Reconsidering Michael Moore

You may remember that a while back I excoriated Michael Moore for his dimwitted comments about Hurricane Gustav.

Today I found Moore's ideas for fixing the economic disaster the country is in.  While it's clear that Moore is still a self-important windbag who desperately needs an editor, he's got some great ideas on how to get us out of this mess.  It's a pretty wordy 10 point plan, and much of it amounts to outright socialism, but there are some truly winning arguments like htis one:

4. IF YOUR BANK OR COMPANY GETS ANY OF OUR MONEY IN A "BAILOUT," THEN WE OWN YOU. Sorry, that's how it's done. If the bank gives me money so I can buy a house, the bank "owns" that house until I pay it all back -- with interest. Same deal for Wall Street. Whatever money you need to stay afloat, if our government considers you a safe risk -- and necessary for the good of the country -- then you can get a loan, but we will own you. If you default, we will sell you. This is how the Swedish government did it and it worked.

I like that idea and the logic behind it even more that I like the idea that the US government should just buy preferred stock in the bailout companies that would pay dividends and be a real investment in the future.  The government could sell the stock as it goes up and recover the bailout costs.  It;s the Warren Buffett plan writ large.

I can't say I really know how to get us out of this mess, but I agree with Moore that the blame can be laid squarely at the feet of the anti-big-government Republicans that deregulated Wall Street and then made government bigger once they got control of the purse strings.  We've got to tighten regulation, punish criminal behavior and eliminate the tax loopholes that are crushing the middle class with an unfair share of the tax burden.

The chickens in DC are now going to pass darn near the same program they voted down last week because ill-informed voters are clamoring for them to do something.  Anything.  So since Bush and his board room buddies are taking the hard line and refusing to negotiate, they're going to give away the treasury to a lame duck administration and the scum-sucking bottom feeders that caused this mess in the first place.

Pathetic.

Comments

[Lou]

He is still an a#$%^%! and he likes Michigan State so blank blank blank him! LOL

GO PHILS - BLANK CARLO!

[Hillary Chybinski]

but tonight is the debate right?? where one person will talk intelligently and one person will. . . .will what???? that is the $64,000 question. . .has she been prepared to not look stupid?? time will tell. . .and perhaps she's read the Bush Doctrine and a magazine by now. . . I don't have any answers either - but then, I'm just a mom in PA. . .

HAC