What is the most radical solution you can think of to solve this credit crisis?

[kentuck]

Would you nationalize the banks? Would you demolish the Fed or put it under severe constraints? Would you declare wage and price controls on food and energy? Would you declare a bank holiday and call Congress back to Washington? Would you re-instate local grants to communities throughout our country to help with their economic needs and necessities? Would you take back the money given to the big shots and re-distribute it to the states with the demand that they distribute it to their localities in a fair and equitable manner? What radical idea can you think of?

[MadMaddie]

1. It's crazy but Nationalizing the banks would be one

I would re-instate local grants to communities throughout our country to help with their economic needs and necessities?

I would erase all Americans debt and start over. I know it's crazy but if you erase all debt and create an economy based on actual currency and not loans then we might have a chance to right the ship as they say.

[JustFiveMoreMinutes]

2. Sell Alaska, return the Gadsden and Louisiana Purchases?

[TexasObserver]

41. I like your thinking!! Can we do it before the election?

[Imperialism Inc.]

3. Temporarily nationalize banks. Go through their books.

Let the failing ones fail, selling off their assets. Directly recapitalize the strong ones, taking an equity stake with preferred shares (return them to the private system). A large 200 billion+ stimulus package to promote consumer spending. Assistance to states. Force mortgages renegotiation. Extend unemployment insurance. Jobs stimulus, probably in the form of alternative energy promotion.

[kentuck]

8. Good ideas!

I like em.

[Imperialism Inc.]

15. Well thanks ,but they certainly are not my own.

I stole them from Sweden :) (and Norway and Korea). At least a lot of it. They are ideas that have the distinct advantage of actually working.

Stopping a Financial Crisis, the Swedish Way

Our Choice by Nouriel Roubini

History Of Bailouts: What Kinds Work...And Why Ours Won't

[spinbaby]

4. I think they will nationalize banks

Probably by morning, the way things are going.

[JDPriestly]

5. Me, I'm stocking up on oatmeal. It's cheap, nutritious and easy on the heart.

I'd impose a surtax on anyone earning over $200,000 per year right now and put the cash into community grants, raise social security and renegotiate the mortgages that are in default so that people can pay them. Then I would start a massive program to put Americans back to work and cut back on imports from other countries. Part of that massive program would be self-help for energy conservation and alternative energy on a household, family by family basis.

[Occam Bandage]

6. Skateboards and cocaine for everyone.

[Magical]

7. Have Dean Kamen Release his Hoverboards NOW

He didn't call it the Segway for nothing...and he isn't that stupid to think that 2 side-side wheels
is revolutionary. That is just the test platform for his gyros needed in the flying version...I can dream
can't I ?

Except, he may have to change the name to the "Hoover Board"

[Anticon]

9. Pass a law where

the highest paid employees of a company cannot be paid more than 100 times the average of all the employees (including all bonuses and other BS). It wouldn't hurt small businesses, but it would even out the pay scales a little more of big public companies.

[otherlander]

43. I like your idea.

:D

[Terry in Austin]

45. Second that!

I'd extend the idea to include net worth. Tax policy can do it -- up until the 70's, iirc, the top income tax bracket was over 90%. Restore that and add a wealth tax. The policy aim here is that nobody should be worth more than, say, $10 million.

Just picking a very generous number here -- actually, two or three million starts getting kind of obscene, imo. Seriously, how can anybody claim with a straight face that they "need" that much? Or worse yet, that they "deserve" it? And yet, we will inevitably hear endless free-market econobabble that tries to rationalize what at the end of the day is simply greed.

Wealth disparity is one of the worst strains on a society, so a more even distribution would be much healthier for our society as a whole.

[nadinbrzezinski]

10. Banks are in the process of being nationalized

[blueclown]

11. Nationalize the banks.

Have a look at their balance sheets.

[4 t 4]

16. If I was the president

I think I might try just about everything you put out, why not this sure isn't working and it's time for drastic measures.

[Hubert Flottz]

12. Public hangings of the thieves and crooks...

That might restore some degree of trust.

[Robbien]

26. Exactly. The market needs to restore confidence. Tar and feather the bums

Stick them on a rail and give them a fast ride out of town.

No one wants to hand our money over to the greedy thieves of Wall Street.

[wilt the stilt]

13. Impeach and execute W n/t

[Selatius]

14. Short term: Nationalize banks, audit them. Long-term: restart the WPA and put people back to work.

Obviously, these mortgages are going to have to be renegotiated so that either side won't see complete losses.

Boosting demand can be done by putting people back to work. The more money people have in their pockets, the more goods/services they can buy. This means producers can increase production, which likely will mean they will hire more people, leading to a lowering of the unemployment problem.

