original post 22 September 2008
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That’d be roughly seven hundred billion dollars.
Yeah. $700 billion.
$700,000,000,000. heh.
Two weeks ago, the value of nothing was around half a trillion dollars. For the war in Iraq and, I suppose, that includes the broader nothing of the war on terror.
But today, that nothing, those quote distressed assets unquote will cost the American tax payer almost three quarters of a trillion dollars. Like wOw. We are not asked, but, by proxy, forced to GIVE our money to those who made bad decisions to cover their bad debts, their distressed assets. These masters of the universe have acted out of greed. Drove the kinds of investments that have further battered our planet. Resulted in industrial practices in third world countries where child labor and human rights abuses abound.
The value of nothing. This void that has been created around us. Our country’s great ideas, it’s innovations, it’s product pipelines… all dried up.
Our freedoms have become meaningless as the nothingness of FISA, the Patriot Act, and the Military Commissions Act take hold.
Money. Having stuff. Has transformed us into rats on cocaine… consumer driven, debt driven. Transformed into indentured servants, enthralled by wide-screen televisions, the newest version of ear phones, iPods, and sneakers.
The value of nothing is nothing. Unless you’re this guy, John P. Grayken of Lone Star Funds, who maneuvers in shark-infested waters, finding ways to kill the sharks while feeding on the rest of us.
A-fucking-mazing.
BTW, does anybody know about the impact of all this on retirement accounts? I haven’t read everything or looked everywhere, but I am amazed at the lack of reporting and analysis on the impact of retirement funds like 401Ks, et al.
I’d also like to know just where that $700 billion is coming from? Is the social security fund being looted? Is this a way to get at it do you suppose? Are they just printing up money? Where is this money coming from? China?
I’m still not clear on exactly who and/or what this bail will solve?
I’m still not clear on how we can trust those in our government… who didn’t react when Bear Stearns went down. . . who had access to the same information/data that has been analyzed on blogs, by guys like Paul Krugman for a few years now . . . all of whom predicted this meltdown? What qualifies somebody like Paulson to commit to this very radical action? The only thing the conventional politicians/policy makers/lobbists have done, their only claim to fame, is making money from nothing.
Knock on your neighbors’ doors. E-mail everyone in your address book. Call your family and friends. And ask if they know how and why these politicians and policy makers and lobbists can suddenly come up with $700 billion dollars to bail out Wall Street when promises to address issues like health care insurance have gone largely unkept for years.
Making lemonade out of lemons is one thing. But putting a value on nothing is fucking ridiculous.
Time to get it back. If you have the sense god gave a horse, then insert yourselves into your county’s political committees. Take back your school boards and town councils. Run for state government. It’s trickle up. It’s time to re assert states’ rights as one strategy to stopping the expansion of federal and corporatist power in the United States of America. Orchestrate a 50 state strategy of legislation that allows citizens to recall their elected representatives. Don’t wait for current Democrats. Every day we think conventional politics and politicians will solve our problems allows the black hole of nothing to expand over our country and our lives.
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where the ones suggesting the initial bail out, that had to be a clue, right?
and chuck schumer? how is he still in office????????
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because it hasn’t changed, has it? why bother to come up with new ideas when we can not seem to get out of our way here?
and think about “us.” Shut “them” out of our lives, to any extent practicable. No doubt, we will be hobbled by our systemic habits along the way, but that divorce from habit is the way of hope, I think, like a two-year depression following divorce, but much, much worse. Those of us currently alive will probably not even get to the exciting stage of “finding new lovers,” after this knock-down, drag-out is over, but think of the grand kids.
Well, the Republicans are pushing this theme but come on – if they could get the 401s from the schlebes (schlumps and plebes combined) sure – why not – say anything under $200,00 for instance.
But unless anyone has been in a coma for the past 10 years or so – would the government touch the fat 40l(k)s of the masters. Would the senators in this Republic allow theirs to be touched? Would the heads of the transnationals or their hordes of lawyers and accountants.
This is a Republican pushed silliness and while there is little difference between the parties now, we’re not Argentina y.e.t.*
*check back with me at 6pm tomorrow – perhaps there will be a change.
nothing…. and I still have most of it left.