Socialism almost comes to America

By Michael Fraase

Monday, 29 September 2008 08:12PM CST

Section: Politics

SocialismWhile we were all busy looking at the financial crisis and its attendant bailout in the US government’s flailing, waving right hand, the left hand of the US government was quietly and deftly bailing out the Detroit automobile industry to the tune of US$25 billion. The bailout was included in a bill allowing the offshore drilling ban to expire.

This particular bailout takes the form of a “loan,” except the loan payments are deferred for five years, making the cost to US taxpayers US$7.5 billion.

But wait, there’s hope. The bailout failed Monday in the House of Representatives vote, 228-205. Ian Welsh, writing at firedoglake, outlines four horrific provisions in the proposed bailout:

  1. Changes the worth of a security from what someone will pay for it to what a mathematical model says it will be worth at maturity
  2. Reduces mandatory reserve levels for banks to zero
  3. Any equity position taken by the government will be non-voting
  4. The bailout isn’t restricted to banks owned by US companies; virtually anyone can play

The Sunlight Foundation is petitioning for at least a 72-hour hold before voting on the bailout bill, giving lawmakers a chance to at least read and maybe begin to consider what they’re voting on.

Meanwhile, adult supervision at CNN needs to take Wolf Blitzer out to the woodshed and knock some sense into him. After the measure failed in the House, Blitzer repeatedly stated things like, “one day your ATM card will just stop working,” and “your savings will be gone.” Not only is this wrong (your bank deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) if your account(s) meet the guidelines), it’s intentionally, maliciously, and dangerously wrong.

And House Republicans, get your heads around this: tax cuts for the super rich are the very last thing we need. Not going to happen and if you keep it up, even the most dense opponent will take your seat when you finally get home to run for re-election.

Which industry will be next to step up to the bailout trough?

So please, no more snarking about socialized medicine, okay?

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