Obama laughing his way through economic disaster

[Darth Executor]

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0309/20339.html

His remarks came in a “60 Minutes” interview in which he was pressed by an incredulous Steve Kroft for laughing and chuckling several times while discussing the perilous state of the world’s economy.

“You're sitting here. And you're— you are laughing. You are laughing about some of these problems. Are people going to look at this and say, ‘I mean, he's sitting there just making jokes about money—’ How do you deal with— I mean: explain. . .” Kroft asks at one point.

“Are you punch-drunk?” Kroft says.

“No, no. There's gotta be a little gallows humor to get you through the day,” Obama says, with a laugh.

I can't blame him. I don't think he expected to actually get elected, and now that he's here he doesn't know what to do. It was easy to slam Bush and vote present, but now that he has a real job, I guess it finally dawns on him that he really doesn't have any relevant skill or experience whatsoever. I think he was right when he said a light will shine on people and they will have an epiphany, but probably not the kind of epiphany he expected or wanted.

[Ex Nihilo]

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0309/20339.html



I can't blame him. I don't think he expected to actually get elected, and now that he's here he doesn't know what to do. It was easy to slam Bush and vote present, but now that he has a real job, I guess it finally dawns on him that he really doesn't have any relevant skill or experience whatsoever. I think he was right when he said a light will shine on people and they will have an epiphany, but probably not the kind of epiphany he expected or wanted.

We really don't need this. We need him to do well. If we don't nobody really knows how bad it could get.

But I did see something really interesting earlier today about how people are already starting to resist Obama's idea of big government.

http://www.reuters.com/article/newsO...52L0J820090322

[Mountain Man]

We really don't need this. We need him to do well. If we don't nobody really knows how bad it could get.

So long as "doing well" does not include successfully implementing his socialist agenda, I am all for him doing well as president.

[Jimmy Higgins]

So long as "doing well" does not include successfully implementing his socialist agenda, I am all for him doing well as president.

When Obama starts nationalizing the oil and gas companies, then maybe you can start worrying about "socialism". Until then, lets stop with this repeated assertion.

[Mountain Man]

When Obama starts nationalizing the oil and gas companies, then maybe you can start worrying about "socialism". Until then, lets stop with this repeated assertion.

You seem to forget that we're talking about Barrack "Spread the Wealth" Obama.

[Ex Nihilo]

So long as "doing well" does not include successfully implementing his socialist agenda, I am all for him doing well as president.

Well it looks like his budget is under serious fire, though he may use political manuvering to force it through.

However, it's in all our best interests that somehow (magically) he helps people fix this problem and start the engine of production and consumption in the economy again.

It's all fun and games until people start not being able to eat.

[Chocobear]

Nice to know that he finds the current economic climate so humorous and entertaining. Yuk it up, Mr. President. You won't be laughing when your four years are up and people see you for what you are: a fraud.

This man becomes more and more arrogant with every day that passes by. He's brought us change, all right. Change for the worst. So much for the hope he promised us.

[Cupofwrath.com]

I"ve heard that EMT's and ER doctors sometimes joke around to help cope with their work. I don't think any criticism here is valid. All this nitpicking before he's even had a chance to screw up is getting really tiring.

[Mountain Man]

All this nitpicking before he's even had a chance to screw up...

I'm sorry, who are you talking about? It's not Obama, apparently, because he's had plenty of chances to screw up, and he's taken them.

[NeilUnreal]

President Obama's biggest problem right now is that he's listening to his own training and the advisors around him who are telling him that, by shifting paper money around, we can return to the "happy-spending," "happy-motoring" world of the last few dacades.

I don't think these advisors are ignorant, corrupt, or lying; I think they are intelligent and well-meaning but wrong. But the ground rules of the economy are changing, in part because of external factors like peak oil and globalization, but in large part because the credit economy of the last few decades was itself a fake -- a simulacrum of a real growing economy. Like if you were to rack up a credit card living at a resort for a week after you had lost your job, pretending it was your salary and the resort was your manifest destiny. And then trying to make up for the situation when the bill comes due by paying off that credit card using a cash advance from another.

Because that's what we've been doing. And even those of us who managed our individual credit wisely were participants merely by being involved in the economy. Bought a small TV with cash instead of a mega-screen TV on credit from a second mortgage? No matter; when you bought that small TV, the cost was set by the demand curve which was modified by all those mega-screen TVs bought on credit. Paid a lot for a house you could afford instead of a whole lot for one you couldn't afford? No matter, that extra money you're paying for the next 30 years because of the housing bubble was money that you won't be able use to buy something else. Etc.

We need to recognize all these things (and their compounding by the global economic situation and peak oil) if we are to find a good way out of our current mess. The current crop of advisors, are, in an odd way, too good at what they are supposed to do, because what they are "supposed to do" may no longer be what they need to do in today's world. But on the flip side, I think they are smart enough that they can wake up and realize it, and work well within the new parameters when they do. I just hope they do so; I just hope we give them the latitude to do so.

