My Son on the Bailout...

I asked my son what his impressions of the bailout were. He's a decent kid. Early Twenties. Lives in a model "high tech" town in Virginia. Computer Programmer. Youthful. Idealistic, in a practical way. I must admit I was disappointed when he cut his hair and got a very decent job. Smart as a whip, that boy is; liberal too..and an ardent Obama supporter:

Hey pops,

I don't see much other choice. We face some pretty severe problems ahead in our economy though, and I don't think a simple bailout will do much to solve our crisis long term. With India and China becoming global players and starting to consume, its going to make a lot of problems for us. Not to mention our education system isn't up to par with other countries, and we're just not cranking out the intelligence needed to compete.

But as for the bailout, I think that it should target the lower end of the work force, and help out the people that are struggling to make a living. Granted, if these companies go under, they wouldn't have a job. But so long as the assets we're buying are purchased at a market price, I think its a good idea. I don't think tax payers will bare much of the responsibility, since these assets should stand to make a decent gain as the market recovers. We did the same thing in the Great Depression and it seemed to help then.

Watch the debates Friday? McCain did considerably better than i figured he would... disappointing... he plays that emotional sympathy card way too well.

A good precise, Liberal answer. Filled with the hope (as most people I talk to have--being in California), that the Real Estate sector will recover. But might not the answer be that all empires collapse? The arms race led to the Soviet Union going under. It just took twenty years more for the American Empire to follow suit. Debt and poor investments ruin a country.

Hopefully this crises will lead to a shift in the country's priorities. I'm not so certain that bailing out Wall Street is the best use of money for that needed shift.