Worsick, I agree with your description of the Japanese "elite", and its "archaic" desire to keep faith and cover up rather than admit an error, pay the price and wipe the slate clean. I do not agree with you, however, that Japan is done for. They have enough money to do the right thing, cut taxes drastically, encourage a little more spending by the population, open their market and finally wipe out those banks that are worthless (and write down those assets to real value), so the remaining banks can once again get into the business of lending. Without stimulus there will be no one to lend to, and without stimulus, there will be no demand for the overcapacity plaguing that part of the world, even if some of that capacity (the inefficient segment) is closed.
Zeev |
