Cue the ragtime music

What has been said:

711.1. Jerry Carter (09/23/2008 09:52 AM)

Brother, ain't it the truth. This is a bad idea any way we look at it. Most worrying, Ben Bernanke has a hand in its authorship - the guy who thinks the interest rate lever should only go down. What's sad is that left alone, the rot in the system would burn out anyway. Back in 2002-2003 the equity bubble was bursting, and now it's the credit bubble. Things have a way of righting themselves when left to the natural vindictiveness of the markets. Putting a huge aid package on the table is actually what prolonged the great depression. I point again to its similarity to the Marshall Plan, funding the rebuilding of Europe after the war. West Germany, not receiving these funds and left only to the power of a free market rebounded in short order compared to the rest of Europe. Hand outs don't incentive people to change their behavior - handouts prolong the behavior that caused the problem. As credit consumers, people as well as businesses need to feel a measure of pain in order to learn not to do it again!