The Bailout and criticism
Everyone's talking about the bailout, how it didn't pass, and how we may or may not be teetering on the edge of another Depression.
Right now I wish to god I understood economics enough to evaluate this stuff critically, but in lieu of my own PhD, thought I'd toss out this editorial by Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz:
"It doesn't take a genius to figure out that the United States' financial system – indeed, global finance – is in a mess. And now, with the US House of Representatives having rejected the Bush administration's proposed $700bn bail-out plan, it is also obvious that there is no consensus on how to fix it.
The problems in the US economy and financial system have been apparent for years. But that didn't prevent America's leaders from turning to the same people who helped create the mess, who didn't see the problems until they brought us to the brink of another Great Depression, and who have been veering from one bail-out to another, to rescue us.
As global markets plummet, the rescue plan will almost certainly be put to another vote in Congress. They may rescue Wall Street, but what about the economy? What about taxpayers, already beleaguered by unprecedented deficits, and with bills still to pay for decaying infrastructure and two wars? In such circumstances, can any bail-out plan work?"
[continued at the Guardian website]