Three Graphs: Obama Deficit Reducer; Better on Debt than Reagan or Bushes

Debt, deficit, fiscal year,and what caused the recession anyway? (4.00 / 1)

The Republicans use the deficit and debt interchangably, which makes it hard to make sense of what they say.  Plus there is the confusion caused by the fiscal year.
http://www.economonitor.com/bl...

What caused the recession anyway?  This is the best explanation I have seen.
http://www.erikjheels.com/3428...

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by: Quizzical @ Tue Oct 16, 2012 at 02:55:23 AM UTC

You are right. They do do that. (0.00 / 0)

And I am sure that it can get confusing.  And I think they are banking on that.

There's nothing in the middle of the road except yellow stripes and dead armadillos (Jim Hightower). PS I'm on Twitter here.

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by: KathyinBlacksburg @ Tue Oct 16, 2012 at 13:59:19 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Financial Crises (4.00 / 1)

The present financial crisis, already being called the "Global Financial Crisis," is not the usual recession caused by a downturn in the business cycle. It has followed the pattern of past financial panics and credit freezes in that recovery is painful and fairly long.

There was the financial panic of 1893-1898, started by the a railroad building "bubble" and subsequent bank failures. Another example occurred with the 1929-1940 Great Depression, caused by over-speculation in the stock market, bank failures, credit freezes, and horrible drought at a time when millions of Americans lived on farms.

What we are living through right now is also a financial panic, brought on by over-speculation in housing throughout the world and the creation of monetary derivatives based on basically nothing.

After the Great Depression, we learned that regulation of the market by government is the way to avoid the built-in tendency of capitalism to periodically self-destruct. But, Allen Greenspan and the Bush administration never learned the lesson.

Here we are again, having to learn that greed unchecked by restraints on it will destroy everything in its path. And...note that all three financial crises happened while worshippers of the unregulated free market in the Republican Party were in control of government. That's the reason I shudder at the thought of Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan in charge. They both, as well as many of their followers, worship daily at the altar of the Almighty Dollar, with Ryan also paying homage to his favorite "saint of personal greed," Ayn Rand.

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by: Elaine in Roanoke @ Tue Oct 16, 2012 at 12:35:24 PM UTC

Excellent comment, Elaine (0.00 / 0)

Very much agree with you.  And there is a reason why Wall St has rallied behind Mitt Romney.  He's one of them.  He will allow a wild west approach to not regulating anything. WE should have learned that going too far in deregulation causes disaster.

But not with disaster capitalists like Romney and Ryan.  They look for disaster to prey upon those who are in point of fact victims to their predation.  Then they rip them as playing victims, even though most of the people they trash are either working hard (sometimes at more than one job), old or sick.  

We may have wished the President did more with respect to regulating too-big-to-fail banks, but Romney would undo what restraints are left.

I am hopeful about our election prospects.  But the thought of those who caused this problem, which both Mitt and Paul Ryan did in their own roles, in charge should case anyone who is concerned about our fiscal health shudder.

And aside from their recklessness, there is also that every single ad they have put forth is false.


There's nothing in the middle of the road except yellow stripes and dead armadillos (Jim Hightower). PS I'm on Twitter here.

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by: KathyinBlacksburg @ Tue Oct 16, 2012 at 13:58:12 PM UTC

[ Parent ]