With this WPA, we're gonna start manufacturing centers for solar panels and wind turbines and national recycling centers. We're going to put them in areas that are economically depressed like Michigan or Ohio. We're gonna open local offices in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas and hire workers for reconstruction in storm-battered areas. We're gonna pump in billions of dollars in reconstruction funds to these areas, and we're going to invest in state-of-the-art levee systems, and we're going to put millions of former autoplant workers and manufacturing workers back to work making the solar panels and wind turbines and recycling centers.

Pass the Employee Free-Choice Act as well. Give workers a leg up in negotiating better pay and benefits with employers in the service sector. If possible, repeal the Taft-Hartley Act. If I were president, I'd support service sector/industrial unionism as a matter of policy. If the rich don't want to pay, give workers the tools to make them pay.

It's time to go back the old-school solutions FDR and Truman trumpeted.

[rateyes]

17. I would declare all credit default swaps null and void, then

make anyone who collected a claim on a default swap pay that money to the government. Any premium collected against which a claim hasn't been made also has to be given to the government. Then, I would pass a law that forgives all debt. I would raise taxes on the top 5% to a 50% tax bracket. I would go to single-payer health care. And, then I would reform the monetary system in this country where wealth is not created by debt.

[asteroid2003QQ47]

18. Shock and Awe

Behead the top 4,180 perps, one per city, nationwide, for shock. If those 'left behind' are insufficiently awestruck, repeat with 4,180+ more as often as needed to overhaul/humanize the monetary system.

[Horse with no Name]

19. Legalize and tax marijuana.n/t

[The2ndWheel]

20. A visit from kindly old Dr. Tyler Durden

[Xolodno]

21. The most radical?

I'm not advocating this but, this will work.

A. Call for a bank holiday.
B. During the "holiday", do this:

1. Pull back all troops and evacuate all bases and embassies around the world. And put them on defensive positions on US Soil.

2. Nationalize all banks without compensation.

3. Declare the US Gov bankrupt.

4. Eliminate all domestic debt held by its citizens. House with mortgage? Not anymore!

5. Declare all foriegn holdings null and void and use "eminent domain" to reclaim it.

6. All debts owed to other governments....gone, trade treaties nullified and must be renegotiated.

7. Replace the currency and back it up with commodities such as precious metals.

8. Issue new currency to US Citizens. Give them a couple of weeks after the holiday to convert.

9. Assure all domestic corporations that the government will aid them shedding their workforce now that they will probably not be able to export anything.

10. Any employee's laid off due to and related to the "holiday" automatically become employee's of the government working on government projects that "rebuild" industries lost over-seas (i.e. textiles, computers, etc.). Or on developing industries for which old industries are no longer viable (i.e. Solar energy, etc.).

B. After the holiday, eventually allow the government to "sell" its industries to the American people (corporations) or American based companies.

C. Expect the "standard of living" to drop considerably for the first 10 years until domestic production readjusts.

D. Expect all US assets and those held by corporations and its citizens to be confiscated by the respective government.

E. Watch other developed nations do exactly the same (domino effect).

F. Grab some popcorn and watch other nations literally collapse, go to war and perhaps go back to the stone age.

G. Expect at least 20 years before "normalization" can occur and trade and travel to occur again between "developed" countries.

H. Expect to see a changed "globe". Some countries will be forced to "unite" in order to survive and some nations will be annexed in order ensure survivability.

Crazy huh?

[kentuck]

22. Not so crazy...

I think those are the type of ideas we need to think about if we are going to come out of this disaster intact.

[asteroid2003QQ47]

23. Populist pissing and moaning that guarantees preservation of...

the status quo is uncrazy but executing the perps who are waging
a genocidal war on you is apparently beyond the pale?

-----------------------------------------------------------------
"In general the art of government consists in taking as much money
as possible from on class of citizens to give to the other.'
--Voltaire

[davsand]

29. I expect China might not be terribly pleased if we did this.

We might see them sending a few "glow in the dark" bombs our way, in fact...

Something that I have wondered about for quite a while now, however, is the fact that our national capacity to meet domestic needs is GONE. If we ever did decide to follow the sort of action you describe we can't even meet our own country's demands for steel--which could render us incapable of producing adequate arms to protect our borders. Hang on to your old transistor radios and old PCs because you will not be able to buy a new one for a VERY long time. Same thing with appliances and most other consumer goods. We soon will not even be able to buy or maintain a car because many parts are made in other countries and certainly materials are not produced here in the US... (Forget about buying GAS for those cars that do manage to keep on running...)

How long will it take to even re-build the infrastructure we would need to be self sustaining--let alone re-train a workforce?


We are screwn. Period.



Laura

[Xolodno]

34. Most Certainly!

The mass consumption society would be at an end. And long lasting durable goods will be put back. In otherwords, if your wash machine goes out....you don't buy a new one...you call the repair guy as a new one will now be rather costly (suddenly repair men and blue collar work will have huge upswing in demand for labor).

