It used to be that you could make an observation in GD or GDP and have a pleasant discussion about almost anything but now that we have gone to
DefCon Jesus Christ we have to primary the President posts in those forums now have to be serious and not casual. So here are some Miscellaneous musings that come to mind at the end of the year, I would be interested in yours as well.
Its a Wonderful LifeLove Jimmy Stewart and have to see IAWL and Rear Window atleast once a year. Of course the high point of the movie is the panic of the bank run scene. It exposes how tenuous civilization is and if a panic becomes a common contagion then it would threaten the very foundation of society.
One year ago we were experiencing bank run after bank run. The FDIC were not taking over banks because they were not profitable or because they didn't have liquidity, but because they were experiencing bank runs. Rather than seeing people run to the bank you now can have a bank run by writing a check or doing it online. Washington Mutual experienced the biggest run in history;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Mutual On September 25, 2008, the United States Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) seized Washington Mutual Bank from Washington Mutual, Inc. and placed it into the receivership of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). The OTS took the action due to the withdrawal of $16.4 billion in deposits, during a 10-day bank run (amounting to 9% of the deposits it had held on June 30, 2008)
Sixteen billion in 10 days. I would like to see Jimmy Stewart stop that bank run.
When the President took over the banking community, the financial system and our whole economic world stood on the precipice of a real implosion. The TARP was going to be a $ 800 billion write off. A year later and we are arguing amongst ourselves about bank bonuses, profits and if the TARP will return 100% of the $ 800 billion or will it fall short.
Now thats a hell of a turn around, take that Frank Capra. If you asked Krugman 12/8 if our current economic scenario was possible I guess he would have given it a 20% chance of succeeding as well as it has.
Damn I wish I could be that effective If you accept the reasonable premise that the first 8 months of the President's administration was devoted to simply keeping the system functioning and undoing the most grevious abuses of Bush/Cheney (you mean you simply cannot switch off GITMO) then the President could only
begin to address his agenda in October when the Health Care Debate started to heat up in earnest. So after 100 days of begining his agenda some folks on the far far left are calling for primary challengers to the President.
The odd thing is that these folks actually do more to help the President than I do.
By staging a far left attack on the President they actually frame the President as a much more centrist leader than I predict his record will show. By balancing the knee jerk attacks on the right with knee jerk attacks on the left they are actually helping the vast majority of people who live somewhere in the middle to become more comfortable with him.
So if they are running a primary candidate against the President today what can we expect the dellusionals to do next year? Impeachment of course. I would join in but I can't keep a straight face. I will send flowers of gratitude, and envy, I just wish I could be that effective.
Joe Lieberman's betrays his friends. No not us the Republicans.
Medicare for all, single payer, public option, all logical and eventual destinations for health care reform.
(BTW beetwasher has linked this very helpful KOS diary on the HCR bill - the best so far it links all of the bills -
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/12/29/819669/-Merging-the-House-and-Senate-HCR-Bills)
Lieberman's refusal to accept any kind of public option will have a dramatic impact on the congressional elections. Instead of running on "government run health care plans" the Republicans will be on the defensive on why they didn't try and negotiate with the President. The most likely victim will be Snowe who repeatedly said that she would vote for the bill (and did in committee) if they would delay the Public Option with a trigger. Now there is no trigger and no Public Option and she not only is voting against it but she is voting to filibuster it as well.
Lieberman's actions seriously undercut the Republicans who probably now wish that Lieberman hadn't been so effective in eliminating a watered down public option. He may be in our caucus but Republicans he is your friend, watch your backs.
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
