Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Ask Michael Burke -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Lymond who wrote (72280)	12/23/1999 12:31:00 PM
From: Joan Osland Graffius	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 132070

Hi John, Do you have an opinion on the credit market risks associated with the liquidity provided by the Fed this quarter? Happy Holidays, Joan

To: Lymond who wrote (72280)	12/23/1999 1:40:00 PM
From: BGR	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 132070

John, Au contraire, a populist would have called for the heads of the bankers. I did just the opposite. The banking system is of immense importance to capitalism, which in turn has brought unprecedented prosperity in the post WWII era to those countries like the USA which very wisely followed it. I like this system, I must confess. The present system with its modest socialization of risk (are you against Social Security, too?) via the backup of the Federal Reserve Board (which averted a post 87 depression as well as handled the S&L crisis pretty well) makes way more sense to me than a TL system where banks are out on their own (ala the pre-Fed 19th century era). There used to be bank failures en masse those days. Systemic risk was extremely high and hence a hindrance to productive use of capital. I think that modern capitalism has made a lot of progress in the last 100 years and the US is a fine example of its success. Turning the clock back is foolish. If the Fed didn't make three hasty rate cuts, there would perhaps be a lot of former middle-class US citizens as well. So, the policy error, perhaps, was post the 1997 crash when it came to the S.E. Asian economies. The Fed needs to be applauded for its fine performance. Do you consider a blind faith in TL (not saying that you have such a faith) as objective? -BGR.