"A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the Ruler of a free People. " ~ Declaration of Independence***********
OK, I honestly didn't expect the bailout yesterday (Thursday). Why? Too early. Congress does it's best work after the 5:00 o'clock whistle blows on a Friday night and folks are out the doors to seek two days of distraction, any distraction(!) after successfully making it through another fucking week of servitude to the Parties That Wrecked The Nation.
And WTF? Which Universe did I wake up in this morning? After reassurance by Nancy Pelosi the House would make a deal facilitating Bush's penultimate act (more on that in a minute) -- stealing the Treasury -- the headlines in today's paper read "NO DEAL ON BAILOUT - Dems blame Republicans!" (I must have slept on my wrong side all last night!)
So once more, it is the minority republicans controlling the debate? Well, as Mrs. Dada suspects, rather than either party giving much of a fuck (my words, not hers) for the republic, they are just posturing ala the biggest congressional posturer of all, John McCain.
We'll find out how seriously congress is taking Bush's latest threat, i.e., his promise of the terror of total financial meltdown if they don't once more give him his way, by whether or not they make a deal. If they do, it will most likely come after hours tonight. And if they do, for Christ's sake, watch out for any last minute small print insertions to what may be the nation's most important document since the late, great U.S. Constitution this very body bludgeoned and left bleeding to die in the gutters of a crumbling America.
As to the stealing of the Treasury by Bush as his penultimate act? Well, once stolen, Bush & Co. will serve up one more huge distraction from his financial disasters that will likely leave dispossessed Americans who've lost their jobs, health insurance, savings, retirements, vehicles and homes thinking that's nothing compared to what comes next -- a searing new war with Pakistan, Iran, Venezuela, Bolivia, North Korea, France or Russia -- or all of 'em simultaneously (did I leave out China? -- sorry).
Nothing like a new trumped up war or some false flag terrorism to steal our attentions from our miseries as Bush steals the bank. Which leaves one final question in Dada's mind:
In that the Bush administration has less than four months remaining in office and, in that a new administration will appoint a new secretary of the treasury, why is it secretary Paulson needs desperately $700 billion - and needs it now! (without oversight or accountability for how he spends it)? Does he plan to spend it all before he leaves town the end of next January? Whoa! What a man! To be able to spend $700 billion in under four months (remember, he can 'top up' - get more - under the original Bush proposal if he needs it) must make the bastard who helped bring us this collapse just about the most powerful mother fucker on Earth!
But first Bush must get this financial scheme deal done. Then he can focus on the *Final Act* of his administration. The big distraction, and the legacy he leaves for his successor -- a nation in shambles.
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(Remember: "But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security." -- Declaration of Independence, 1776)
7 comments:
I liked the way you have inserted phrases from the Declaration of Independence into your post today. Lots to think about and contemplate as both of our major parties are in the tank for the rich and are busy creating an oligarchy berift of the principles of the Declaration and the Constitution.
Thanks, eprof. I was so damn mad whilst writing this, I tried to think of some of the scariest revolutionaries; men who put fear in the hearts of oppressors and tyrants.
What followed was obvious -- it was our Founding Fathers!! Let the powers that be be thankful they're not around today. I'm pretty sure there would be violence in the streets, the source of which would be called "some old 60's hippies" or by some other blithe dismissal by the right's quacks such as Sean Hannity or Michael Reagan.
I spit on them! (Whoops, there goes my blood pressure again, sorry.)
Without doubt, our founding fathers would truly be just as pissed as you are today, Dada. And rightly so.
I thought the Friday surprise came early in the Thursday night announcement of the biggest bank failure in history -- WaMu. I think the surprises will come earlier & more often.
I know this probably sounds totally ignorant but I don't understand why this is such an issue of contention.
Here's my reasoning: If this didn't happen, so many people would lose their jobs and it would end up hurting those who are not independently wealthy most. Those who depend on employment and investments for their security would be the ones most at risk.
???
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Fran: I didn't consider WAMU a surprise...oh, unless you mean they didn't wait until the weekend to bail. (Maybe because the gov't had managed to broker a buyer for it in a "fire sale"? W/O it, maybe they would have waited until the weekend. But as far as the gov't seizing WAMU's assets, that was no surprise, right? We knew it was coming.)
Thailandchani: I think I understand what you're saying re this $700B deal, i.e., if we don't stop this, the whole house could fall in on us?
But this is upsetting to me on so many levels. First of all, it's brought to us by those smaller gov't, lower taxes advocates; the same folks who are giving us the biggest gov't with highest taxes (save for those least hurt in all of this of course -- the "haves" and "have mores" as Bush likes to call his friends).
Much, much of this could have been avoided if we practiced governance of this most critical industry to our national (global?) health - banking and investing - instead of cutting the fox loose and opening the door to the chicken coup.
Another (chicken) bone of contention that sticks in my throat is the very gang that brought us this fiasco are the ones bringing us the solution to their meltdown, and they're not being nice about it. It's delivered with an alternative that is totally unacceptable - "OR ELSE" - or what's now becoming recognizable by Americans (after almost only 8 years!) as typical Bush modus operandi - exploiting a national emergency at great expense to the public's financial welfare, security and futures, not just on personal levels, but on a national level as well. Security is not what's be secured here. Security is what's being sacrificed. At far greater costs than even we "rich" Americans can afford.
Yes, many people have been already been hurt. A fix needs to be brokered to stop it. But even if they do, the ramifications of the dire situation we find ourselves in is going to hurt many, many more people before it's over.
Meanwhile, dems accuse the repubs and vice versa for impeding the quick fix (by yesterday) that was years in the making and, up until a couple weeks ago, Bush was publicly minimizing, saying the economy is sound (underneath the house of card's I guess).
I hold our gov't - both parties - responsible. And it is the gov't that has knocked down and kicked America after years of bullying us. And now it stands over us saying, "If you don't fix it by EOB Friday, I'm gonna beat the hell outta you." (putting it nicely ~grin)
Finally, there is a column in our paper today by Fromma Harrop that assesses blame for our current dismal situation to the ultimate perps of this financial fiasco (in nice contrast to my fox in the hen house above), to wit, "Ladies and gentleman...you don't accuse the fox of greed when it attacks your chickens. You put a fence around the poultry."
Amen to that. As I've said here before (more and more recently), "We get the government we deserve." Unfortunately, Americans didn't check the price tag before we bought it, but such is the price of apathy I suppose.
These are a couple reasons for my contentiousness. I think I have more.
What a trail of misery these pricks leave behind.
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