To take my mind off my worries, a friend suggested I come to her house last night for a round or two of mah jongg. I went, expecting a relaxing evening of casual conversation and a light mental workout. What I got was much hand-wringing and knee-jerking on the part of some of the players. President Obama was talking in the other room (on TV) about his plans to stimulate the economy. This provoked outrage at our game table. Why should I pay for my neighbor's greed? Why should illegal immigrants be allowed to work in Rhode Island? The latter is a common mantra where I live. Illegal immigration is the cause of all our woes. At least so sayeth our governor, who's best buds with Lou Dobbs.
All the railing took me back to another mah jongg game I happened to be playing nearly six years ago. Strange. At big moments in American history, I seem to be playing games. It was six years ago in March that American troops marched into Baghdad and toppled Saddam Hussein's regime. A number of the people I was playing with reacted as though we were viewing a Super Bowl game. Yay America! I was appalled by the turn of events. I couldn't believe how easily Amercia could be misled. This was only the beginning of the misleading, of course.
Gadzillions of dollars and a decimated economy later, many Americans are now screaming about not wanting to pay for their neighbors' poor decisions, not wanting to saddle their grandchildren with crushing debt, not wanting to reward the go-shopping mentality that's left us gasping and horrified as we scrutinize our fat credit card bills. Where were the complainers when the government reached into our pockets and took wads of money for a war we went to on false pretenses? Where was the oversight when Wall Street built an empire out of nothing, sold it at a huge profit, and then walked away from the mess? How's your portfolio doing?
Maybe "big government" is not the solution. Or even small government. Maybe we should dismantle the whole thing and figure out how to be a nation without spending a nickle on it. Give everyone a gun and a pamphlet on self sufficiency. Homeschool your children; toss your trash in the river; definitely get a horse.
Friends, I'd rather pay for my neighbor's extra bathroom that they didn't need, and as much as it kills me, I'd rather prop up banks and industries than let the country sink into the slime. I'd rather pay to build a stronger America, not just militarily, but structurally and morally. I've already paid dearly for what I didn't need and didn't want. What's a few trillion dollars more? If anyone has any genius plans on how to accomplish this on tax cuts and a prayer, speak now.
Mah jongg anyone?
Final Arrangements
10 years ago
3 comments:
My two cents:
Let failure runs its course. Reinflating broken balloons is folly. Good will come again. Never lose faith in markets to correct greed or stupidity.
That's a pretty Darwinian take, Jim. I know good will come again, but I'll never trust an unfettered economic system to do good, or to be fair or to protect the innocent. That said, I wouldn't mind seeing the auto industry rot in hell.
PJ,
I believe government (Community Reinvestment Act) and greed are at the root of our woes. The politicians did this and now they are going to fix it for us? Ds wanted everyone in a home, Rs were in bed with the mortgage industry, and Fannie and Freddie partied like Jeff Spicoli.
People have been borrowing like mad to keep up with their neighbors, but you can never really keep up. Market resets, not borrowing our childrens' and grandkids' money, will make it right.
Oh, yes. Too many executives and boards care more about themselves than their company's mission or employees. The House of Cards fell. Let's build a real house next time.
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