Jonathan Alter on McCain

Alter is a senior editor at Newsweek. 

Teddy or FDR?

Garrison Keillor's Take on the Financial Crisis

Please note the complimentary attitude toward bank examiners.

They Played a Losing Game with our Money

A Post-Debate Oddity

Did any one besides me find it odd that the Democratic vice presidential nominee showed up for questions after the debates, but the Republicans sent Guliani instead of Palin.  For goodness sake, Guliani's not even a Republican. Couldn't they have sent Lieberman instead?

A View of the Debate--and a Prediction

I watched the debate last night from beginning to end. In a campaign sense, I didn't really see a clear winner, especially because Obama gave up a couple of chances to nail McCain on the economy. I thought Obama carried off the foreign policy questions very well and should have satisfied people who were worried about his abilities there. I imagine most people came off thinking that McCain demonstrated his experience in that area very well, although if he really spent as much time visiting foreign countries and talking to their leaders (all his very good friends) as he said he did, I'm not sure how he managed to spend any time in the US at all. 

However, the two things that bothered me most (and surprised me least) were first, when McCain almost lost it when Obama reminded him of his "muddling through" comment about Afghanistan--on the split screen you could see that he really clinched up and looked like he wanted to punch someone. This aspect of McCain's temperament really scares me. Second, McCain showed a complete absence of flexibility with respect to foreign policy. There are our friends and there are our enemies--no shades of gray. I don't think he's moved very far into this century in a lot of his thinking. His message to everyone with whom we have a disagreement seems to be "our way or the highway."

And here's my prediction: When Bush started doing poorly in the polls after the first two debates, that's when the Republican strategists really moved almost all their ads to the low road. I think (even though I really hope I'm wrong) that we are soon going to see a real change in the Republican strategy--stuff even worse than the "sex ed for kindergartners" nonsense. 

No Bailout?

I don't agree completely with this guy--for example, the bailout might be feasible if we (the taxpayers) take an ownership interest in the companies we bail out equal to the decline in value of the securities purchased by the government--but he makes a lot of sense. The clip is really worth watching to the end.

The one thing that really comes out in the clip is how often Paulsen, Bernanke, and others have either been wrong or lied about where things stood. Now they want, particularly Paulsen, carte blanche with our money to deal with the problem. I don't think so.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TeWJZiJGc2s

The Current Economic Situation

I’m really torn about the goings on in our financial sector. On the one hand, I’m pleased that the Fed and the Treasury are getting it right this time—unlike 1929 they are not acting in a way that will make the situation worse. On the other hand, I’m really bummed that a lot of greedos are getting away with their largesse. One of the features of the 1929 crash was that the bust took down most of the people who caused it. Of course it also took the economy as a whole down. It looks like neither of those things are going to happen this time. The other part that bothers me is that those of us who didn’t take on debt beyond our ability to pay (personal or corporate) are going to suffer along with everyone else, even if it’s only indirectly. My grandkids will still be paying for all the liars who falsified their mortgage applications and all the financial executives who took fliers on credit default swaps (and received the corresponding bonuses) that they had do idea how to value.

No one will want to admit it but American capitalism is dead (it’s been moribund for decades). Dead at least for any company big enough to have a significant impact on the economy. The smaller fish will still be subject to the vagaries of the business cycle. In the new crypto-capitalist scheme the government should insist that any company expecting a bailout should install an executive compensation scheme (and the requisite contract clauses) that tie pay to performance—if you fail, you get nothing and bonus pay should be retrospective after the true outcomes are known.

The key now is deciding whether we want to act to prevent situations like the one we’re now enduring or just continue to clean up afterwards. My guess is that people are so confused about the capitalism/socialism issue that business special interests will be able to stave off any direct control—maybe even any really effective regulation. JK Galbraith should be required reading for anyone allowed to vote—the lone sane economic voice in the last 75 years.

Sarah Palin's Credentials

Check out this non-partisan comment on Palin's credentials.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/160080

More Pictures of Our New Grandson

He's a sweetie. We can't wait to see him in person.

We have a new Grandchild

Our sixth grandbaby was born on Monday night, September 8. He was earlier than expected by about 3 weeks, but weighed in at a healthy 7 pounds 5 ounces. Both he and his mother are doing fine. His siblings also seem to be doing well. We'll probably go up to Chicago in a couple of weeks after things settle down a bit to help out and pay a visit to everyone.

Here's an early picture.

You must see this clip from the Daily Show