of the inherent up-flow nature of our economic systems. Dropping $600 on so many base-level consumers trickles up, touching millions of lives on its way to those at the tops.

Something that is just on my mind; is that this current $700 Billion bailout seems based on the trickle across and maybe down theory, which has historically never worked very well.

So far, Paulson's record only shows that he can temporarily boost the economy with infusions of OUR money; meaning money gained by increasing the national debt, which WE will have to repay later.

Paulson has obviously been adept at keeping the million ton crap hammer temporarily suspended; but it seems to keep growing while it hangs there; and it keeps threatening to fall.

Sadly, Paulson's record offers no indication that he can actually solve the nation's economic problems and make the hammer go away; nor can he seem to shrink it.

Paulson, and the 43rd administration are now asking US to give up $700 Billion (which is about $2,300 per American, not just taxpayers; and as I mentioned, will be gathered by adding to our national debt, not paid out of coffers) and they want this money so they can buy sell and trade assets, solely at the Treasury Secretary's discretion, with no oversight, and with total immunity from judicial review, legal prosecution or any accountability whatsoever.

Considering the history of these folks, (including Katrina, Iraq War, wire tapping, TeleComm immunity, torture, suspension of and incursion on individual rights) I have to ask: Do they look they have the attitude or competency to be handed $700 Billion dollars of our money, our children's money, and our grandchildren's money?

With no Oversight and no accountability?

Do they?



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25 September 2008

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Bill's Spirit is an Artist, Writer, Poet, Philosopher currently painting and wordsmithing from a humble studio in small town Ohio.

The works of the man behind Bill's Spirit have been published in small, alternative and amateur presses since 1986. Before that, they just filled notebooks, decorated walls and gathered dust in piles and boxes.

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