"Crony capitalism reigns US economy"

[Donnachaidh]

http://www.opednews.com/populum/linkframe.php?linkid=113893


A prominent US economic and banking expert has portrayed a grim outlook for the world's most powerful economy, saying the "crony capitalism" runs rampant in the US.

Writing in the Wall Street Journal, Gerald O'Driscoll, the former director of the Center for International Trade and Economics at the Heritage Foundation believes that a growing tide of fraud and corruption has surged in the current US financial system that is on the verge of becoming "an economy of liars" run by crony capitalists.

In the wake of a bruising financial turmoil in the US, including a sub-prime mortgage crisis in 2009, many experts have persistently called for root and branch financial reforms in the US Congress.

These days, people might think that US is reeling from financial straits and that the worst is behind them, but pundits predict the next mortgage crisis is on the horizon.

According to O`Driscoll, who has been a vice president at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, "free markets depend on truth telling… but in the US today, we are moving away from reliance on honest pricing. The federal government controls 90% of housing finance. Policies to encourage home ownership remain on the books."


More at the link ---

[RKP5637]

1. IMO greed and crony capitalism run deep, very deep, in the US of today. Monied

interests rule this country and I just don't see how any could escape the obvious. We've not had a democracy in this country for a long time. IMO it started with Reagan and runs so deeply good intentions are overrun or bought off.

[Blue Owl]

2. Our entire "foundation" feels like pure cronyism right now

Who's in charge here? The war and oil profiteers?

[RKP5637]

3. For a country that is the wealthiest and with the most powerful military, IMO it

is very telling how we drag on wars. I can only conclude the MIC is doing quite well by these wars and the oil profiteers suck the rest of the blood out of the country. Americans are asleep at the wheel.

[Hydra]

4. Well said

We could be in and out of a country in days. Yet we seem to like to stay there forever.

$$$

[The Backlash Cometh]

5. No fucking kidding.

"Crony capitalism runs rampant in the US."

It isn't difficult to unravel. Start with the crooked attorneys.

[Donnachaidh]

6. no -- start with th ecrooked politicians and lobbyists

Lawyers have always been crooked to some extent. the REAL problem is with the politicians who feel they are OWED those *goodies*, both from the parties they belong to, AND the corporations who want favors.

I wouldn't have a problem putting a few og the worst in the Senate in public Stocks. Make an example of them -- Joe Liebermann should be fitted first....

[branders seine]

7. the moneyed motherfuckers have methodically stripped away all the controls

put in place to reign in their great grandfathers.

[glitch]

9. True. nt

[amborin]

8. K&R sadly true

[hunter]

10. Let's call it what it is: corruption

A different flavor of rot than you might find in other nations commonly labeled corrupt, but corrupt all the same.

In dollars, we are clearly the most corrupt nation on the planet.

[closeupready]

11. I agree with this. The danger in that is that if laws don't apply universally to everyone, people

end up disrespecting the law, leading to anarchy, or some semblance of it.