Showing posts with label econ 101. Show all posts
Showing posts with label econ 101. Show all posts
GOP’s ‘seven biggest economic lies’
Friday, October 14, 2011
As told by Robert Reich and printed at RawStory.
link
Free-market Fundamentalism Revisited
Friday, April 03, 2009
Via Balloon Juice, I just discovered the American News Project (ANP), which seems to be an interesting source of video journalism outside the mainstream media. The résumés of those running ANP demonstrate a high level of experience and qualification.
In the video essay below, ANP took a look at the financial crisis. The story, produced last September, discusses many of the things we have been discussing here at ATK: Deregualtion of the financial sector, trade, economics and "free-market fundamentalism". The interesting thing, is that they don’t just seek answers to the why and how of the crisis and how to fix it, but they discuss how very few people, even the brightest minds, don’t know how to fix it.
It is pretty hard to have an honest understanding about whether or not the Obama administration is doing the right things to fix this crisis, when these types don’t have a clue. I think all a leader can do in this crisis like this is take a shot at fixing the economy based on their judgment, but in the end, it’s a stab in the dark.
It’s fine if someone chooses to criticize the administration’s economic policies, but if one does so while acting as if they know better, they are likely lying. In the end, those who criticize this approach probably have no clue how to fix it either, no matter what their credentials. In other words, we might be screwed.
EDIT:
In a second essay, ANP takes a good look at the possible rise of a populist movement with some historical perspective.
Career Day
Monday, March 09, 2009
Like ATK Regular Mike says, we need to get educated and get loud. The methods behind the current "solutions" to the financial debacle are certainly not helping, as more and more money gets rolled into neat little cigar-shapes and smoked. Regular offenders like Citibank and AIG, and even GM (which is arguably part of the overall crisis) keep coming back to the trough, and getting everything they ask for as legislators act all indignant about giving it to them again (which they do). Oscar-worthy performances all around.
Arguments made all over the intertubes about the financial sector revolving door [lots of Mike's Neighborhood love on ATK today...] between Wall Street and K Street suggest that this is part of the problem, and I tend to agree despite the fact that I too am an evil lobbyist (though not for any financial institutions!).
But here's where I am stuck: what do we do instead? Cole's Balloon Juice thinks that just letting banks fail is not a solution. It's one thing for me to write Stabenow and Levin once a week and bitch at them for supporting more money-chucking. But my letters feel empty in that unlike a lot of other bitching I do at my elected officials, I have not been able to say "instead of X, do Y." In this case, I have no idea what "Y" is.
So I leave it to the giant mental muscle that is our ATK community. What do we do instead?
I'll start. I said "nationalize the banks, and make the Fed Chairman an elected position" on another blog. An elected fed chairman would be accountable to "the people," and imagine what listening to campaigning for that position would do for our national conversations on economy.
React. Make up your own. Today is career day, and ATK is looking for an economist.
It's The Economy, Stupid
Monday, February 16, 2009
If I would have paid attention at Grand Valley State to my Econ classes, I would have understood what is going on in Washington.
But I had...other priorities. Or something like that.
Anyway, I give credit to Mike over at Mike's Neighborhood and Mr. Furious over at the like-named blog for informing me, shedding light on the disaster, and, most importantly, showing me that' not only being handled poorly, but being handled in such as way as to benefit a small cadre of insiders.
I know there are a variety of opinions out there about the economic crisis and its mismanagement, but for me, Mike has made it clear, and I think he does a great job, at least among the little network of readers and blogs around, um, this particular keg, of putting all of this in terms that someone with my general lack of understanding can understand.
Go read the following posts on these blogs, and then, as importantly, go visit the links in the comments sections for more and deeper links.
Mike's Bad Bank: Bad Policy, Bad Economics, Bad IDea, Bad News
Mr. F's FAIL
Mike's Scare Tactics: They're Not Just For Republicans Anymore
Mr. F's Not Getting It (read: Obama is not getting it, not that Mr. F doesn't get it...)
Mike's The Insider, followed shortly by his The Insiders(part of a fantastic Moyers interview)
Mr. F's Lecture Hall (follow the links therein)
Mike's post on Pelosi and Frank's complicity
Mike's snark-filled post Let's Just Establish a 4th Branch of Government
Mike then schooled me on a glib remark I made about my own ignorance and acceptance of whatever Obama says as good, and sent me to 4 other places I encourage you to check out too: Naked Capitalism, Jesse's Cafe' Americain, The Big Picture, and The Cunning Realist.
I only offer these various links because they are how I finally came to understand the nature of the crisis and what is wrong with the response so far. Maybe soon I'll be smart enough to offer a different solution. Right now, I am questioning the response as serving too narrow an agenda.
Have at it, and if you see other links or takes on all of this that I or we am missing...you knw where to put them (in the comments section, of course!).
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