We have a lot of suddenly much poorer and out-of-work people right here in America. The economic stimulus has worked modestly well, but states like California and Florida, which are drowning in red ink and whose economies show no prospect of turning around any time soon. If you stabilize the real estate market, you also stabilize bank balance sheets, and that enables banks to resume more normal patterns of lending to those that are credit worthy, and those borrowers put that money to some economically productive use that, in most cases, tends to have a positive impact on employment, which in turn tends to have a positive impact on consumption, and consumption has a positive effect on the American and, thus, the global economy.

No good hearted American is against making loans or capital contributions to central banks/governments in poorer countries. But if that’s the case, then any add-on to the Supplemental should be strictly limited to achieve that goal. As far as lending money to capital-poor European banks, as Angela Merkel said “Let them eat cake.” I’m sorry. I guess that was Marie Antoinette, but it might as well as have been Merkel. The European banks can ask for help from their central governments, or their central governments can enact economic stimulus packages along the lines of those passed by China and America. And if their governments don’t want to save them, then that’s just their tough luck. Capitalism happens! Not often enough, but here and there capitalism does happen.

You want a talking point? This is a provision that will expand the socialization of losses beyond American shores. We encourage many erstwhile American corporations to move jobs overseas and permit mail box drops in Bermuda and the Bahamas to serve as the means for avoiding state and federal corporate income taxes, but no that isn’t enough for the mighty US Senate. We need to bail out European banks because we want to encourage their incompetence? Or is it to further a corporate system that fails American workers, in addition to the US Treasury, year after year? Or is it because the US Senate is completely captured by the interests of the global financial economy and haven’t the balls to say no to their corporate soul mates.

They can say no to a sensible and affordable real estate tax credit of $15,000, so that a couple of economically clueless Senators from Maine can say they exercised their influence to make the economic stimulus bill more fiscally responsible. But in so doing they run the risk that states like California and Florida essentially descend into chaos. They should both be working for Angela Merkel to wreck the European economy, if only we were so lucky.

Screw the IMF and their plan to bail out European banks. Let the European countries do it, particularly those that aren’t fighting two wars to the tune of trillions borrowed on the backs of future generations of Americans for their benefit as much as ours.

We need to commit our resources to fixing our economy. The global effect of a healthy American economy will be far greater than $108 billion, and if the European banks can’t hold out, then I’m sure an American or Canadian or Chinese or Japanese or Middle eastern bank or consortium will be happy to buy them out at the right price.

Capitalism happens, Europe! Deal with it!

the idea of giving geithner any more $$$ to play with is imo nuts.

that said i do think we have an obligation to help destitute people in poor countries that have been hurt by our policies — but the idea that geithner has any concern about that is just laughable. what concern has he shown for people in need here or anywhere else?

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and i’m pretty sure that bombing more people isn’t a good idea either. no more fucking war!!!

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on the other hand a supplemental for closing gitmo and all the black sites is a supplemental i could support. mcgovern’s admendment to tell the pentagon to make a plan for withdrawal from afghanistan would be nice too.

but those are apparently not on the table. :(

that’s “toe-the-line” .. not “tow-the-line” ..

it comes from an old naval expression wherein the deck crew were told to line up along a seam.. [crack].. in the deckboards …