Follow me! I'm lost too.

[kentuck]

Everybody seems to be looking for a leader that can lead us out of this economic abyss. But nobody seems to know the way? There are no leaders. Our President is attempting to lead us but the bailouts of the big banks and another bailout for AIG today, lead a lot of people to believe it is the wrong direction. We cannot keep "bailing out" these failed banks and entities. It cannot be done without pain. It cannot be done without some people losing a lot of money. We simply refuse to face those facts. Some of those that are "too big to fail" will have to go under. We cannot continue this billion dollar bucket brigade.

[madrchsod]

1. sell off what is viable and dump the rest...

time to put this dog down.

[kentuck]

3. I say we create a "National" Bank...

totally separate from the Fed and Federal Reserve Notes. The "new" bank would be backed by the gold in our reserves at the present price. The others will have to let the "market" sort out their problems.

[democrank]

2. I`m with you, kentuck.

What we needed was change, real honest-to-goodness change. No insiders, no lobbyists, no Wall Street barons, no multi-million dollar CEOs. We needed new blood, new ideas, new ways of doing buisiness. What`s lacking is the courage to break away.

[tangent90]

4. Shucks, we gots money printing presses that haven't even been warmed up yet!

:scared:

[FrenchieCat]

5. Odd!

On the one hand you admit that nobody seems to know the way.
On the other hand, you give directions on what to do.

What do you project as the results that would ensue,
if we followed your lead? And what evidence that you have,
that your directions are the right ones?

[kentuck]

6. I admit that "I am lost too".

I have no evidence that my directions would be any better than anyone else's. However, I am with a lot of the folks that believe these bailouts are not going to work. We need a different direction. Nobody is going to follow me.

[el_bryanto]

7. In the kingdom of the insane, the occasionally lucid man is king.

Bryant

[orwell]

8. AIG is...

...too big to fail.

Much of the current problem in the financial markets is directly due to Paulson's petty treatment of Lehman largely due to a history of personal animus against the loathsome Dick Fuld. Paulson's failure to rescue Lehman was a huge error. If you are going to rescue Bear you have to rescue the far more important Lehman. This will be seen in the future as a critical failure in the arc of the current crisis. You can not compound the problem by orders of magnitude by throwing AIG under the bus. You will unleash a financial tsunami that makes the current situation seem mild.

I don't subscribe to the Rick Santelli school...

[kentuck]

9. I think that is the excuse created to bailout all the other incompetents...

Just my opinion, but I believe the "biggies" are using that Lehman excuse to keep themselves afloat. Yes, they will go under. This is not going to be painless. It should not be painless.

[orwell]

14. It is not an excuse...

I understand that many companies will fail. I have no problem with that. And after this is all done we should seriously look at the lack of enforcement of the existing anti-trust laws and the broken political finance pay-to-play lobbying regime. I hope people will realize that if you are too big to fail you are too big - period.

When you are gushing blood from a main artery it does little good to opine about the knife that stabbed you. You have to have triage so that you can be alive to deal with longer term treatments. AIG is one of those cases, possibly more so than any of the main money center banks. An AIG bankruptcy would bring a lot of banks and other financial institutions with it. The domino effect would be far worse than the disaster that was the Lehman debacle.

I understand your frustration. Unfortunately we don't have the luxury of anger or ideology. This is a full blown global financial meltdown. How we handle today will help to determine it's length and severity. If handled properly we are looking at at least another year of pain. If handled poorly we could see a lost global decade with its attendant social and political upheaval. Many people would likely go hungry, be displaced or even die as a result.

[kentuck]

16. You say...

"And after this is all done we should seriously look at the lack of enforcement of the existing anti-trust laws..."

Why should we wait until it is all done??

[orwell]

19. You run the risk...

...of trying to do too much at one time, which would not only be politically unfeasible but tactically unsound. They haven't even come close to fully staffing the administration yet. As far as staff, Treasury is still in a shambles according to Paul Volcker. The Obama administration is already pushing the envelope with its budget rollout. This is a fairly ambitious, progressive plan that will meet great resistance from the powers that be, on both sides of the aisle.

I believe that they are going to begin to wage the regulatory/enforcement fight starting in the second half of this year led by the likes of Barney Frank and Henry Waxman.

[Tigermoose]

25. K & R this reply!

well said.

[Renew Deal]

21. No one should be "too big to fail."

This has gotten beyond ridiculous. I understand why they are "too big to fail." And I understand why they are being rescued. But the problem here is more than just Lehman or just AIG. The entire system is flawed. They are trying to save a system that doesn't work. And what do each of these bailouts do? They prolong the misery. Instead of allowing a single hard crash, they keep the disease alive! It's bad policy and anti-capitalistic. Those that are complaining about socialists are benefiting the most.

[Profprileasn]

10. Agree

As unpopular as it may be, I agree. I don't want my children and my grandchildren paying this debt.

[kentuck]

11. I would suggest that if they are "too big to fail", then....

they should be broken up. The anti-trust laws should apply. This should be the first thing on the agenda. Break them up into manageable and responsible parts that are not "too big to fail". That would be a good first step.

[CountAllVotes]

12. time to speak softly and carry a large stick

and break up these damned monopolies!

I'm with you!!

:kick:

[anonymous171]

18. I agree. nt

[butterfly77]

13. So,I guess...

you were in on the meetings and looked at all of the financial reports,and everything related to foreign policy. Everyone seems to know everything Obama is seeing and facing. He is a mighty good leader so far to have done as much as he has in such a short amount of time. No,I don't agree with giving AIG or the banks more money so lets see how this plays out..

[kentuck]

15. I don't think the banks have shown anyone their financial reports??

I could be wrong. But, I guess we should just trust them to do what is best for the rest of us?

[butterfly77]

24. I guess you trusted any other president but,...

questioned him when you had sufficent information. Yes,I do trust SOME of them to do what is best for us but,I will protest,write and raise my voice when I see something is not right. Now,if I am not in any of the meetings at the whitehouse I can't say right away what he is or is not doing because the media runs away with a story with lots of rumors,lies,innuendos or speculations.

In my opinion, I don't believe anything this media says until I have throughly researched it for myself. These are the same people who whooohaad with Bush as the country was going to hell...

[Winterblues]

17. It is too bad "we" have no say in it

"We" will just have to go along with whatever our Government choses as the correct way forward and I am not buying that it is to keep feeding these huge inept giants more money. It makes us (Democrats) look like dupes. The people are going to get fed up with it in short order if things continue on like this.

[Life Long Dem]

20. I don't know. And since I don't know.

Or since no one else seems to know. Then I'd like to know why we would give any funds to the unknown in the first place? Or don't you know?

:rofl:
me me me me meee meeeee!

[kentuck]

23. We do know some facts.

They said the money given to them was to open up the credit markets. They did not make any loans. They gave huge bonuses to their executives and threw lavish parties. We do know that. They cannot account for the money that has already been given to them.

[Renew Deal]

22. You are correct as usual.

Obama is trying to keep it all together, but I think the best way of doing that is letting it fall apart.