Comments on: Pleasure Island Lesson: Don’t Play With the Bad Guys

By: DrZen

DrZen — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 07:00:09 +0000

It all becomes a lot clearer when you get it straight that Obama is one of the bad guys, not the messiah you hoped he would be.

By: acquarius74

acquarius74 — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 00:56:21 +0000

Here is the link to online ChicagoTribuneMagazine article about Obama, the Univ of Chicago, its grads in his cabinet, and the Chicago School of Economics (de-regulation per Milton Freidman). I’ve only read 2 pages (some of which disturbs me) but will reserve judgment until I finish it.

By: acquarius74

acquarius74 — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 00:31:03 +0000

Thank you for your very disturbing post. Back when Obama was campaigning I noted the U of Chicago bit but paid no particular attention. Then when he began picking his cabinet, I noticed that many had been of the U of C crowd or the Chicago political crowd. Then I noticed that Paulson had spent some time in the Chicago unit of Goldman Sachs. I must pursue this thread and see where it leads…..

I’m old enough to remember the Al Capone stories, but was naive enough to think those mobster days were of the past.

I’ll search your ref and see if I can provide the link. (learned how myself only a short time ago, thanks to 2 fine people who walked me thru it)

By: Gitcheegumee

Gitcheegumee — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 22:42:44 +0000

It has always struck me as a kind of cosmic irony,on a stupendous scale, that those in positions of power to determine the economic destiny of others, have never been destitute themsleves.

By: raven333

raven333 — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 21:58:31 +0000

As for the rational actor part, even our best economists have only awakened to that error in the last several years.

Then why did Keynes talk about “animal spirits?”

Cutting taxes and saving is “common sense” for a good fraction of the US population.

My point is not to ignore the brilliant advice of the Krugman’s of the world, it is to separate needed expertise from a controlling interest in democracy.

I wish you’d said that in the first place. There’s plenty of demagogues willing to step up and tell us why they know best, and they’re dangerous. Rush Limbaugh is a moderate among these. In electing Obama, we seem to have more-or-less rejected an authoritarian solution to our problems, but if Obama doesn’t deliver, the authoritarians will be back, and matters could get very bad indeed.

By: DaveBecker

DaveBecker — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 21:51:29 +0000

“I have never believed it takes experts to run an economy.”

My heart soared upon reading that.

By: acquarius74

acquarius74 — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 21:00:55 +0000

Here is link to a 53 minute YouTube interview with John K Galbraith, economist, statesman, writer of more than 20 books and father of James K. Galbraith.

By: tehcatlady

tehcatlady — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 20:14:50 +0000

I am aware of the two schools of economics; I spent a short time at the University of Chicago school of economics but I could not stomach it. You should see today’s Chicago Tribune magazine (I would post a link but I am functionally illiterate on the computer) detailing Obama’s ties to the University of Chicago. I could not read the article, I confess. The cover shows a drawing of Obama with his UC buddies, Austan Goolsbee and Cass Sunstein. His University of Chicago connection was enough to raise my suspicions about the Obama candidacy. Plus, I like the way the media portray him as this distinguished law professor when he was only a part time lecturer.

By: Gitcheegumee

Gitcheegumee — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 19:41:21 +0000

Sorry, but I have nothing to offer on Peolsi. One I SHOULD have gotten around to FIRST,actually. Mea culpa.

My sympathies to you re : Cornyn.

I fear that “real” anything is approaching quixotic as a goal, at this point.

The revelations about the Diebolt machines self-deleting,and the extensive info on Bradblog and Velvet Revolution aboutelectronic vote manipulation {man-in-the-middle]does not bode well,sadly,imho.

By: acquarius74

acquarius74 — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 19:10:26 +0000

Thank you, Gitcheegumee. It will take me some time to study your links.

Pelosi’s husband is a real estate wheeler-dealer, right? How did he make out during the Big Bubble?

Been doing some studying of my (ugh) senator Cornyn and his backers. First among them is CONTRAN, owned by Harold Simmons who dreamed up leveraged buy-outs and is openly termed one of the big corporate raiders.

We need real campaign finance reform in the worst way.