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February 13, 2012
Binyamin Rose: Back to the Bunker: How a life-risking act by a Christian family during the Holocaust saved a family and built a thriving community a world away
Menachem Wecker: Business Schools Teach Real Estate Despite Troubled Housing Market
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
April 1, 2009
/ 7 Nissan 5769
U.S.A., INC.
By
Paul Greenberg
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
"The curious task of economics is to demonstrate to men how little they really know about what they imagine they can design." F. A. Hayek
Back in mid-September, when the financial crisis struck, the solution was going to be simple. Yes, it would also be expensive. And painful. Like a heckuva hangover after a wild binge. But time would cure it, the way the liver slowly cleans the bloodstream of toxins. Toxic assets might be cleared out the same way.
Yes, there would be some discomfort, as the doctors say when they mean this is going to hurt like hell. And there would need to be some re-organization and re-regulation, which is a discreet term for letting a lot of hot-shot bankers, hedge-fund operators, incompetent executives, and assorted others who thought they could beat the system find more constructive things to do in life.
And, yes, undeniably, the collateral damage to innocents would be widespread. That's the worst thing about war and finance, which have always borne a certain resemblance.
But a little perspective, please: This was the Panic of '08, not a second Great Depression. It might take a year, even two, but the economy would right itself. We might even find ways to guard against a repeat. The way we eventually get around to putting up a STOP sign at an intersection where there's been a goshawful accident.
This wouldn't be the first time we've gone through something like this and emerged to fix the system. Remember the savings-and-loan debacle back in the 1980s? It, too, was billed as The Greatest Financial Crisis Since the Great Depression.
The federal government had to step in, set up a salvage operation (the Resolution Trust Corporation), and perform triage. Which it did, shutting down those S and Ls that needed shutting down, merging others with healthier ones, saving assets that could be saved, and protecting the innocent and insured depositors. And all was well again. Eventually. The contagion was contained.
Isn't that why countries have central banks? To regulate the money supply, to protect the currency, to confine crises? As for investors in those insolvent S and Ls, their shares might have become worthless, but isn't that what buying shares is all about taking risk? No pain, no gain.
The early '80s were a wild ride, too, as the Carter Stagflation gave way to the Reagan Recession. But back then we had a Paul Volcker in charge of the Federal Reserve and holding the line against inflation. It didn't make him popular, only effective.
Mr. Volcker is supposed to be advising this administration, but nowadays he seems only a decoration to be rolled out whenever investors get nervous about the huge federal debt being amassed, and the inflationary tsunami awaiting down the road. He must have been the most bitterly criticized public figure in the country in the early '80s, next to President Reagan himself, but he sought to reflect economic reality; he was under no illusion that government could create it.
Now we're told by Timothy Geithner, our secretary of the Treasury and CEO of U.S.A., Inc., that "the market will not solve this." But the corporate state will? Even now it takes over one vast enterprise after another (General Motors, AIG), hires and fires executives, sets policy and prices and salaries and bonuses, and generally giveth and taketh away…
The New Order cometh: "The interaction between government and business will change forever. In a reset economy, the government will be a regulator; and also an industry policy champion, a financier and a key partner." So wrote Jeffrey Immelt, CEO of General Electric, in a letter to stockholders. It sounds as if he can hardly wait to be co-owned.
Have we learned nothing since the price-fixing, policy-making, fine-collecting NRA, the New Deal's greatest failure? The Soviets used to call this a command economy, and the fascisti referred to it as The Organic State, but by whatever name, it wasn't exactly a success.
Before there was a Federal Reserve System, the United States had a J.P. Morgan. When the Panic of 1907 struck, he commandeered Wall Street. At one point he summoned 50 presidents of private trust companies to his mansion on East 36th Street in Manhattan and locked them in till they came up with enough capital to stem the Panic. Only then did the fever subside.
Naturally enough, J. Pierpont Morgan soon became the most unpopular, despised and generally badmouthed figure in the country, the center of a thousand conspiracy theories. In this country, no responsible decision goes unpunished.
The current Panic of '08-?? is being handled quite differently. Instead of the quick, decisive, confidential and limited action some of us hoped for last September, a couple of presidents and Treasury secretaries plus a chairman of the Federal Reserve have been all over it. Every week they seem to propose a different remedy and new takeover.
Congress has intervened, too, Heaven help us. For this is the same 535-member board of directors that gave us success stories like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Another huge, maybe permanent public-private corporation is now on the drawing board to handle/extend the crisis that those bloated monsters created. Oh, joy!
Ah, Congress. Lest we forget, this is the not-so-deliberative body that, back in the '90s, removed proven safeguards like the Glass-Steagall Act that had restrained bankers' crapshoots since the Great Depression. Five hundred and thirty-five cooks do have a tendency to spoil the broth. Especially if every member of Congress thinks he knows the answer to the Crisis, which, naturally, grows ever more complicated thanks to all their ministrations.
The government just goes on acquiring a huge stake in private companies. One week it's AIG, the next General Motors. What's next?
The most ambitious agenda of social and financial engineering since the (not so) Great Society is being proposed in the name of speeding the economy's recovery. Health, energy, education, you name it and this administration is going to re-do it completely. Well, sure. In the immortal words of Rahm Emanuel, the White House chief of staff: "You never want a serious crisis to go to waste."
Nostrums abound while the first rule of prudent care is ignored: First Do No Harm. And no one except a few eccentric students of history may still read Hayek's "The Road to Serfdom."
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JWR contributor Paul Greenberg, editorial page editor of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, has won the Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing. Send your comments by clicking here.
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