What worries Barack Obama the most at night? Ayn Rand must be rolling over in her grave

I like what Obama is saying. He is going to meet so much resistance, I hope it works to the good and not a new form of chaos that ruins his presidency.

Here is why I voted for this man. Plain, simple, basic. No fancy words, no twist, no spin, just common, basic principle. Just do the right thing. We all know right from wrong so, just do the right thing. It's easy.

That's a nice sentiment, but human nature being what it is, I doubt we're going to see any real change in the behavior of the people at the top any more than the people at the bottom or the middle.

Wanting people to do the right thing doesn't make it happen. Making people accountable somehow for the overall success/failure of their charge (family, company, community, country, whatever), is the strongest motivator.

Absolutely.

Considering that Ayn Rand wrote a lot of tosh, she can revolve in her grave like a turbine as far as I am concerned.

We then agreed that Ayn Rand was a delusional fool who did a lot of damage.

Example, her idological devotee Alan Greenspan, who helped to destroy our economy assisted by other Rand followers.

BBB

Just whom has Ayn Rand "damaged"? She was an emigree from Russia soon after the Bolshevick revolution, and had a first hand view of the ghastly actions of the "vanguard of the working class" in creating the socialist paradise and, of course reforming humanity and creating the new "socialist man". (Never mind the fact that they found it necessary and justifiable to slaughter the "irreconcilables", i.e. those who disagreed with them.)

Our economy has not been destroyed. It remains one of the most vibrant, productive and adaptable in the world. The banking collapse we are experiencing is hardly a unique or new thing. Almost exactly the same thing occurred in Japan in the early 1990s; and less severe, but similar collapses occurred in Europe somewhat earlier. We will recover from it in due course.

The reformers of mankind and those whould would create social perfection through authoritarian management of economic affairs, have invariably ended up not only screwing up the economies they purported to perfect, but also depriving people of their freedom and initiative -- all in the name of their misguided "progressive" authoritarian ambitions.

It is true that such socialist paradises as (say) Cuba are largely immune from such economic and liquidity cycles . Indeed they have no cycles at all - they are poor all the time. Worse, they are not free to choose their leaders; infliuence their national policy; or even leave their miserable country.

Freedom is better.

Yes, sir! However, this printing of money without anything to back it up is a new kind of socialist-capitalism in the making. Even the experts are trying to guess how all this will play out in the end. Many have already lost a good portion of their retirement investments, and we still don't know how much, if any, of those losses will be recouped. Even Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway lost over 25%, and he's supposed to be "the" genius. It's going to get worse before it gets better, and the big 64-thousand dollar question is "when will this crisis be over?"

The craving to change the world is perhaps a reflection of the craving to change ourselves.

I don't know what "printing of money" you are referring to. What got us into trouble was the profligate securitization of mortgage and consumer debt and its consequences. Lenders came to understand that they would have sold the notes they were issuing long before any questions of default arose, and in any event could insutre themselves for losses with credit default swaps issued by AIG. Behind it all the Federal government was pushing it forward with coercive rules requiring the issuance of mortgage debt to previously unqualified borrowers; and Freddy Mac & Fannie Mae, under the leadership of former Clinton political hacks were happily fanning the flames. Do you really believe that putting Barney Frank and the other culprits behind this mess in charge of the U.S. banking system will actually be a cure?????

The "printing of money" is the seven trillion the government has committed to fund all those bailouts and all the other "save the economy" funds promised. There is nothing to back up that money as in days past when the government sold bonds to fund projects.

I understand the government's involvement in exacerbating this subprime mortgage debacle, but you have the same problem with most conservatives of blaming all this on Clinton. You probably forgot what Bush used to say about "more Americans now own their own homes" as his way of telling the American people that our economy is "fundamentally strong."

Translation: Ayn Rand held political opinions contrary to BBB's.


I disagree. Milton Friedman already argued against the gold standard in his book Capitalism and Freedom (1961). Of course, Ayn Rand did accuse Milton Friedman of being an undercover socialist, so there ....

Thomas wrote:

I wasn't talking about the "gold standard," but the issuing of bonds to fund government spending.