Saturday, September 20, 2008
What the $1 trillion dollar federal bailout means to YOU
As you should know by now, the Bush administration came to the rescue of the financial industry with a $1 TRILLION (no typo, with a "T") federal bailout:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/19/politics/politico/thecrypt/main4459802.shtml
Before you can even get your head around that astronomical number, here´s what the federal bailout means to you:
So beware, while the economy won't implode right now, things will get tighter and tougher in the years to come, and the downward spiral will continue, only at a slower pace. Things will be particularly bad for middle class working families, as they'll carry the burden of this debt.
PS (on edit): REMEMBER ALL THIS THE NEXT TIME THEY TELL YOU WHY AMERICA CAN'T HAVE A NATIONAL HEALTH PLAN.
Apparently, providing heath care for all Americans is a waste of money, that rewards bad behavior for people that don´t earn it or contribute to society. Next time a Republican tells you their half-assed reasons why it´s ok for a (dwindling) superpower not to have national health care, or better schools, or proper scholarships, etc... well, remind them we just gave away $1 TRILLION bucks of our hard earned dollars to lazy, incompetent and greedy honchos that ran our financial system to the ground.
There is no money to rebuild NOLA after Katrina, or properly equip FEMA, or rebuilt the WTC site in New York, or provide proper shielding for our soldiers in Iraq, or assist 30 million uninsured Americans, etc. But there's always money to make sure Wall Street executives can keep paying their country club fees.
Remember that.
PS 2: Also, remember this mess the next time a Republican utters the word DEREGULATION.
This mess is a direct consequence of the deregulation efforts started during the Reagan years. Since then, Republicans have waved the flag of deregulation and tax-cutting, making it the center of their political philosophy. Apparently everyone thought it was a great idea to let entire industries "police themselves". Yeah right! Now we are seeing the consequences of boundless greed mixed with deregulation. That word should, from now on, become a slur.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/19/politics/politico/thecrypt/main4459802.shtml
Before you can even get your head around that astronomical number, here´s what the federal bailout means to you:
- The $1 trillion federal bailout does nothing but reward greed and bad behavior. After countless CEOs driven by blind greed ran the American financial system to the ground, the Bush administration rewards their performance with your tax dollars. Socialism is alive and well in America, but only for those with a membership in a yatch club. They won't lose their villas.
- The $1 trillion bailout will only keep the market from imploding... for now. It will not punish those CEOs and companies that brought about this mess, but rather encourage the same behavior. Financial corporations will not change the way they worked. In consequence:
- The next market implosion will be even bigger, and there will not be a bailout to save us.
- Together with the cost of the disastrous war in Iraq, Americans will be saddled with a gargantuan national debt from generations to come. Your great-grand kids are thanking you from the future.
- Of course, your money will be worth less than before, and the chances of rising inflation out of control are greater than ever. Stretching your paycheck to the end of the month will be tougher and tougher.
- The Bush administration didn't just pull a trillion dollars out of a hat. This massive amount of money given away to ailing CEOs will come at the expense of the poorest amongst us. Expect social services, infrastructure maintenance budgets, public services, and such to be cut down even more.
For example, expect worse roads, crumbling schools, less police and firemen coverage, etc. - Note to those residents of the Red States: since your states tend to be more dependent on federal aid, expect the above to be even worse for you. Hey, at least you didn't vote for those "socialists" Gore or Kerry!
- Following up on that topic, that money will have to come from somewhere. Expect more borrowing from such democracy-loving nations like China, Saudi Arabia, or the United Arab Emirates. This, in consequence, will make us less independent, and more indebted to their interests.
- The $1 trillion dollar bailout also reminds us that the Bush administration started by giving away your money to the richest among us (massive tax cuts), and continued by provided billions of dollars in no-bid contracts to cronies to supply the Iraq war. Now, the Bush administration ends its 8-year run by giving away $1 trillion of the treasury (aka: your tax dollars) to greedy and inefficient CEOs that ran our economy to the ground.
In 8 long years, the only consistent thing the Bush administration has done is let the richest and most privileged amongst us to raid the treasury at their will.
Once again, your great-grand kids are thinking you from the future, from the comfort of their cardboard shanty towns.
So beware, while the economy won't implode right now, things will get tighter and tougher in the years to come, and the downward spiral will continue, only at a slower pace. Things will be particularly bad for middle class working families, as they'll carry the burden of this debt.
PS (on edit): REMEMBER ALL THIS THE NEXT TIME THEY TELL YOU WHY AMERICA CAN'T HAVE A NATIONAL HEALTH PLAN.
Apparently, providing heath care for all Americans is a waste of money, that rewards bad behavior for people that don´t earn it or contribute to society. Next time a Republican tells you their half-assed reasons why it´s ok for a (dwindling) superpower not to have national health care, or better schools, or proper scholarships, etc... well, remind them we just gave away $1 TRILLION bucks of our hard earned dollars to lazy, incompetent and greedy honchos that ran our financial system to the ground.
There is no money to rebuild NOLA after Katrina, or properly equip FEMA, or rebuilt the WTC site in New York, or provide proper shielding for our soldiers in Iraq, or assist 30 million uninsured Americans, etc. But there's always money to make sure Wall Street executives can keep paying their country club fees.
Remember that.
PS 2: Also, remember this mess the next time a Republican utters the word DEREGULATION.
This mess is a direct consequence of the deregulation efforts started during the Reagan years. Since then, Republicans have waved the flag of deregulation and tax-cutting, making it the center of their political philosophy. Apparently everyone thought it was a great idea to let entire industries "police themselves". Yeah right! Now we are seeing the consequences of boundless greed mixed with deregulation. That word should, from now on, become a slur.
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