Saturday Night Live has an infamous history as of late regarding politics - coming down hard on Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin, and the show's political voice is clearly left when former cast-members like Chevy Chase hope that the show goes further and "decimates" our next VP.
However, sometimes they get it right... as was the case in their representation of the $700 Billion Wall-Street Welfare plan. There has been much controversy surrounding this direct slam on the Democratic Party for it's actions regarding the bailout, as well as directly attacking Pelosi, Barney Frank, GW Bush, and labelling George Soros as "the Owner of the Democratic Party". They did a great job of calling out the leadership of this nation, and showing how ridiculous such "welfare" plans are and how Democratic ideology actually is the root cause of this entire mess.
If this gets high play, perhaps some on the left might question the truth behind the cause of the economic crisis. There is a long list of causes dating back to the creation of FDIC in 1933 and Fannie Mae in 1938 all the way through to the Clinton and Bush administrations' enforcement of CRA and the "ownership" society. This has nothing to do with the free market (as Obama would indicate, as he did in last night's debate) - our financial markets have not been "deregulated" and anyone who claims so is dishonest. The real key has been a fiat paper currency that is managed by a central bank who has continually tried to eliminate risk but has instead fostered malinvestment, bubbles, and increasing leverage throughout. The solution is to defend individual property rights, free banking and the gold standard.
The skit is hilarious.
ReplyDeleteFinancial markets have not been deregulated? OK maybe, but on a technicality.
The financial markets came up with new concepts that were not regulated the same way as similar concepts. Credit default swaps, for instance, are very much like insurance or gambling, depending on their target condition. Unlike insurance or gambling, there are no restrictions or oversight. This kind of activity has a lot to do with the current meltdown.
We may not need more regulation, but we definitely need better regulation.
I have created a website to discuss American's patriotism--what it is, how we express it, how we recognize it in others. The website will publish letters from citizens that explore these topics. The website is:
ReplyDeletehttp://patriotdialogues.blogspot.com
I am looking for Americans to send in letters so that we can start publishing them on October 15th. Letters can be stories, philosophy, reaction to current or historical events or trends, or artwork. We want letters from all ideological backgrounds--conservative, liberal, independant, or anything else. The goal is to talk about these issues without the media or politicians telling us what patriotism is or how we should feel about it.
Please send in letters to
The Patriot Dialogues
P.O. Box 31506
Philadelphia, Pa 19147
or email
patriotdialogues@gmail.com