Monday, February 15, 2010

What do you think?

As much as I disagree with this writer's notion that capitalism heals all economic ills, I must say that his analysis of "deleveraging" and his sense of the future of US and international markets is spot on. There are so many commercial enterprises, even here in SB, that are dropping away from the marketplace (witness the many shuttered retail outlets along State Street), that it's hard not to foresee another huge string of real estate losses in the commercial area and, as this will take another few years to even out, an ongoing restructuring of our economy.

What I don't agree with is the writer's idea that government should simply stand by and do nothing as this occurs. Although so far the government's failures have been monumentally ineffective, I can't stand to allow the poor and middle-class to suffer as this all plays out. I believe the government must take steps to alleviate the agonies of the masses, even if this means more American debt, because, as the writer says, it's likely the sustained global uncertainties will mean that our dollar-based debt instruments will continue to be the "safe haven" for worldwide lenders, most notably, China.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

If America doesn't stop borrowing from China, we're all going to be working for China. Or not. But they're going to own us. Debt is no way to live. Our grandparents tried to set an example in the years of the Depression: "Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without."