So I would say to President Obama: look around you, follow your instincts and your reason, look at the present and not at the past, and make sure your advisors do the same. And don't be afraid to communicate hard truths to the American people. You had people ready for change, now be bold enough to deliver.

-Neil

[Jimmy Higgins]

President Obama's biggest problem right now is that he's listening to his own training and the advisors around him who are telling him that, by shifting paper money around, we can return to the "happy-spending," "happy-motoring" world of the last few dacades.

One of my thoughts when the economy started to tank was "So much for the health care plan". My problem is that Obama seems to be pushinig ahead with these new plans as if the economy was booming and he was reinvesting surplus funds back into our infrastructure.

But we aren't booming. So while I like the idea of these plans, it hardly seems like the time to be moving ahead with such expensive ideas.

Because that's what we've been doing. And even those of us who managed our individual credit wisely were participants merely by being involved in the economy. Bought a small TV with cash instead of a mega-screen TV on credit from a second mortgage? No matter; when you bought that small TV, the cost was set by the demand curve which was modified by all those mega-screen TVs bought on credit. Paid a lot for a house you could afford instead of a whole lot for one you couldn't afford? No matter, that extra money you're paying for the next 30 years because of the housing bubble was money that you won't be able use to buy something else. Etc.

And this is the paradox of the US economy. For a decade we were spending money like we were all rich (I use the term "we' loosely). We can't do it again, at least not for a few decades. One can only extend themselves on credit for so long. That time has come and past and the nation's ability to spend has been cut. So that means our consumer based economy has had a restrictor plate attached to it, restricting the amount of growth we can have... if there is growth at all.

So I would say to President Obama: look around you, follow your instincts and your reason, look at the present and not at the past, and make sure your advisors do the same. And don't be afraid to communicate hard truths to the American people. You had people ready for change, now be bold enough to deliver.

I think that'd be a ton easier if there wasn't an opposition that was gunning for his impeachment already. We need to create strong legitimate priorities and spend there. But right now, Obama is spending everywhere, making no priorities.

[Darth Executor]

I"ve heard that EMT's and ER doctors sometimes joke around to help cope with their work. I don't think any criticism here is valid. All this nitpicking before he's even had a chance to screw up is getting really tiring.

What are you talking about, he's screwed up plenty of times. Not least of which have been his disastrous cabinet picks. From what I hear treasury is still woefully understaffed.

[Cupofwrath.com]

Lets see if the economy improves? He's been good on foreign policy so far.

Ever heard of Keynsian economics? Its where you spend money when you shouldn't be spending it (the opposite of what seems right).

but in large part because the credit economy of the last few decades was itself a fake -- a simulacrum of a real growing economy.

Alot of that is true, but when an economy contracts and adjusts itself, it is in danger of a full collapse, because people get scared that they won't have a job, start hoarding money, and everything shuts down. Also financial institutions can fail due to runs on banks etc. I think we'll see over the next few years how relevant Keynsian theory is. Alot of people say it didn't work in Japan but others say they didn't do it right.

[Mountain Man]

He's been good on foreign policy so far.

He has?

[Zero Tolerance]

President Obama's biggest problem right now is that he's listening to his own training and the advisors around him who are telling him that, by shifting paper money around, we can return to the "happy-spending," "happy-motoring" world of the last few dacades.

I don't think these advisors are ignorant, corrupt, or lying; I think they are intelligent and well-meaning but wrong. But the ground rules of the economy are changing, in part because of external factors like peak oil and globalization, but in large part because the credit economy of the last few decades was itself a fake -- a simulacrum of a real growing economy. Like if you were to rack up a credit card living at a resort for a week after you had lost your job, pretending it was your salary and the resort was your manifest destiny. And then trying to make up for the situation when the bill comes due by paying off that credit card using a cash advance from another.

Because that's what we've been doing. And even those of us who managed our individual credit wisely were participants merely by being involved in the economy. Bought a small TV with cash instead of a mega-screen TV on credit from a second mortgage? No matter; when you bought that small TV, the cost was set by the demand curve which was modified by all those mega-screen TVs bought on credit. Paid a lot for a house you could afford instead of a whole lot for one you couldn't afford? No matter, that extra money you're paying for the next 30 years because of the housing bubble was money that you won't be able use to buy something else. Etc.

We need to recognize all these things (and their compounding by the global economic situation and peak oil) if we are to find a good way out of our current mess. The current crop of advisors, are, in an odd way, too good at what they are supposed to do, because what they are "supposed to do" may no longer be what they need to do in today's world. But on the flip side, I think they are smart enough that they can wake up and realize it, and work well within the new parameters when they do. I just hope they do so; I just hope we give them the latitude to do so.

So I would say to President Obama: look around you, follow your instincts and your reason, look at the present and not at the past, and make sure your advisors do the same. And don't be afraid to communicate hard truths to the American people. You had people ready for change, now be bold enough to deliver.

-Neil

Finally, a post about the economy that isn't antagonistic, yet makes sense!