As for resources, yeah...were going to be short a bit on that....but guess what, Canada to the north has plenty and they need something the USA has an abundance of...agriculture capable land and food. I would not be surprised some sort of unification occured there if this was put into place. You can also decry that we lost a huge portion of our manufacturing capability....yeah we did...and a significant portion of it is just south of the border. Another union or annexation could occur there.

Rebuilding to a nation as self sustaining will take a long time, but it can be done and it will be painful. Yes, our standard of living will drop considerable amount. But when faced with total economic collapse...what choice is there?

As for throwing some glowing bombs....well, we also have some glowing bombs, so its a suicidal and costly option. Plus, with the USA out of the picture...I'm sure they will take the US debt out of other areas that were alligned to the US...Taiwan, South Korea, etc...and its more profitable.

Remember, a singular global power will be gone in this scenario...and multiple regional powers will emerge.

Once again, I'm not advocating this route and were not looking at economic collapse...yet. But this is the most radical solution. Were in for a nasty recession thats for sure, perhaps like the one Volckner put us in during the 1980's. But you can recover from it and it will be painful. Hell, I'm considering chapter 13 myself right now. I figured the bubble would pop and opened a HELOC to 1. Fix the kitchen (before I had no kitchen) and two have the funds ready to buy cheap land when the bubble popped. Only problem is, my wife got sick and despite having health insurance, the bills exploded on me, her health is more important than money. Now, my father has terminal cancer...and no health insurance, but because he shows' the slightest asset he was denied medicare. Helping out with everything I have left, but I bet I'm not the only one in this predicament.

[earth mom]

24. Take the 700 Billion & Give it to Al Gore to get Solar & Wind power up & running = jobs

Plus that would also reduce our dependance on foreign oil as well as our need to be in the middle east which also would mean an end to the Iraq war.

Also, I like all the ideas in the OP. :thumbsup:

[BeFree]

25. Commies, yer all commies

This is the perfect time to take over the world and yall are just not playing along. There is no crisis. But the rich will get richer and do it by picking your pocket, like with the 700B.

Its only a crisis if you aren't rich, and if you aren't rich its your fault. Losers!

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

27. Capital punishment for hedge fund managers. n/t

[Philosoraptor]

28. Arrest the thieves, confiscate their money, STOP the wars.

[Telly Savalas]

30. Detonate every nuclear weapon in the country. No more frozen credit.

Just because an idea is radical doesn't mean it's any good.

[gratuitous]

31. Line up all the fuckers who put us in this mess

And for a buck a swing, let folks punch 'em.

[RadicalTexan]

32. Democratic socialism

And not of the Obama variety.

[dysfunctional press]

33. guillotines.

the french know how to get things done.

[Sequoia]

35. Rapture all Republicans.

LOCK

STOCK

BARREL

[lib2DaBone]

36. Morning after pills to all Republicans so they can't multiply.....

[ecstatic]

37. 30,000 to every taxpayer--those with late debt, in foreclosure, etc. would

have their funds automatically sent to their lenders. Everyone else would be free to pay off their good standing debt and invest or something.

[lumberjack_jeff]

38. I would establish a credit clearinghouse.

Government guarantees credit for any company or individual who goes through the system.

Banks no longer need to worry about the creditworthiness of borrowers. Creditworthy borrowers no longer need to worry about closing their businesses because of systemic distrust among banks.

Absent this lubrication of the system, trade as we know it is grinding to a halt.

[TexasObserver]

39. Nothing. Let it collapse to its lowest point, THEN address it.

We need to rebuild the entire economy, starting from the ground up.

JOB ONE is creating jobs with government projects that we DO need. This country needs to rebuild its infrastructure, its roads, bridges, dams, levees, and ports. That kind of work creates jobs immediately, and the money rolls over many times.

JOB TWO is tax reform that penalizes anyone who takes jobs or money out of the country.

JOB THREE is imposing and enforcing sound regulations for lenders, investment firms, and insurers.


We cannot fix this by pouring money into a failed, corrupted system like the one we now have. We need to wipe out all the ownership of bad banks and insurers, and by letting them fail, we do that. Saving them perpetuates the problems.

[sarcasmo]

40. Cash only, until things are stabilized, NO more credit.

[leftofthedial]

42. eliminate the fed

nationalize the financial sector (banks, insurance--the works)

nationalize health care (redundant--this is the same as above)

nationalize the "defense" industry

end the illegal occupation of Iraq

implement a "maximum wage" by taxing any income (from all sources) greater than 25 times the minimum wage at 100%

set up courts to renegotiate mortgages and to revalue houses if necessary

seize the assets of any corporation that has offshored jobs or has moved their business offshore to avoid paying US taxes

imprison, deport or euthanize all republicans (after fair trials of course).

[Irish Girl]

44. Eliminate Fractional Reserve Banking, Eliminate Usury

.. Get rid of the Federal Reserve.

Usury is the main culprit though. When interest is attached to the medium of exchange and money created out of debt, the system becomes unsustainable.