Because, despite the ravings of the Right, there has never been even a semi-serious attempt at nationalizing businesses, much less entire industries. Yet that is what is being discussed.
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So, what is really going on?
I have no idea, really. It's taken me a long time to just get my head around the details of the whole thing, and that always distracts you from the 'big picture', the winners and losers, and projecting what things will look like when we come out the other side.
One random thought is that it's almost like the banks vs. the government, not cooperation at all. They could start lending again, and that's probably in their best interests, but they refuse to do so.
Another random thought is that all these bailouts/takeovers are not based on real money, it's all incremental debt. And incremental debt based on piss poor assets. So most of this will be sold overseas to God know who.
One other BIG random thought... if the government comes out of this controlling most of the financial industry, and the flow of capital and insurance, then they also come out of it controlling the winners and losers in the "free market". They can pick GM as a survivor over Ford, for instance. And what will be the criteria for their decision? Politics? Loyalty to certain positions on issues? Fixed wages? What else?
Your question "what is really going on" is a very good one. You know the powers that be are 4-5 steps ahead of us as we are distracted by the side show the of the crumbling DJIA.
All this stuff is unprecedented except in third world communist countries where the government seizes the 'means of production' based on misbehaviour. Fear of losing your prosperity has given them carte blanche with the voters to upend capitalism.
So at the end game what does this look like? Who benefits? How? Trace that back and you may have a better understanding of "So, what is really going on?".
Just thinking out loud.... very complex for this simple mind. |
