Over and over yesterday I heard "The American people just don't

[lamp_shade]

understand the crisis. Until it has been explained to them in easy-to-understand terms, they will not feel secure in supporting the bill". How to do this? What's the best way to get the message across? Maybe the most effective method is to vote it down and let Americans "SEE" for a few days at least the beginnings of what a catastrophe could look like. Maybe by Thursday Americans will see more clearly. Just my opinion.

[BumRushDaShow]

1. The devil is in the details though.

Not passing it at this time will hopefully allow for the crafting of something that say, really DOES limit CEO pay instead of exempting current CEOs like this bill did. As a bandaid, this bill didn't have enough glue to stick, even as a temporary measure.

[lamp_shade]

7. I think my point is that... I may not be the brightest bulb in the box but

in one day (yesterday) I learned more about the bill and undetstood more about the crises than I had in all of the previous two weeks. A couple of more days like yesterday, and I'll be in a much better position to make an informed judgment.

[BumRushDaShow]

19. There were some interesting comments last night

particularly on KO, where it was noted that the push to hurry-up and pass the original 3-page bill, as is, was a poor starting point, particularly when that was what was used as the basis to negotiate.

So because that original proposition was immediately branded as a "give-away", that initial impression was what stuck in the minds of "the people" (in quotes), despite the 3 pages having ballooned to 105 pages.

IMHO, there are many layers of "contituents" and there will be alot of "arguing among the proletariat" and "arguing among the bourgeois", and it will be difficult to craft a simple but comprehensive message that describes the potential impact to the masses. Not everyone is in the market for a new house or car. Not everyone has a credit card. Not everyone has a 401(k) (many are solely living off of Social Security). The little guy may not care about business issues, whether big or small (although he has to realize he may lose his supermarket, etc). He may bank at a small local or regional bank that never got involved in the mortgage gambling craze.

I don't envy whoever makes the attempt.

[Bluenorthwest]

26. Mr Risk

I think what is missing from the folks who are frightened and just want some bill to pass is a call for justice. I see so many posts that castigate those who don't want to bail out Wall Street, and almost no posts that take the actual crooks to task. The frozen credit markets and the stock crash are not the results of oppostition to the bill, but the results of years of unmitigated greed and pirate town ethics. Republican policy. Bush/Paulson policy.
I think if the pro-bailout people expressed some anger at those who destroyed the markets and put us all at risk, instead of simply shouting at those who would like to see some balance to this bill, there would be more forward motion. The fact that we have to put out the fire first does not and should not be twisted to imply that those who started the blaze get to walk free.
If this is a crisis, and it surely is, then those who made the crisis must pay for it.

Paulson's nickname at Goldman was Mr. Risk. And you wonder why some don't wish to hand the future to him?

[PetrusMonsFormicarum]

2. Excellent point

And if the coffee percolates, the sun comes out, and blue is still blue, perhaps the American people will realize that they do not have to succumb to a life of fear.

And if, by gum something catastrophic does occur, we all know why Paulson took a knee in front of Pelosi and Bernanke's voice kept cracking the other day in Congress: torches and pitchforks.

[Raven]

3. What we saw Americans do yesterday is what we wanted them

to do in 2003 when Bush raced into war and Americans supported him. And then when he jammed the Patriot Act down the Country's throat and Americans supported him. This time the Boy King cried wolf one too many times and Americans didn't believe him and were not going to be railroaded. I don't know whether this was the right or the wrong thing for Americans to do but it is clear to me that they don't believe or trust their President or the leadership in Congress. This is a very bad place to be.

[lamp_shade]

24. And Americans aren't afraid anymore to say "more detail please"

[rocktivity]

4. They understand handing the creators of this crisis a blank check with no oversight

and no return on their investment. There has GOT to be a better solution--for EVERYONE, not just the fatcats on top.

:headbang:
rocknation

[gopbuster]

17. No oversight? Blank check? Where do you come up with that? n/t

[rocktivity]

20. That's what Paulson and the Rethugs ORIGINALLY wanted

And much to their surprise, the people weren't intimidated into accepting it. Is it any wonder that it's been downhill from there?

:headbang:
rocknation

[gopbuster]

23. I understand that n/t

[Postman]

5. There are other ways to do this other than giving away the Treasury

Dennis Kucinich and Bernie Sanders have excellent plans

[lamp_shade]

9. True, but most Americans haven't seen or even heard of their

plans and aren't even aware that there are alternatives.

[newfie11]

13. You bet and I hope to hell someone listens to them this time

The bailout as it was written would not solve the main problems. It was a band aid on a gushing wound.

[gopbuster]

22. Can you provide links to Kucinich and Sanders plans so I have them handy?

I have breifly looked at Sanders plan. My question is this...do they provide emergency funding? or are they longer term plans. This may be the problem.

[elkston]

6. Obama could gain some favor

If he devotes at least an entire speech, or even a 3 minute TV spot to explaining in CLEAR TERMS (with visual aids possibly) exactly how we got here and what effects a non-passage of the bill will have on the average joe. He should also express his disgust for having to make this very hard decision and his acknowledgment that other DEMOCRATS who are adamantly against the bill have reason to be outraged.

Doing this, however, would involve political risk as it would cement his support of the bail out. A non-passage or vote of no would then be criticzed as a lack of leadership.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

12. He can't be the one to do it.

Everything he says is deemed politically motivated, just like McCain. The message, unfortunately, has to come from Bush, whom is totally incapable of doing so.

[knixphan]

8. and free screenings of 'Shock Doctrine' for everyone...

[gopbuster]

10. More will understand as the pain sets in.....although

Americans have every right to be angry. Some of us see that they are mis allocating blame and funds due to losses in a shadow, unregulated market that was created on the backs of our mortgages.

Of course some are just out to screw the rich.

Do we sink the system or do we go with what Obama is saying and provide the Emergency funds in order to stabilize the system and understand there is more to do.

Hopefully, from the bottom up and somewhat Keynesian

[lamp_shade]

14. I'm strongly inclined to go with Obama.

[gopbuster]

18. People seem to be under the assumption the is the end all plan...

What if we win and take more of a majority in Congress (which indications are we are moving that way), then there is plenty more can be done and much easier.

The plan is in tranches with oversight, if Paulson screws up he gets no more money, correct?

If Republicans win in the election then we are all screwn anyway.

[lamp_shade]

21. I'm counting on it (finessing by a new congress).

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

11. More than any other reason, perhaps, this is why we need a President with credibility.

Neither Obama, nor McCain can deliver a message to make the public understand this issue, nor can they truly soothe the populace, given that everything they say or do is politically motivated at this point. The only man in the world who can accomplish this, unfortunately, is Bush. Even if he hadn't taken the "scare the bejesus out of everyone" approach that he always takes, no one would buy it because everyone knows that he's a perpetual liar.

[lamp_shade]

15. Precisely. Not Obama nor McCain nor Bush can safely deliver the message

Therefore, LIHOP.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

16. Here's the problem

Too many Americans, even stock market folks, are fully expecting a bailout still. We might not plummet far enough between now and Thursday precisely because people will start buying expecting the market to bounce back after the bailout actually happens. There has to be an honest expectation of no bailout for LIHOP to occur, and that is not currently the case. Here's hoping I'm wrong...

[regnaD kciN]

25. "The American people just don't understand..."

Gee, where have we heard such sentiments recently?