Rokjok777

The Housing Market Continues to Improve

Split investment and commercial banks. Commercial banks are essential to keep the economy moving, provide a gov't back-up to them to extend credit. Let investment banks twist in the wind and fail if they can't manage risk. (Let them prosper, too, if they're smart enough. But don't back them with taxpayer dough, duh...)
Instead we've given megabanks trillions of dollars that they're bringing to their trading desks and are making fortunes. For their shareholders. And turning the markets into an even bigger casino along the way.

Savings, Consumption and the Economy: 'Lord, Make Us Thrifty, But Not Yet'

The US is the junkie, and the "producing" world is the pusher. China etc want to keep the customer alive so they can continue to profit. Eventually the junkie either dies, or quits the habit. "Quitting" will be very difficult because the US doesn't manufacture much anymore, except CDS (and other brilliant rocket science financial waste) and services.
I'm not hearing much debate (except on SA) on how things got to this state, and why. Obama has bought the line that "all economists agree" that big govt spending is whats required. I would prefer to hear him first tell the world that America will get our financial house in order (pay down debt); that America will encourage savings over consumption; and that we will invest massively in new positive industries, especially alt energy. How to pay for it you ask? Well, lets see, the Pentagon is getting $700 billion this year...more than the military budgets of every other nation combined. China, number two spender on military, squeaks by on just $60 billion. America could spend the same amount of money, through the same companies (Raytheon etc), and have them produce wind turbines and electric cars, stuff the world actully needs, not multi-million $$ missiles to lob at some goat herder in some god-forsaken place totally unconnected to the real threats to our national security. Which is a bigger threat to US security, the collapse of the very fabric of our financial system, or some turban-head who can't even muster a proper army? 20 guys with box cutters (all from our Bush family friend Saudi Arabia BTW) can't possibly be taken this seriously.