My solution? (1) TARP is and was a bad idea. Rather than handing the banks money, either (a) the money used should have been used to take an equity stake in the banks, or (b) the money used should have been used to buy and rehabilitate the "toxic assets" (which, note, I deal with on a daily basis). (2) That load of crap called the Stimulus bill should never have been passed. If you're going to take on that kind of deficit, use it for capital improvements that enhance the national economy. Among other uses: - educational grants for either workforce skills or needed degree programs. NOT for "soft" arts, but for, say, engineering (to address the HUGE shortfall in engineering talent coming down the pike) and advanced skills training. - BUILD stuff. Rebuild roads that serve critical transport needs. Build power generation capacity, and transmission capacity. Subsidize/build/buy national, interstate, and urban broadband... and subsidize rural broadband efforts as well. Build theatres. Build reasonably-priced starter homes. Require everything built to meet LEED Basic standards. Fix water supply and delivery systems. Build inshore/coastal power generation capacity (wind and wave transmit a HELL of a lot of energy). Fund development of next-generation and generation-after-next energy technologies - "clean" coal designs, clean nuclear power, and the more esoteric stuff, like dark energy taps and nanotech-based solutions
Notice, during the Depression FDR put people to work, via the WPA, et al. Now, we're funding extended unemployment draws - longer dole. Spending the same money, but at least the first time, we got something useful out of it.
Lets be realistic: this crash was going to come, regardless of who was in office, and regardless of what Bush did for the last 8 years. Ultimately, it's a demographic hit, as the Boomers check out.
Do I think Obama wants to put the US into even more debt? Honestly, I don't know. As a means of pushing an agenda? Yeah. That being said, purely IMHO, while he may be doing something approaching the right thing at a meta level, his strategic and tactical approaches are, frankly, going to make things worse, not better.
And you seem to be forgetting that Bush 'inherited' a shitty situation too at the end of 2001. Or are you forgetting the 1-2 punch of (a) the dot-bomb, and (b) the post WTC attack hammering of the economy.
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Date: 2009-04-17 12:38 am (UTC)(1) TARP is and was a bad idea. Rather than handing the banks money, either (a) the money used should have been used to take an equity stake in the banks, or (b) the money used should have been used to buy and rehabilitate the "toxic assets" (which, note, I deal with on a daily basis).
(2) That load of crap called the Stimulus bill should never have been passed. If you're going to take on that kind of deficit, use it for capital improvements that enhance the national economy. Among other uses:
- educational grants for either workforce skills or needed degree programs. NOT for "soft" arts, but for, say, engineering (to address the HUGE shortfall in engineering talent coming down the pike) and advanced skills training.
- BUILD stuff. Rebuild roads that serve critical transport needs. Build power generation capacity, and transmission capacity. Subsidize/build/buy national, interstate, and urban broadband... and subsidize rural broadband efforts as well. Build theatres. Build reasonably-priced starter homes. Require everything built to meet LEED Basic standards. Fix water supply and delivery systems. Build inshore/coastal power generation capacity (wind and wave transmit a HELL of a lot of energy). Fund development of next-generation and generation-after-next energy technologies - "clean" coal designs, clean nuclear power, and the more esoteric stuff, like dark energy taps and nanotech-based solutions
Notice, during the Depression FDR put people to work, via the WPA, et al. Now, we're funding extended unemployment draws - longer dole. Spending the same money, but at least the first time, we got something useful out of it.
Lets be realistic: this crash was going to come, regardless of who was in office, and regardless of what Bush did for the last 8 years. Ultimately, it's a demographic hit, as the Boomers check out.
Do I think Obama wants to put the US into even more debt? Honestly, I don't know. As a means of pushing an agenda? Yeah. That being said, purely IMHO, while he may be doing something approaching the right thing at a meta level, his strategic and tactical approaches are, frankly, going to make things worse, not better.
And you seem to be forgetting that Bush 'inherited' a shitty situation too at the end of 2001. Or are you forgetting the 1-2 punch of (a) the dot-bomb, and (b) the post WTC attack hammering of the economy.