The Second Great Depression?

The next administration’s economic team had better be ready to hit the ground
running, because from day one it will find itself dealing with the worst
financial and economic crisis since the Great Depression. - Paul Krugman in today's New York Times.

I've heard a few people in the know say that no matter what happens with the "bailout" bill, the American economy is going to get a lot worse in the next few months. It looks like it might be a bleak holiday season. If Americans elect McCain-Palin, it will be even bleaker.

Jim

Krugman: The U.S. Is Now A Bannana Republic

So what we now have is non-functional government in the face of a major
crisis, because Congress includes a quorum of crazies and nobody trusts the
White House an inch.As a friend said last night, we’ve become a banana republic
with nukes.

Like I posted recently, we are witnessing the fall of the American empire. This is the final result of almost thirty years of Reaganomics.

Jim

McCain Plays To The Stupidity Of Many Americans

Paul Krugman in today's New York Times:

"...sheer irresponsibility may be a winning political strategy.
Mr.
McCain’s claim that opponents of offshore drilling are responsible for high gas
prices is ridiculous — and to their credit, major news organizations have
pointed this out. Yet Mr. McCain’s gambit seems nonetheless to be working:
public support for ending restrictions on drilling has risen sharply, with
roughly half of voters saying that increased offshore drilling would reduce gas
prices within a year."

Sure, drill, drill, drill and give them a federal gas tax holiday, that'll solve the oil dependency problem. As Krugman points out without saying it outright, this strategy resonates with many Americans who are too stupid to know better.

Jim

Cherry Grove Realities: Oil Price Realities

New York Times columnist Paul Krugman writes today:

If Europe’s example is any guide, here are the two secrets of coping with
expensive oil: own fuel-efficient cars, and don’t drive them too much.

We just came back from a trip to Spain during which we rented a car and drove it for about 300 miles. The car was a Nissan compact but it had plenty of room for the two of us and our bags and it got great gas mileage. That was a good thing because gas was probably about $7 or $8 a gallon. It way past time for Americans to abandon their gas guzzlers, trucks and SUVs. Pretty soon they will have no choice. Our own car is a Saturn compact SUV with a manual transmission and it gets excellent gas mileage, when we drive it, which is less and less. Krugman is right: this is the future for Americans - smaller cars and less driving. Get used to it.

At our Community Association meeting yesterday, it was announced that there would be no Daminex program this year because there is no money for it. Daminex is a pesticide that kills deer ticks that carry Lime Disease. The program costs $8,000 a year for the entire community. Funny how there are some very wealthy people here in Cherry Grove...wealthy enough to buy and refurbish big businesses like the Ice Palace, Top Of The Bay, etc. but there is no money for programs that benefit the people who live here. As usual, what really matters in Cherry Grove is what is good for the bars and businesses. The people who own homes here are just a footnote to what is the real reason d'etre for the Grove.

Jim

PHOTO: Beach Plum in bloom on the Fire Island dunes

A Socialized Bailout For The Rich

Knee-jerk conservatives and their Republican heros are dead set against just about any form of universal health care for all Americans. They consider "single-payer" systems along the lines of the models in Canada and Europe to be "socialized medicine." However, they have no problem with socialized bailout of the bad boy big financial firms on Wall Street. When one of the big private investment banks gets sick, the Republicans rush in with taxpayer money to help make it well. Socialized financial medicine for the wealthy is fine, but socialized health care for Americans is not.

Bush and company won't even more closely regulate these private banks. The Times Paul Krugman notes today in is column:

"...in a draft of a speech to be delivered on Monday, Henry Paulson, the
Treasury secretary, declares, “I do not believe it is fair or accurate to blame
our regulatory structure for the current turmoil.”
And sure enough,
according to the executive summary of the new administration plan, regulation
will be limited to institutions that receive explicit federal guarantees — that
is, institutions that are already regulated, and have not been the source of
today’s problems. As for the rest, it blithely declares that “market discipline
is the most effective tool to limit systemic risk.”
The administration,
then, has learned nothing from the current crisis. Yet it needs, as a political
matter, to pretend to be doing something."

When will American wise up to this stuff, if ever?

Jim

Krugman Sums Up The Candidates On Domestic Issues

NY Times columnist Paul Krugman, who is a noted economist, has been a Hillary backer. In today's Times he sums up his feelings about her, McCain and Obama when it comes to domestic policy:

Mr. McCain, we’re told, is a straight-talking maverick. But on domestic policy,
he offers neither straight talk nor originality; instead, he panders shamelessly
to right-wing ideologues.
Mrs. Clinton, we’re assured by sources right and
left, tortures puppies and eats babies. But her policy proposals continue to be
surprisingly bold and progressive.
Finally, Mr. Obama is widely portrayed,
not least by himself, as a transformational figure who will usher in a new era.
But his actual policy proposals, though liberal, tend to be cautious and
relatively orthodox.

You can tell who he favors. I'm still anti-Clinton myself. I would NEVER vote for another Clinton, ever again, after what Slick Willy did to gay people. But it is interesting to read different people's take on the positions of the candidates.

Jim

It's The Economy, Stupid! (Failing!)

Economist Paul Krugman on the US economy in today's New Yrok Times:

"...things are falling apart as you read this."

George Bush, of course, merrily plods along in the last year of his eight year reign of incompetence while Wall Street sinks and our economy is in danger of tanking big time. Sure, extend those tax cuts for the wealthy...let Rome burn.

