Mockery and Derision

We’re all going to die. Soon. That’s the news out of Washington today, with the bailout bill failing on the House floor, and the Dow dropping 777 points as a result.

Bear markets are called that for a reason. Because they produce bears. And those bears will eat your children, and your retirement savings. Just listen to the news. You’ll see.

Who knows what to make of this crisis? I mean, really. Personally, I’m inclined to, dare I say….believe this Administration when they say this needs to be passed. A lot of people say it doesn’t.

But the President is like my drunk, infirmed grandpa, living upstairs in the attic. He doesn’t ask for anything, doesn’t make a nuisance of himself. I put some soup at the bottom of the stairs and he seems content to live out the last of his Presidential fantasies in peace. But then, imagine that grandpa comes down one day and asks for a bypass surgery. He hasn’t so much as muttered a word in months. What would you do? I’m inclined to believe him.

Say what you want, but the President isn’t completely dumb. Gone are the days of his proposing constitutional ammendments banning gay marraige. He doesn’t ask for anything anymore. So maybe, just maybe, we should take some heed when he does.

But, true to form, the Administration did a horrible job once they had our attention. They need to make the case, everyone needs to make the case, that this isn’t a Wall Street bailout.

“But Mike, I thought it was!“

No, it’s not. CEO pay has been capped under any form of the bill that will pass. And the result of not passing this bill is that credit will effectively come to a halt without stabilization in the markets.

Now, who does that hurt? Does it hurt the vaunted “Wall Street”, people who already HAVE high net worths and money in their bank accounts? Of course not! It hurts YOU, the middle class, people who rely on credit everyday to make ends meet. Which is EVERYONE, by the way. This is a Main Street bailout all the way, by being a Wall Street bailout.

If you own a home, own a car, have a credit card, a 401k, an IRA, a mutual fund, or money in any bank anywhere, you do business on Wall Street! YOU! Not some fatcat oil tycoon, bathing in money and reeking of cigars. YOU. So no matter what, you’ll feel the effects of a bailout or the lack thereof. 

If a bill never passes, will the fallout be as bad as the Administration says? Will the plan, if passed, work? I don’t know. But let’s at least frame the debate in the right way. Because this isn’t taxpayer money going to make the rich richer. It’s taxpayer money going to stave of what’s predicted to be a major recession.

Having said that, I’m changing my money to Euros, and setting beartraps outside my apartment. Godspeed to you all…and good luck. 

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