Edward Liddy, the Congressional Scapegoat

We all need to blame someone for our troubles.We saw this with George Bush in 2007 and with Steve Bartman in 2003.

Kenneth Westhues wrote,
<blockquote>”Scapegoating is an effective if temporary means of achieving group solidarity, when it cannot be achieved in a more constructive way.”</blockquote>
People look for scapegoats when they need someone to blame, and most often, they are not even related to their effects. For example, George Bush is blamed for Freddie Mac’s failure, though the failed institution was created by Franklin Delano Roosevelt and forced into bad loans with poor families by the Carter Administration (and Bush would have made the necessary changes to save Freddie Mac had the liberal congress not prevented this in the name of the poor).

This brings us to Edward Liddy. Congress called him in, like a court, and questioned him about AIG and what was being done to fix the company. Congress was fuming about AIG’s continuous corruption, and they wanted answers.

Well, Edward Liddy is certainly not responsible for this corruption. The federal government put him at his post as CEO of AIG. Many other people have been CEO before him, including Martin Sullivan, Robert Willumstad, and Joseph Cassano. ABC says that the latter “virtually bankrupted” AIG, and even this is unfair.

It is implausible and unfair to attack Edward Liddy for contractual bonuses, especially when Liddy believes he’s “made progress in winding down this business”.

Now we must note that our government hates the very AIG that they set up. Says Democrat Paul Hodes, “AIG now stands for arrogance, incompetence and greed.” Well, one thing is certain. Dissatisfaction with the work of liberal congress is bipartisan.

A Temporary Gain

DOW jumped 500 points today.

Unfortunately, this is nothing. DOW has already dropped 7000 points since the height of the Bush era. Bush began the bailouts late in 2008, and finally, 2+ trillion dollars later, DOW jumps 500 points…

Well, I want my money back. I’m sure most Americans do. We can only begin to imagine how much 2 trillion dollars flowing through our economy would help. Instead, it has been sapped in by the government and dumped into failing companies, ultimately to be lost.

Americans have a right to be concerned. But still too many are impartial.

One Last Hope: Hillary Clinton’s New Postion Unconstitutional?

Well, not exactly.

The Emolument Clause: (Article I, Section VI) 

“No Senator or Representative shall, during the time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil office under the authority of the United States, which shall have been created, or the emoluments whereof shall have been increased during such time: and no person holding any office under the United States, shall be a member of either House during his continuance in office.”

Because there was a pay raise during Bush’s presidency, Hillary is ineligible for the position of Secretary of State. Though the cabinet pay was increased by executive order, her prescence in the senate at that time prevents her from ever taking any cabinet position. (Obama should know this, as he studied constitutional law at Harvard.)

Though this is unfair (she didn’t have a say in whether or not the pay increased), the constitution won’t let her in. Too bad.

Many people (including myself) are happy at the prospect of Hillary Clinton staying out of the cabinet. However, this situation has happened before and the constitution was either ignored or bent. Hillary Clinton will get her position.

And besides, if not Hillary, then another liberal. So why bother?

The Economic Recession and Liberalism

 

While others may blame Bush for this recession, I will take the time to analyze the many factors causing this recession.

Gas Prices

Gas prices surged in the middle of the 2000-2009 decade. The increase in the price of oil increases the price of everything, as oil moves things from place to place. The fault of the rising prices goes to OPEC. The United States never joined OPEC and therefore has no say in it. To make a larger profit, these countries increased the price of oil exports. Local oil companies didn’t have the resources to compete in production, and were forced to buy this foreign oil at a high price.

In countries that don’t allow any drilling on their soil, such as England, people pay more than twice what the United States pays. Further, in countries such as Saudi Arabia, gasoline is sold for about a quarter a gallon. Ladies and gentlemen, there is an easy observation to make: countries that drill more and import less from OPEC have lower gas prices.

So, this first factor can be contributed to liberalism and the green movement, which continually attack oil production. There is no solution to dependence on oil; wind will never power a car (picture a car pulled by a sail) and the sun will never power a vehicle (the solar powered cars cost millions of dollars and can only travel about fifty miles per hour). Cars will never run on batteries or any form of electricity either. Battery powered cars are expensive as well, and most of their energy is wasted trying to move the battery portion of the car’s weight.

The Internet Boom

The second factor in this recession is the boom-bust cycle. The internet boom of the nineties and early 2000s was naturally followed by a bust. Though this boom has traditionally been linked to liberal policies, do not be fooled. The invention of the internet created a large boom as a new way to advertise, communicate, and gain information rose. A bust naturally followed.

Economic Panic

The third factor in this recession is the press. Yes, when people hear that the economy is turning down, they save their money and spend less. Yes, a panic like this lead to many recessions and depressions. The Great Depression began when the stocks (which had always only gone up steeply) began to turn down. The following panic resulted in people selling their stock. Naturally, stock prices fall. More people freak out and sell, etc.

Even before the stock exchange, there were panics. Freaking about the possibly of a large inflation problem, many people ran to cash their money in for gold, as allowed back then. There wasn’t enough gold to do this. This became the Panic of 1893.

So, the fear of a recession often leads to a greater one. The media spewing this around will lead to another depression, and, like the last depression, a whole new set of socialist programs.