Jim

Krugman On Obama's Economic Stimulus Plan

New York Times columnist and noted economist Paul Krugman has the following to say about Barak Obama's response to the current economic crisis in the making:

"...on Sunday Mr. Obama came out with a real stimulus plan. As was the
case with his health care plan, which fell short of universal coverage, his
stimulus proposal is similar to those of the other Democratic candidates, but
tilted to the right.
For example, the Obama plan appears to contain none of the alternative
energy initiatives that are in both the Edwards and Clinton proposals, and
emphasizes across-the-board tax cuts over both aid to the hardest-hit families
and help for state and local governments. I know that Mr. Obama’s supporters hate to
hear this, but he really is less progressive than his rivals on matters of
domestic policy."

Krugman has been a consistent critic of Obama. In particular, Krugman is critical of Obama's health care plan, which does not cover all Americans, and critical of his plan to preserve Social Security. Krugman time and time again notes how Obama uses the rhetoric of the right in argument for his programs.

Jim

The Case Of The Stolen Dog Bed

"Hey, I LIKE this new dog bed!"

Poor Bradley. He doesn't know what to do when Nikko steals his new bed. He's too timid to chase the cat away, so he goes into Dan's room when his bed is occupied. The "children" are a hoot sometimes.

Today's New York Times is full of hard hitting commentary on the state of our country. Read Paul Krugman on the two different universes that are the major political parties in America today. Of the Republicans he writes: "the G.O.P. is still controlled by a conservative movement that does not tolerate deviations from tax-cutting, free-market, greed-is-good orthodoxy." And don't forget the kowtowing that all the Republicans do the nut case fringe fundamentalist Christian right. Read Roger Cohen on how the disastrous and now in shambles American foreign policy in Pakistan contributed to the death of Benazir Bhutto. Finally, be sure to red the lead editorial for a scathing recap of the horrendous Bush presidency post 9-11.

Perhaps in 2008 we will see some national course corrections. Let's hope so.

Happy New Year!

Jim

Krugman Hammers Obama Again

Noted economist and New York Times Op-Ed columist Paul Krugman keeps on hammering Barak Obama. A couple of weeks ago Krugman wrote that Obama used right wing talking points when he declared that there is a Social Security "crisis." Now, Krugman thinks that Obama is using the same tactics in the health care debate - using right wing rhetoric to buttress his health care plan, which Krugman thinks is sub-standard and not as desirable as the health care plans being offered by Obama's rivals Hillary Clinton and John Edwards:

I recently castigated Mr. Obama for adopting right-wing talking points about a
Social Security “crisis.” Now he’s echoing right-wing talking points on health
care.
What seems to have happened is that Mr. Obama’s caution, his
reluctance to stake out a clearly partisan position, led him to propose a
relatively weak, incomplete health care plan. Although he declared, in his
speech announcing the plan, that “my plan begins by covering every American,” it didn’t — and he
shied away from doing what was necessary to make his claim true.
Now, in the
effort to defend his plan’s weakness, he’s attacking his Democratic opponents
from the right — and in so doing giving aid and comfort to the enemies of
reform.

Is Obama the new Bill Clinton? By that I mean, is he trying to placate both sides on every issue? This could be. Remember, he invited an anti-gay singer-preacher on a recent campaign tour, even though he claims to be a strong supporter of gay rights. He can't have it both ways on all the issues.

PHOTO: Boat House Row on the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia. These boat houses serve as the headquarters for the "Schuylkill Navy," the rowing teams from the various local high schools and colleges.

Jim

What's Wrong With Obama?

Blogger Ed Kilgore sums it up pretty nicely:

"the lingering concern a lot of folks on the Left have with Barack Obama: his policies are
suitably progressive, but his framing of those policies, from his constant
invocation of bipartisanship to his occasional violation of progressive taboos
(e.g., lecturing teachers about their opposition to merit pay, and bloggers about their
"incivility", and consorting with anti-gay gospel singers.)

Bi-partinship my ass. Is Bush bi-partisan? I don't want the next president to be bi-partisan, I want him or her to be very partisan, to reverse the damage done by Junior. Obama's rhetoric is dangerous. For example, Obama refers to the Social Security "crisis," which is not a crisis at all if you read intelligent analysts on the topic. See Paul Krugman's op-ed in today's New York Times. What that kind of rhetoric does is to play into the hands of the Bush crowd who tried to destroy Social Security two years ago.

Obama is not ready for prime time, and not just because he panders to the wrong elements like the anti-gay gospel singer he welcomed to his recent campaign tour.

PHOTO: Here's a look at the return path back towards home on my daily morning walk along the river drive.

Jim

Inequality In The US: A Modern Gilded Age

Now that The Times is totally free again read economist Paul Krugman's blog. It's a "must read." He starts out with a bang:

I was born in 1953. Like the rest of my generation, I took the America I
grew up in for granted – in fact, like many in my generation I railed against
the very real injustices of our society, marched against the bombing of
Cambodia, went door to door for liberal candidates. It’s only in retrospect that
the political and economic environment of my youth stands revealed as a paradise
lost, an exceptional episode in our nation’s history.”

Krugman goes on to argue that the gap between the very rich and the rest of us has exploded to proportions not seen since the excesses of the Gilded Age. This he attributes to the rise of conservatism going back to the 1970s. We're ripe for a huge political change, Krugman argues. Perhaps, but who will be the agent of this change? We'll have to stay tuned!

Jim