Saturday, February 09, 2008

Get over it!

AAAAGH!

I was just flipp'n through the channels and I came across a Glen Beck rerun on CNN headline news!?!

I generally stop in when I surf past Glen's show, because I enjoy watching crazy people talk about interesting stuff, but I couldn't take it, a CNN news show re-run... And even worse, It was Glen whining about Romney dropping out. His gripe was that Romney was the only financial genius running for the President, and the only hope for the country. Oh what to do?

Well Glen, you've admitted to not being an economist on other shows and I have to agree with you, your no economist. There are plenty of economics genius's working for either camp, I know some of them personally. The cure for our economy's problem is not one of math or supply and demand, it's one of selling one of several unpleasant solutions to an American population that only wants good news.

With our current account balance dropping to record lows by last September, consumers taking advantage of an underrepresented increase in money supply through cheap loans with low buy-in thresholds we've been on an economic bender for several years. Economics is a lot like drinking, you can indulge a little and take little corrections along the way (the french say it its good for you) or you can have a real blow out and have a big hang over the next day. With any luck, while your blissfully intoxicated you don't break any laws and get picked up by the police and screw up the rest of your life. To get back to the analogy, the U.S. have been on a binge for several years with all of our favorite trading buddies and it's time to pay our tab.

The bottom line is that the solution to our economic problems are not hard to figure out, but they take some real political courage to implement. When the next administration chooses between holding our population accountable, or punishing our allies for irresponsibly throwing money at us while we were on our binge, someone is not going to be happy. Ideally there will be a compromise somewhere in there where neither group gets rolled in the alley, our economy needs both groups to be happy.

The next president has to be good at getting children to take their cod liver oil before bedtime. That skill will come in handy when he has to talk U.S. consumers into getting used to tighter money supply (less real money in their pockets), and trading partners used to a weaker dollar (they own so many dollars a weak dollar is last on their Christmas list). Its going to be a tough sell both ways.

We need a skilled politician to sell some hard choices, Romney couldn't even sell himself... what chances would he have had.

For another interesting rant on the sour grapes some in the republican party check out my friend KT Cat.

2 comments:

K T Cat said...

Dang, dude, that was amazing. You must have been Africanized while I wasn't looking, because those bees were out for blood!

:-)

Apian Apostle said...

The killer bees are much more common back here in on the east coast, especially around the D.C. neighborhood. You need to subject yourself to them slowly to build up your immunity.

One thing for certain, a few good stings really sensitizes your BS meter.