For years Failing Government has taketh away. The Federal Reserve banking system is famous for causing recessions and finally the depression of 2007 that was blamed on Wall Street's bundling sub prime mortgages into trounces that were rated by Standard Pours to be rated as A, low risk, B, medium risk, C high risk, then using the same rating system for the B's and C's so each had A's, B's and C's. Wait a minute that dilutes the risk on risky sub prime mortgages doesn't it? All Wall Street did was take advantage of that blunder ... but then enters the new Federal Reserve Chairman Ben "helicopter" Bernanke to replace Greenspan, who for 19 years had managed the discount rate to member banks religiously on a conservative basis ... let the markets create the demand the banks the supply of debt capital ... not using inflation as his prime rate driver. Bernanke and his board immediately upped the discount rate to the member banks by 200% on the first move and another 250% on the second move causing the subprime mortgages to be in default thus collapsing the housing markets, and the 401k accounts and each home owners' equity to the tune of $30 trillion dollars. A depression not a recession ensued for which Bernanke and Bush passed a $600 million dollar TARP package to save General Motors and selected brokerage houses and large banking institutions. Who approved such a thing? Congress no, the Secretary of Treasury Paulson (of Goldman Sachs fame) yes, the President George W. Bush yes. Of course the next was Barack Obama whose adviser was Volcker the Keynesian interest king who was advising President Carter when the prime rate was 23%. What does he do but bail out the large banks and investment houses with a $700 million dollar stimulus package while Bernanke heated up the Fed's printing presses to support loans (Treasuries with fixed rates and long term pay outs) to the Federal Government. All and all this cost enterprising American taxpayers their home values, pay raises (while Goldman Sachs execs got millions) and the US GDP $50 trillion dollars. I reiterate "Failing Government Taketh Away" (the title of my other book on the demise of the great American Enterprise)
